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On her doorstep was the most incredible bouquet of red roses she had ever seen. There were several dozen flowers, too many for her to count in her stunned condition. Lifting the heavy, sturdy vase that appeared to be made of crystal, she secured the door behind her and lugged the roses to her dining room table. Placing them in the middle of the circular oak surface, she plucked the card from the center of the arrangement.
She sat, her shaky knees barely able to support her legs. The card was small, the outside of the tiny envelope decorated with hearts and a cute little Cupid in the corner. The only thing on the front was her name. She opened it with trembling fingers, yanking the notecard from its surrounding paper. There, in handwriting she still recognized, were only two words.
I’m sorry.
There was no signature, no other identifying markings.
Dropping both the envelope and card on the table, Maddie buried her face in her hands and wept.
Enough! This is complete bullshit.
Sam Hudson shoved his cell phone into the pocket of his gray Armani suit and hit the brakes of his Bugatti, jamming the pedal so hard that the tires squealed in protest, before shifting gears and doing a completely illegal U-turn in the middle of a Tampa side street. Gritting his teeth, he hit the gas and flew in the opposite direction, away from his waterfront mansion home.
What in hell is she doing? Trying to kill herself?
Honestly, Dr. Maddie Reynolds was about to killhim. She was in her Tampa free clinic again. After dark. In a crappy area of Tampa. She’d been there every evening now for two weeks, his security alerting him every time she was there at night. For fourteen goddamn days he’d waited at home to hear from his security that she had safely left the area for the night. Every night it was after eleven. Tonight was day fifteen and it was midnight. And Maddie still hadn’t left the clinic.
She was seeing patients, on a volunteer basis, every night at the clinic after she finished in her regular job as a hospitalist. Obviously, she stayed later doing the necessary paperwork and case evaluations after she closed the clinic around nine o’clock, sometimes ten. When she had blocks of days off, she spent them there in the clinic. All day. And half the damn night. There was no way she could keep up this kind of schedule and not drop from exhaustion.
Slamming his palm against the steering wheel in frustration, Sam was determined to find out what the hell was going on. Maddie had always worked like a fiend, doing tons of hours for no pay at her free clinic on her off days, but not like this, not every single night. She had security from Hudson there because his brother Simon had arranged it after his fiancée, Kara, had nearly been shot during a robbery at the facility, but it still wasn’t safe, and Maddie’s hours were ridiculous. Did she ever sleep? Did she eat?
Sam hadn’t seen Maddie since his encounter with her at the clinic nearly a month ago, a brief interlude that he was having a difficult time forgetting. All he had to do was think about that kiss, or smell her scent on the sweater he had been wearing that night—a garment that, for some strange reason, he hadn’t yet thrown into his pile for dry cleaning—and his cock was hard enough to pound nails.
Shit. She’s making me insane.
Scowling, he cut a hard right turn and accelerated, his heart thumping at the thought of seeing Maddie again, wondering what she had made of the flowers he had sent her on Valentine’s Day. Once, years ago, he’d only been able to afford to give her a single red rose. Now, he had finally given her the dozens of roses she deserved. Yeah, it was a shitty way to apologize for what had happened all those years ago, but he’d never been especially good with apologies. He was Sam Hudson, billionaire and co-owner of the Hudson Corporation. Hell, he hadn’t apologized for anything since…well…ever, except for his drunken actions at Simon’s birthday party the year before. Okay, he had probably apologized years ago, but not since his mother had grabbed his ear when he was a kid and made him answerable for his bad behavior. He’d made a habit of not doing anything he might end up regretting, excluding that incident with Maddie so many years ago and the more recent incident with Kara. Even now, he couldn’t actually be completely regretful for what he had done to Maddie, except for the part where he had hurt her with his actions. Really, his only apology in years had been the one to Kara and his brother for his behavior at Simon’s birthday party. He had been drunk, depressed. But it still didn’t excuse his shitty behavior. Luckily, Simon and Kara had forgiven him, leaving the incident in the past.
I hurt Maddie, the one person who I never wanted to hurt.
But he had, and for that, hewassorry.
She’ll never forgive me.
Sam’s jaw clenched as he turned left, getting closer to the clinic, into a seedier area of the city. Yeah, he knew that Maddie was lost to him, had known it since the moment he had alienated her forever. Pain still ripped through his chest when he thought about the shattered look on Maddie’s face, the devastation in her beautiful, hazel eyes. That was the day he had lost his Sunshine, and even after his years of success, the money, the power—his life was still fucking overcast, and sometimes downright gloomy.
I can still be her friend even though she hates me. I owe that to her as a friend. She’s killing herself with work and I have to stop her.
“Shit,” Sam cursed in a low, fervent voice. Who was he trying to fool? He wasn’t an altruistic type of guy. Truth was, he wanted to see her, wanted to protect her. The rehearsal dinner for Simon and Kara’s wedding was tomorrow and Maddie would be there, but he couldn’t take another night of worrying about her. He was ending this now, before the crazy female made herself sick from pulling too many hours without enough sleep.
He didn’t bother to pull into the parking lot. He steered his expensive sports car up to the curb and exited, waving to the two Hudson guards in front of the clinic.
“She still here?” he asked one of the guards closest to the door.
“Yes, sir. Hasn’t left yet.” The older man quickly brought forward a key to unlock the door.
She will. Right fucking now.
Sam pushed open the door, his irritation making his stomach churn. As he strode through the lobby, he heard the loud click of the door being locked behind him. Ignoring it, he strode through the reception area and into the back offices. He stopped, taking a deep breath before he opened the door of Maddie’s office, preparing himself for an ugly confrontation.
His pent-up breath exited his body in an audiblewhooshas he realized there would be no warfare in the immediate future. His intended opponent, dressed in an old pair of green scrubs, her fiery curls spread out over the desk and her right arm bent and supporting her head…was fast asleep.
Making his way to her desk, he scowled as he noticed the dark circles under her eyes. Still, the woman looked like an angel, her unblemished skin a creamy ivory, her mouth the color of ripe strawberries. Scanning her face, he realized she wasn’t even wearing make-up, probably having showered after her clinic hours. He brought his hand gently to the back of her head, her damp hair confirming his suspicions about the shower. Giving in to the urges he was trying to hold in check, he buried his hand in her abundant curls, letting her fiery hair spill over his fingers.
“Shit,” he muttered softly, fingering the tresses gently, indulging himself as her light floral scent wafted over his senses. He crouched, bringing his face level with hers. “Maddie,” he called gently, his hand still caressing her hair.
She lifted her left hand, which had been resting on her thigh, and swatted at him, missing as he lurched backward to avoid the feeble swing. “Need to rest my eyes for a minute. Just a minute,” she mumbled, her lips turning down into a frown, as though irritated.
Sam’s lips curled up in an amused smile as he rubbed her scalp. “Time to sleep, Sunshine.”