"He'll have to learn eventually that a man shouldn't be coddled, no matter his origin."

His tongue passed over his lip when he felt the skin knitting together, a mild itch there after it was done. He laid his free hand over Cole's and lowered it away from his side, looking up at him with a stern little frown. "Don't worry about it. I'll see Stitches in the morning, when we've all had a chance to rest."