Tony scrolled through the messages on his phone as he walked up to his apartment. He’d missed a call. When had that happened? He’d had his phone with him all evening. Oh, right. It must have been that call he declined while in his father’s office. He’d forgotten all about it.

He clicked on it and nearly stopped in his tracks when he saw the call was from Ginny. Shit. If she’d actually reached out to him, it probably wasn’t for a good reason.

“Tony.”

He looked up to see Ginny, in the flesh, climbing to her feet at his front door. She’d been sitting on the ground. What the hell?

He rushed over, and when she brushed her hair out of her face, the blood in his veins ran cold.

Her face was a mess. Black makeup was smeared all over her face, but that was the least of it. The rest of her face resembled his after he’d taken a beating at his first MMA match. The skin around her eyes was turning a sickly shade of purple, the beginnings of two black eyes. Dried blood was coated on her lip from where it’d been split. Bruises were forming at her temples.

Goddammit! Of all times not to take a call. Could this have been prevented if he’d answered his fucking phone?

“My God,” he breathed. “What happened?”

He put his hands on her arms, wanting to touch her, to reassure himself that she was there. Alive. She looked like she’d been fighting for her life.

Her lower lip quivered and she started sobbing, her whole body shaking with the effort. He tucked her into his chest, using one hand to fish his keys out of his pocket. He quickly unlocked the door and ushered her inside.

He pulled her against him again, holding her while she cried, the sobs wracking her body. She was breaking right here in his arms. And he wanted to break with her.

He hurt for her. God, he wanted to take her pain away and make it his so she didn’t have to suffer. Every tear that fell broke off a sliver of his heart.

And increased his need for vengeance tenfold.

He only needed one guess to figure out who was responsible. If Ginny didn’t need him right now, he’d be in his car, hunting down the bastard. Then he’d tear him apart, limb by fucking limb. He’d enjoy making that fucker suffer. The only downfall would be that he couldn’t kill him twice.

He tamped down his rage, knowing it wouldn’t help Ginny at that moment.

So instead, he stroked her hair and pressed his lips to her forehead. God, he wanted to do so much more. He wanted to inspect every inch of her skin and kiss her all over.

She should be worshipped, not used as a punching bag.

Her sobs quieted and he lowered his arms. She gasped when he came in contact with her elbows. He gently shifted her arms so he could inspect them. Both elbows were skinned and little pieces of gravel were stuck in the wounds.

He closed his eyes, trying to control his anger at the thought that she might have scars.

“We need to get you cleaned up,” he said, trying hard to keep his voice even through clenched teeth.

She nodded, looking up at him with wide trusting eyes, and he took her to his bathroom.

“The first thing we need to do is get the gravel out,” he said.

She nodded again and he took her arms and positioned them over the sink so he could pour water over the wounds. Goosebumps formed on her arms and he immediately increased the water temperature.

Goddammit.

This was wrong on so many levels. She could not have goosebumps as a result of her wounds being tended.

The only goosebumps he wanted on her flesh were the ones he would put there. They would be goosebumps caused by pleasure, not discomfort.

Even in her battered state, his body still responded to her. He wanted nothing more than to take care of her in every way she needed.

She angled her arms so he could access her elbows better and in doing do, leaned up against him, resting her head on his shoulder.

He stopped what he was doing for a moment and enveloped her in his arms. Then she closed her eyes and exhaled.

Good. He wanted her to feel safe with him.

They stayed that way for several minutes, the running water the only sound in the small space.

“How could he do this to me?” Her voice was small and void of emotion. It tore at him—Ginny was normally lively and full of life.

Barkov had broken more than her body—he’d broken her spirit.

He spun her around and her eyes widened in surprise.

“You are worth everything,” he said roughly. He trailed her fingertips down her cheek. “Your face and smile brighten a room.” He lightly touched his lips to her forehead, then her jaw.

She inhaled sharply, clutching his forearms.

“Your body should belong to a goddess.” He placed butterfly kissed on her exposed shoulder, trailing them down her arm. Then he took her hands in his and turned them up, nuzzling her palms.

“But what I like most about you—” His voice was hoarse, full of raw emotion. “Is your mind. You’re so beautiful, inside and out. You’re worth everything and more.”

Her lower lip quivered and it took all his restraint not to press his lips there, to continue his kisses on the rest of her body. To show her her worth.

But she was emotionally and physically fragile.

“Let’s finish cleaning you up,” he said.

“No,” she whispered.

“Ginny, we have—”

“No, I mean keep going. Your kisses.”

* * *

Ginny closed her eyes for a moment, stunned at her own brazenness. But the feel of Tony’s lips on her skin were the only thing making her feel alive, the only thing making her remember she deserved love, care, tenderness.

