Chapter 17

CHAPTER17

“So, I’ve been thinking,” came the announcement as Bailey dropped down on his back with a satisfied sigh that left him groaning. God, she was a mean little thing, Quinn thought as he turned his head, determined to ignore the woman who had been driving him crazy over the past week.

She never fucking slept for more than two hours at a time. She was like the Energizer-fucking-Bunny. He’d honestly never seen anything like it. He was used to going without sleep and grabbing ten minutes here and there just to get by, but Bailey…

She just…

God, the longer that she stayed awake, the more energized she became. He honestly wasn’t sure how much more of this he could take, morning, noon, and night, she kept fucking going, talking his ear off one minute, and the next, she was sitting in the corner, staring down at the computer that he’d been forced to hand over to save his sanity, her fingertips flying over the keyboard, leaving him praying that she didn’t stop because when she did…

“I think I’m ready to learn how to kill a man,” Bailey said as he lay there, frowning in confusion right around the time that the bitter aroma of the only thing that was going to save his sanity reached him, immediately sending terror through him as he carefully, yet really fucking quickly, turned over onto his back and snatched the cup of coffee out of her hands before she could make this day even more memorable.

“I didn’t offer to teach you how to kill a man,” Quinn bit out with a glare as the little pain in the ass carefully shifted down the couch until she was sitting on his legs, “I offered to teach you self-defense.”

Frowning adorably, Bailey asked, “Isn’t that the same thing?” making him swallow hard as he stared helplessly at her as a thought occurred to him, one that had him praying that he was wrong, but he already knew that he wasn’t.

“You already Googled how to kill a man with your bare hands, didn’t you?” he asked, taking a sip of coffee before moving to place it down on the coffee table, only to narrow his eyes on the little pain in the ass when she moved to grab it.

With a pathetic little mumble, Bailey sat back with a disappointed sigh and a nod as she said, “Yes, yes, I did.”

“Jesus Christ,” Quinn said, rubbing his hands down his face, once again wondering how much more of this he was going to be able to take.

“I have questions,” Bailey said, sounding thoughtful.

“Of course you do,” Quinn said, sighing heavily as he pulled his legs free and sat up next to the woman who was quickly destroying his will to live.

“How many ways can I kill a man with my thumb?” she asked as he grabbed the coffee and downed it in one gulp, needing the hot, bitter liquid to make it through this conversation.

“None.”

“How many ways can you kill a man with your thumb?” came the follow-up question that had him placing the empty coffee cup back on the coffee table so that he could drop his head in his hands, already feeling a migraine coming on.

“Eleven,” Quinn said, rubbing his hands roughly down his face.

“I’m going to need you to show me at least half of them,” she said in an awed whisper that had him dropping his hands away so that he could glare at her.

“No,” he bit out, praying that would be the end of it, but he knew better by now.

“It would make things easier if I turned into a killing machine,” Bailey said, nodding solemnly.

Refusing to be sucked into this conversation after she’d fucked with his head yesterday because she was bored, Quinn shoved the blanket off his lap and headed to the bathroom. Five minutes later, he was enjoying a hot shower when he heard it. Telling himself that it was just his imagination fucking with his head, he closed his eyes and-

“You know what would make this easier?” came the question that had him dropping his head in defeat.

“No,” Quinn said, hoping that she took pity on him and left him alone for the day.

“Going home,” came the sadly mumbled words as though it pained her to make the suggestion.

“Not happening,” Quinn said, absolutely refusing to bring her back until the building was secure and he had a few more answers.

Until then, they were staying right where they were.

* * *

“This is fun.Isn’t this fun?” the small woman that was driving him fucking crazy asked with a satisfied sigh as he stood there, tightening his hold on the armrests of his chair to stop himself from spanking her and-

“Let’s see,” Bailey said, making a show of looking over the selection of nail polish that she’d somehow convinced him to buy for her when they made a quick run into town to grab food while he sat there, seething. “I think the pink compliments your skin, but I have to admit that I’m partial to the emerald.”

