Steele's POV
I had been watching for the better part of daylight as Aria was ridiculed by Brooke. Despite the fact the scene remained a mess, my only care was in the fact that the woman I craved to protect was bleeding down her own side. It was what pulled my hands into a clench as Brooke’s voice continued to escalate and my patience weaned thinner and thinner by the second.
“ENOUGH!” I raged, both sets of their eyes focusing on me with varied reactions. But the only one I cared to note was the sympathy and appreciation in my Aria’s.
“She is hurt.” Only when I knelt in front of Aria, widening the hole left in her silk top, had Brooke even noticed it as her friend was stubborn enough to try and hide it.
“Oh my God! Why didn’t you say anything?! We have to get you to a hospital!”
“No