When she opened her eyes, he was staring back at her with a question in his eyes. That and tenderness. She’d always been able to count on Tony for that.

And she needed it now more than ever.

God only knew she had no right to what she was asking.

But she nodded at him, giving him the permission his question demanded.

Tony’s eyelids lowered, his gaze sweeping over her body. Then he gently kissed her palms again. First one, then the other.

His breath on her skin warmed her in more ways than one.

He rotated her arm so he could kiss the tender spot on her wrist. He sucked gently and her pulse throbbed as her heartbeat quickened.

His dark eyes were on hers again and he stepped closer, putting them toe to toe. Then he dropped his mouth to her throat.

Her hands clutched at his back and she swayed into him.

His lips worked on her skin. When she felt the flick of his tongue, she almost moaned. Tingles rushed through her body and she almost staggered at the power. She couldn’t remember the last time anyone had affected her this way.

Except no, that wasn’t true.

Tony had given her these feelings before, at the gala.

His hands traveled lightly down her spine. Through the sheer dress, she could almost feel his touch on her bare skin.

She wanted to feel it. She wanted to feel his touch on every inch of her body.

But she also wanted to touch him.

She reached for his shirt, planning to tug it out of his pants. But when she gripped his belt, her skinned knuckles brushed against the hard leather and she hissed in pain.

Tony stopped immediately, pulling back. “Did I hurt you?”

Wanting to pull him close to her, she reluctantly shook her head. “No, I skimmed my knuckles against your belt.”

Various emotions flickered through Tony’s eyes. Sorrow, anger, and finally the tenderness again.

“We need to finish tending to your wounds.”

He was right, but damn if she would rather stay here for hours, letting him rain kisses upon her body. They might not heal her physical wounds, but they tended to her soul.

* * *

Tony gently washed the dirt and blood off her arms.

Barkov spilled Ginny’s blood kept running through his mind. That fucker was so fucking lucky Ginny needed him right now. Tony didn’t own any weapons, but he wouldn’t need one—he would rip Barkov apart with his bare hands.

For a moment while tasting Ginny’s skin, he’d almost forgotten why she’d come to him. Then she’d hissed in pain, snapping him back to reality.

He needed to be careful with her.

He worked meticulously, trying hard to mask his anger that her soft skin was marred, but he was also putting off what came next.

He pulled a bottle of hydrogen peroxide out from under the sink. “We need to clean the cuts.”

She nodded again, and he screwed the lid off the bottle, hesitating for a moment. He knew all too well how much this stung. During the time when he did MMA every day, he’d dressed a fair number of his own injuries.

He poured the solution on her elbow and she sucked in a breath. Tears came to her eyes and she blinked, obviously trying hard to be strong.

“I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry.” Even though he knew it was necessary, he hated causing her more pain, especially when all he wanted to do was make everything in her world right. When all he wanted to do was kiss her until everything was all better.

He pulled out bandages and wrapped her elbows. Every touch was torture for him. Ever since their kiss at the charity gala, he’d wanted nothing more than to have his hands on her.

But not like this. Never like this.

He turned his attention to her face.

Motherfucker.

Her black eyes had gotten worse in the twenty-five minutes since he’d opened his front door. And her lip had swollen up even more.

He closed his eyes for a moment, needing to steady himself. Hatred and rage burned throughout him, and no doubt that showed in his eyes. And that’s not what she needed to see from him, not right now.

He ran a washcloth under cold water and dabbed the damp cloth on the dried blood on her lip and chin.

She grabbed his hand and pushed it away. “You’ll stain it.”

He stared at her for a moment, glad to see some of the spark had returned to her eyes.

He gently cupped her chin and lifted her face so that she was forced to look into his eyes. “I don’t give a fuck about the damn wash cloth. I care about you.” His eyes searched her face. “Got me?”

She nodded and he continued cleaning her face, pleased to see that the cut on her lip was smaller than he’d originally thought. That was something at least.

He brought her to the living room and told her to wait there while he grabbed two ice packs from the freezer. Luckily, he kept them on hand. He instructed her to lay down and positioned them on her face. She hissed at the coldness and once again he found himself apologizing.

Barkov would pay for this. No matter what Ginny had to say about it, he would make Barkov pay.

“You haven’t even asked me what happened,” she said quietly.

“I don’t have to ask.” He kept his voice even, belying the rage he actually felt. “I can guess who’s responsible, and that’s all I need to know.”

“Tony, you can’t go after Fedor. You just can’t.” Her voice was desperate and it tugged at his gut. What did Barkov have on her? Why was she so loyal to him? Though he didn’t know the whole story, he knew Barkov didn’t deserve her loyalty.

“Tell me why. Tell me why I shouldn’t rip that fucker’s lungs out while he watches.”

She sighed. “It’s complicated.”