“I’m going to spank your ass,” Quinn bit out, hoping that the warning would be enough to put a stop to this.

Nodding, Bailey said, “Green it is,” with a nod and a murmured, “This is going to look really good on you.”

“Bailey,” he said evenly, only to swallow nervously while he was forced to sit there watching her as she took her time shaking the small bottle as she shifted on the floor to get more comfortable.

“We should have done this sooner,” Bailey said as he watched her unscrew the small bottle and made a show of pulling the small brush covered in green nail polish out and-

“I have to chop more wood!” Quinn said, not even fucking caring that he was panicking as he got out of that chair and rushed to the door, praying like hell that she just let him go and-

“I should probably help you with that. Let me just grab my sneakers and you can show me how to use that ax,” came the announcement that fucking terrified him.

* * *

“I know what you’re doing,”Quinn muttered against the pillow that he’d managed to steal from the little brat determined to make his life a living hell.

“And what’s that?” came the absently murmured question as the sounds of her fingertips tapping against the keys on his laptop filled the small cabin.

“We’re not going anywhere,” Quinn bit out evenly, letting her know that her fucked-up games weren’t going to work.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Bailey said, earning a glare because they both fucking knew what she was doing.

“You’re evil,” Quinn bit out as he turned his head so that he could glare at the little brat that decided that sitting on the floor next to the couch was the best place for her to work instead of on the bed.

“Because I’m making it easier for you to protect me?” she asked, continuing to type away while he lay there, glaring at the back of her head.

“By annoying the hell out of me?” Quinn demanded, deciding that he’d had enough for one night and turned his head, refusing to play this game.

“Is that what I’m doing?” Bailey asked, trying to sound innocent.

“You know damn well what you’re doing,” he bit out as he lay there, thinking about that moment when Bailey got her hand on the ax and-

He decided to think about something else.

“Do I?” Bailey asked as the little brat gave up her spot on the floor and decided to climb onto his back.

“Comfortable?” Quinn drawled as she shifted to get comfortable on his back.

“This will do,” Bailey murmured with a sniffle and another wiggle.

“God, you’re fucking evil,” he said, burying his face in his pillow as he waited for her to grow bored and move on.

“Which is why you should bring me home to save yourself,” Bailey said with a forlorn sigh as though making his life a living hell somehow pained her.

“Not fucking happening,” Quinn said firmly.

“Are you sure about that?”

“Absolutely.”

* * *

“Is something wrong?”came the pleasantly murmured question that had Quinn’s hands pausing mid-rub down his face so that he could glare at the little brat that kept him up all night by explaining in minute-fucking-detail all the ways season eight of Game of Thrones had let her down.

He just…

God, he couldn’t fucking take it anymore.

When she wasn’t talking his ear off, she was fucking with his head, watching him from across the room, taking in his every move as she sat there quietly, looking thoughtful and it was fucking disturbing. He’d been through some of the most difficult military training in the world run by men who took a great deal of pleasure in breaking men and women until they fucking begged for mercy, but none of them, not one fucking one of them, had ever left him feeling this unnerved before.

She just…

There were no words to describe the small woman that was fucking with his head. He honestly didn’t know how her brother put up with her, but he had a feeling that Nathan struggled not to spank her ass. She-

“So, I was thinking,” Bailey said with a heartfelt sigh that had his eyes narrowing on her as he watched her climb off the bed and forced himself to stay where he was as she made her way towards him.

“That you were evil?” Quinn bit out, only to end up biting back a grunt of pain when the little brat dropped down on his lap like it was the most natural thing in the world, something that she’d been doing more and more lately.

“I honestly don’t know why you’re so cranky,” Bailey said with a satisfied sigh as she settled more comfortably on his lap.

“You’ve kept me up for two nights straight,” Quinn bit out even as he wrapped his arm around her, and Christ, it felt so fucking good to hold her. It was something that he could easily see himself becoming addicted to her, which was a problem because she was the last goddamn woman that he should need this fucking much.