5

I sighed. “I can’t, I’m sorry.” I wished I could, though.

Asher nodded curtly. “Can you at least tell me if he’s going to be okay?”

It would’ve been cruel not to give an inch. “He should be fine.” Not immediately, but eventually.

The big man’s sigh of relief was almost loud enough to wake the patient. “Thank you. We thought—” He stopped abruptly.

When he didn’t say anything else, I spoke up. “We?”

“My buddy and me. Maybe you saw us when we brought him in?”

There had been two men there, but I didn’t remember what the other one looked like. “I didn’t see you in the waiting room after that.”

He shrugged, the muscles of his massive biceps shifting under his jacket. “Security wouldn’t let us see him, and we had some things to take care of.”

His tone was curt and didn’t invite follow-up questions.

He had some, though. “Can you tell me when—” He broke off as the door opened. Startled, his hand snaked inside his jacket as he turned. I expected to see Dr. Baines there, but another man stepped into the room.

The newcomer ignored me and looked straight at Asher. “We’ve got company.” This man was a few inches shorter than Asher, but still pretty tall. And his muscles weren’t as big and bulky, but he moved with an easy confidence, like his bigger friend. His dark hair and eyes showed that he was likely Italian, too. These two looked like they could be related.

Asher strode to the door as if to take a look down the hall, but his buddy had already shut the door behind him. He spared a brief glance for me and for Leonel before addressing Asher.

“He okay?”

“He will be,” Asher replied. “How many?”

“Two.” The new man said. “There were three.”

They exchanged a look and then Asher moved over to my side of the bed. “You need to go to the bathroom,” he ordered.

For a moment, I stared at him, utterly confused. “What?”

“It’ll be safer there.”

He gripped my arm, pulling me to my feet.

“What?” I repeated again. Slowly, it dawned on me that he hadn’t meant that he thought I needed tousethe bathroom. He just wanted me to go in it.

Because it was safer.

Fear flooded through me.

The other man flattened himself against the wall behind the door and he had a gun in his hand. My legs started sharking, and I almost fell back into the chair.

A gun. Inside the hospital.

That should’ve scared, and it did but it also infuriated me. “Listen, you can’t just—”

Asher’s large palm covered my mouth and he hissed at me to be quiet. What little self-defense training I’d had trickled into my mind, but what was one supposed to do against a man of his size? I had to crane my neck just to look him in the eye, which wasn’t easy to do when he had his hand clamped over my mouth.

Besides, though I might’ve been crazy, I wasn’t scared of his anger. It clearly wasn’t directed at me. But I was mad as hell at his friend for bringing a weapon into my workplace.

Cautiously, Asher removed his hand, watching my face intently, no doubt ready to silence me again if he had to. But his demeanor was getting to me. He and his buddy by the door were clearly worried about whoever was out there.

“Get ready,” his friend whispered in a voice so quiet I could barely hear it. Asher nodded, not taking his eyes off me. But his hand moved. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a handgun of his own.

Okay, now I was scared. Being around guns always did that to me. I hated them with a passion. But it was more than that this time. I was also frightened because of the tension radiating from these two. It couldn’t have been more obvious that they thought something big was about to go down.

Something big and bad.

And then there was a sound right outside the door. A footstep. It cracked open as my heart pounded painfully in my chest.

It took effort to remember how to breathe as I looked up at Asher’s dark eyes. His grip was tight on his gun, and he looked ready to whirl around and shoot. And maybe whoever was at the door would also shoot. His buddy certainly looked ready to.

God, someone was going to get hurt. Maybe Leonel who was still unconscious. Or a patient or staff in the hallway. Or me here in this little room. I didn’t want any of those things to happen. Hell, I didn’t even want these two men whom I knew nothing about to get hurt. Even though they were armed and ready to fire.

The door opened farther, as if in slow motion. Asher’s muscles tensed as he prepared to turn. His buddy, still hidden by the door, had his pistol ready to take down anyone who entered.

Something snapped inside me, and I knew I couldn’t let that happen. I stepped forward, pressing my body against Asher’s, my hands linking behind his thick neck. His gun got caught between our bodies as I pressed myself against him, but I didn’t let myself think about it. Instead, I focused on his face as I went up on my tiptoes. I cupped the back of his neck to pull his head down as I raised my lips to his.