“It always is.”

She was quiet for a few moments and he let her have the silence. He would give her anything she needed, as long as it didn’t require him to walk away from her. Because that wasn’t happening.

She’d walked away from him several times in the last few weeks, and he hated himself for it. He should have tried harder. He should have found a way to make her stay. Maybe this could have been avoided.

“Can we talk about it tomorrow?” she asked, sounding defeated. “I don’t want to get into it right now. I just . . . can’t.”

“Sure thing, Ginny. Take all the time you need.”

He could say that honestly because even if she didn’t tell him, he would find out one way or another. Deep in his gut, guilt struck for his pseudo honesty, but he quickly dismissed it.

“Can I stay here tonight? I’m sorry, but I—”

“Don’t,” Tony said. “Don’t apologize. I won’t have you being sorry for needing me.”

“I’m not.” She paused and the air between them was thick. “I mean, I’m sorry for inconveniencing you.”

He brushed a hair away from her face with his fingertip, wanting to do so much more. “You’re never an inconvenience.”

She removed the ice packs and looked up at him, her eyes trusting. And vulnerable. How could they not be after what she’d just gone through?

Barkov deserved to have his balls cut off and have them shoved down his throat. What kind of a man beat a woman like this?

He glanced down at her left hand, frowning at the ring that was still on her finger. He picked up her hand to examine it. When she realized what he was doing, she ripped the ring off and threw it across the room. It hit the wall and landed behind the TV.

“Bastard,” she muttered. “I can’t believe I ever agreed to that.”

Tony couldn’t either, but he said nothing because anything he would say could be construed as being self-serving or a version of “I told you so.” He was just glad she was finally seeing the light.

And that she’d come to him.

“What happened?” Tony asked. She’d said she wanted to talk about the why tomorrow. She needed time to process, so he would have to wait to learn the whole story. But he needed to know the what now. He needed to know exactly how much pain to deliver Barkov.

“Fedor got angry over something that happened right before at my parents’ house.” Her voice shook. “It doesn’t really matter. We were in the car on the way to dinner and he hit me.” She paused and her eyes focused on the ceiling. Her voice had taken on a mechanical tone. “I don’t know how many times he hit me. Then I was on the floor and he kicked me, too. I opened the door at a stoplight and ran away. He didn’t even try to come after me.”

Tony’s hands shook from rage and he clenched his jaw. The man left her on the street, battered and beaten, like she was a damn piece of trash.

She is worth everything.

And by God, it was now his mission to make sure she believed it.

“Where were you headed?” Tony asked casually. Her missed call was only about an hour ago, so the motherfucker might still be at their destination.

“To dinner at—” She sat up and shook her head, realizing why he wanted to know. “No, Tony. No. You can’t go after him.”

“Like fuck I can’t,” Tony growled. He stood up, his pent-up rage not letting him sit still any longer. “He can’t just do this to you and get away with it.”

“I don’t want him to,” Ginny said dully, “but I don’t see any other choice.”

He picked his keys up off the table. “You’ll be safe here.”

“No, Tony, you can’t go after him. I’m serious.” Her voice was desperate. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with.”

Tony nearly chuckled. Actually, he did. She didn’t know that he’d done recon on Barkov. And he forgot that Ginny didn’t know about his MMA skills—no one in this part of his life did. She didn’t realize how deadly he was. It was time to put his skills to good use.

“Trust me,” he said simply. “I’ll be fine.”

“You can’t.” She shook her head adamantly. “Besides, if you confront him, he’ll know I’m with you.”

Tony paused. Shit. Ginny had a point. Right now, Barkov didn’t know about their association, making his place the perfect safe house for her. If he went to Barkov, Barkov would know where Ginny was, and she’d have to leave.

That was not happening. Goddammit.

“Fuck.”

“You got that right,” Ginny muttered.

Tony cocked his head. “How did you get here anyway?”

“Uber. I paid the driver extra to keep his mouth shut in case anyone comes asking,” Ginny admitted. “And I had him drop me off around the block.”

Tony couldn’t help but smile. “Smart.”

She let out a breath. “I’ve been so stupid lately.”

“We’ll get it straightened out. I promise.”

“Why? Why are you being so good to me?” She peered at him, the question hanging in her eyes. She didn’t know. She truly didn’t get it.

He lowered to his knees in front of her so that their eyes were level and took her hands in his. “When you walked back into my life that night at the charity ball, you sparked something here.” He pressed her hand to his chest, over his heart. “And I think you felt it, too.”

Her lips parted like she was going to say something but instead she swallowed.

He wanted to cover her mouth with his, to show her the intensity of what she ignited in him. But that wasn’t what she needed right now.

So instead he touched his lips gently to her knuckles. “Let’s get you ready for bed.”