His body was stiff and unyielding for a long moment. I felt the coiling of his muscles and wondered if he’d push me away and continue along the path of violence. But then his freehand wrapped around my waist and he smashed me against his massive chest, his mouth engulfing mine.

My mind raced as I pantomimed being in the throes of passion. Due to Asher’s large body, I couldn’t see who had opened the door, but I could sense the surprise coming from that direction, either from Asher’s friend or the intruder. But I didn’t let it distract me. This was the only way I knew to avoid people getting hurt.

I raked my fingers across Asher’s short hair, and he responded by running his large hand up my back, tugging at the blonde tendrils that had escaped my messy bun. He deftly found the large bobby pins and plucked them out, causing my hair to cascade down around my shoulders. His large fingers soothed it in place as he pressed his body against me, turning me slightly, possibly to make sure the gun was hidden from sight?

Letting out a moan, I stroked his neck and his back. I was surprised to feel an answering rumble from his chest. Was he faking moaning like I was? Or was he actually moaning. Because there was something he wasn’t faking, and that was the hardness pressing against my abdomen. His gun definitely wasn’t the only hard thing pressing against my body.

My senses were alert for any sound coming from the doorway, but something strange was happening. Well, everything about this messed up situation was strange, but still… I never expected to feel anything from this kiss. It wasn’t real. I didn’t know this guy. Sure, he was hot in a body-builder kind of way. And in a talk, dark, and powerful kind of way. But that had never been enough in the past. I needed to know someone—and like them—in order to feel something with them.

So why was there this warmth coursing through me? This urgency in the way my mouth met his? It made no sense. This whole thing was terrifying, not a turn-on.

Except somehow it seemed to be both.

Then I heard a soft chuckle. “My bad,” a voice said from the open doorway, and then I saw the light shift and heard the door click shut.

And still, Asher kissed me. I’d initiated the kiss, but he’d taken it over, there was no doubt about that. His mouth ravished mine, and I finally let my eyes close as I gave into the sensations. I sank against him, letting him hold me up as the strength left my body.

Even if I could’ve mustered the strength to pull away, I probably wouldn’t have. It was like everything else in the world had melted away except for this powerful man who’d overwhelmed my senses.

Finally, his friend near the door spoke. “He’s gone.”

And still, I let Asher kiss me. At the moment my thoughts were so muddied that I could barely remember why we were doing this. But then Asher eased his massive body back an inch or two, and I felt the cold metal of the gun through my scrubs.

That snapped me out of it. I stepped back, looking up at the big man towering over me. He lowered the gun, tucking it back in his jacket. I couldn’t interpret the look he gave me, but that wasn’t all that surprising. Right now, I couldn’t even seem to remember my own damn name.

The man behind the door stepped toward us, his gun lowered. “That was quick thinking,” he said to me.

Asher arched one thick eyebrow and nodded. “It was. Martin, this is Penelope. Penelope, Martin.”

The man gave me a nod, which I shakily returned.

“Think they’ll be back?” Asher asked Martin.

“Doubt it. You two were pretty convincing.” Martin gave me a small smile. “Funny how the bastard would’ve had no qualms about shooting an injured man, but drew the line at being a cock-block.”

“What?” I stared at Martin.

Asher ignored my confused question. “Don’t worry, he didn’t see your face.”

I hadn’t been worried about that, at least not until he said it. But now I was. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” a voice said. Except it wasn’t Asher’s low, gruff voice. It was a younger voice.

I turned to the bed to see Leonel staring up at me. I moved to his side and brushed the hair away from his eyes. “How are you feeling?” I asked. In the midst of all this insanity, asking a patient how he felt made me feel on firmer ground.

But my question was ignored. “He angled your body away from the door,” the injured man continued.

“And that’s why he let down your hair,” Martin added. There was a faint smile of what looked like appreciation on his face. “It’s like a golden mane.”

A bit self-consciously, I reached up and twirled a finger around a tendril. Then I glanced up at Asher. I couldn’t quite process the flood of emotions inside me. Fear was right up top. But my increased pulse rate was less from that and more from the way he’d kissed me. Had it all been an act? I mean, sure, I was glad he’d protected my identity in case whoever that was had seen through our act, but… well… he’d seemed like he’d really gotten into it, too.

I sure had, though I didn’t know what it said about me that I could enjoy a kiss with a gun trapped between our bodies.

Asher’s eyes met mine, and I couldn’t break away from the intensity of his gaze until I felt a hand on my arm. “My chest hurts,” Leon said, which was probably the understatement of the year.

His statement reminded me of my duties. “I can get you something for the pain,” I said. “And I’ll see if Dr. Baines can come check—” A new thought hit, one that would’ve occurred to me before now if I’d been less flustered. “Do I need to call security?”

“No,” all three men said at once. Then Martin continued. “That would put you—and them—in danger again.”

I gulped but nodded. “We’ll take care of it,” Asher assured me. He reached out, giving Leon’s leg a quick pat. “We’ll get out of your hair now.” He paused glancing over at Martin. “Your golden mane, as my poetic friend here said. You won’t see us, but we’ll be watching. So don’t worry, you’ll be safe.”

In spite of everything, I almost laughed. Worry? About which thing? Men with guns. More men with guns. A patient in pain. A passionate kiss with a complete stranger. And those were just the beginning of the list.

Asher joined Martin at the door before turning back to me. “Thanks for taking such good care of Leonel, Penelope. My number’s on his emergency contact form. I hope you don’t need it, but, if you need any help, go ahead and call me.”

His gaze turned to Leonel, and his eyes softened. It was the look an older brother might give, and that made me miss Colby all the more. It was a shame that it took gun violence to make me remember how great he had been.

Both men left the room, leaving me frazzled in their wake. I still couldn’t quite process what had happened, so I stared at the door where a moment ago, two handsome but scary men had stood.

Then fingers brushed against my bare arm and I nearly jumped.

“So, about that pain medicine,” Leonel began.

Right. A patient needed help. It was time to return to doing my job, no matter how crazy this night had been.

LEONEL

“Face it,you’re going to miss me,” I said to the gorgeous blonde in the blue scrubs. It was hard to sound cocky when she towered over the wheelchair they’d insisted I wait in, but I did my best. Getting a chest full of buckshot sucked, but seeing Penelope for two days had almost made it worth it.

Almost.

She hadn’t given me the sponge bath I’d asked for, but outside of that, no one could fault her care. She was smart, attentive, funny, and built like a fucking goddess. From the way she’d leaned over me when giving me medicine or straightening my pillows and blankets, I’d gotten a pretty good idea of what kind of body was hidden under those scrubs, and it was hot enough to make a grown man weak at the knees.

Guess it was a good thing I was in a fucking wheelchair.

I almost wanted to get shot again to spend more time with her. And I didn’t think it was just my imagination that she’d spent a lot of time with me. I’d asked her about it once. She was an ER nurse, and after those first few hours, I’d been in a room up on the third floor. So why had she kept showing up?

I had a few theories, including one that made my cock harden. Not that I was in any shape to show a woman like her a good time.

“Of course I’ll miss you,” she said, her voice deep and throaty for a pretty woman. She seemed almost engineered to make a man’s thoughts go in the gutter, but there was more to her than that. She was a genuinely good person, and I didn’t meet many like her. Not in the circles I hung out in, anyway.

She sat down on a bench outside the entrance to the hospital, and it was nice not to have to look up at her. It was even nicer when she crossed one leg over the other, allowing the blue material to stretch over her thighs.

I wondered if they were as creamy and smooth as the skin that showed above the V-neck of her scrubs?

“Is your friend picking you up?” she asked, and I didn’t have to wonder who she meant. She’d asked a few times about Asher though he hadn’t been by since that first night they brought me in. I didn’t begrudge Penelope for wondering about him. The kiss they’d shared had been scorching enough to make me squirm on the bed—even though I’d barely been conscious. I could only imagine how hot it was for them. It had been necessary, to prevent more bloodshed, but still hot as hell. No wonder she wanted to know if Asher would be making an appearance.

But I didn’t bother answering because a dark SUV pulled up and stopped in front of us. Penelope’s gaze immediately swung to it, but I couldn’t tell if she was disappointed when Martin stepped out of the driver’s side.

He sauntered over, and Penelope rose when he neared. She was fairly tall for a woman, but she looked short next to his six-foot two frame.

“Did this guy give you any trouble?” Martin asked in an easy, casual voice. Which was clearly for Penelope’s benefit, because in general, he wasn’t a very causal kind of guy.

“Nothing I couldn’t handle.”