Page 5

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Four hours later…

“You’ll want to keep the wound completely dry for the first forty-eight hours. After that, you can shower, but no baths, swimming pools, or hot tubs for a good six weeks.”

Cade hung on every word that fell from Kerrigan’s perfect, bow-shaped lips. Not because he was worried about the flesh wound in his arm. Because he wanted to soak up every second of their time together as he could.

Even if it meant doing it from a fucking hospital bed.

“Hear that, Ellis?” Liam’s brown eyes sparked with humor as he gave Cade’s uninjured shoulder a teasing nudge. “Doc says no hot tubs. Guess you’ll have to let the ladies know you’ll be out of commission for a while.”

The sudden and intense urge to strangle the life from his teammate made its presence known. But rather than commit cold-blooded murder—especially with the gorgeous doc there to witness his crimes—he chose to lift his good hand and flash the asshole the bird.

“Very funny,” Cade murmured, sending his friend a sideways glare. Ignoring the dull throbbing in the upper part of his slinged arm, he shifted his attention back to the woman standing at the foot of his bed.

Kerrigan’s thick blonde hair was pulled into a long, wavy ponytail. A few of the cornsilk strands had been left loose to create a wispy frame around her flawless face.

The white coat she wore had been left unbuttoned giving him clear view of the black scrub set she had on underneath. Between that and the stethoscope hanging loosely over one shoulder, Cade couldn’t help but lay there and stare.

God, she’s beautiful.

Beautiful. Professional. And captivating as hell. Even more so than he remembered.

“You’ll need to follow up with your primary in a week to ensure the wound is healing properly.” The woman he thought about far too often began rattling off his new list of to-dos. “That area of your arm is a low-tension spot, so the stitches should be ready to come out at that appointment, as well.”

“And this thing?” He motioned to the black sling she’d insisted he wear.

It wasn’t his shooting arm, so that was a plus. But the nylon strap keeping the contraption in place was already digging into the skin at the back of his neck.

“Wear it as much as possible for the first two days,” Kerrigan told him. “If for no other reason than as a reminder to give that arm a rest.”

“But I can toss it after that, right?”

Kerrigan’s mesmerizing green eyes remained on his as she lifted a brow. “After that, you can use your own judgement. Though I strongly advise against any future superhero impersonations. At least, for a couple more weeks.”

“I see word of our boy savin’ the day has already spread.” Jagger stood casually with his back resting against the wall. Arms crossed, he dipped his head in an appreciative nod.

“It’s all everyone around here can talk about.” Her gaze remained locked with Cade’s. “That was a very brave thing you did, risking yourself to save the mayor.”

He shrugged, barely hiding a wince from the painful sting radiating throughout his bandaged arm. “I was just doing my job.”

Something he couldn’t name flashed behind her incredible stare, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

“You said the same thing earlier, when you were first brought in.” She slid her hands into her coat pockets.

I did?

Cade did a quick mental search but failed to recall that particular conversation. Not surprising given the other bits and pieces of the night he couldn’t seem to remember.

Details from earlier in the day were crystal clear. Right up until the moments immediately following the suspect’s death. Things were patchy after that, until about two hours ago when he’d woken back up with a much clearer head.

“What can I say?” he asked with a lazy smirk. “It’s the truth. But hey, at least there’s never a dull moment. I’m guessing working in an E.R.’s the same way.”

“It’s rarely dull; I’ll give you that,” she agreed. “To be fair, though, we don’t typically face off with gun-wielding assassins.”

“No, but you still save a lot of lives.”

Kerrigan offered him a smile and an almost whispered, “So do you.”

The room grew so still it was as if they were the only two in the room. But then Jagger, the dickhead, had to ruin the moment by clearing his damn throat.

“I’ll, uh…go let the others know you’re finally getting sprung from this joint.” He pushed himself off the wall. Digging into his pocket, he pulled out a set of keys before tossing them across the room to Liam. “Go grab the car and pull it up to the entrance.”

Liam’s confused stare moved from Cade and then Kerrigan before landing back on the man giving the orders. “But…he’s not even out of bed yet.”

Jagger’s face tightened with a pointed expression. “No, but we had to park on the far side of the lot, remember? It’s gonna be a decent walk to get there.”

And just like that, the man’s interruption made perfect sense. Jagger wasn’t being rude or impatient, as Cade had first assumed. The sly bastard was trying to give him and Kerrigan a moment to themselves.

Okay, I take it back. He’s not a dickhead.

“The parking. Right.” Liam finally caught on to their teammate’s plan. “Forgot all about that. I’ll uh…I’ll go get the car now.”

Cade wasn’t sure what he wanted to do more…roll his eyes or laugh. But since these guys were attempting to do him a solid, he went with schooling his expression and giving the two men a nod.

“I’ll meet you out in the lobby when we’re done,” he told them. “Shouldn’t be too long, right, Doc?”

“Right,” she confirmed with a smile. “I just have a few more quick things to go over, and then you’ll be free to leave.”

What if I don’t want to leave?

“We’ll see you out there.” Jagger gave him a two-fingered salute before offering Kerrigan his hand. “Good seeing you again, Doctor Rawlins.” The two shook hands. “And thanks again for taking care of our boy.”

Jesus, he hated being called that. He wasn’t a fucking boy. He was thirty, for crying out loud.

“No thanks needed, Mr. Brooks.”

“Mr. Brooks is my father. Call me Jagger.”

“Only if you call me Kerrigan.”

Jagger smiled before letting go of her hand. “Sounds like a fair trade to me.”

An unexpected rush of jealousy left Cade’s good hand curling into a fist.

Okay, Jag. Feel free to leave anytime, now. And don’t forget to take Cutler with you when you go.

Because he suddenly had a plan of his own.

It had been months since he’d seen or spoken with the pretty doctor, but she’d haunted his dreams ever since. His obsession with the brilliant blonde was confusing to say the very least. Especially since there had never been anything remotely romantic between them.

Yet, here he was, months later, and Cade was still every bit as drawn to her as he’d been before. And while he’d convinced himself that reaching out to her would be a mistake, he’d apparently been pretty damn insistent that she was his only doctor of choice.

That’s what Jagger and Liam had said earlier, anyway. And since he was brought here and not to a different, closer hospital, Cade had no reason to doubt the truth in his friends’ claims.

“See you around, Kerrigan.” Liam waved goodbye.

A second later, the automatic door was sliding shut behind the two men, and he and Kerrigan were finally alone.

“Okay, then.” She smiled back at him. “I guess we should finish this up so we can get you out of here.” Glancing down at the set of stapled papers in her hands, she picked up right where she’d left off. “Just remember, it’ll be a full week before those sutures heal. The faster you try to resume regular activity, the greater your risk of busting them open. That happens, you’ll also increase your risk of infection. Speaking of, I sent in a prescription for an antibiotic to your pharmacy, as well as a low-dose pain medicine should you need it. Otherwise, I recommend acetaminophen or ibuprofen. Do you have any questions before you go home?”

Will you marry me?

The automatic—and thankfully, silent—mental response nearly left him choking. Lucky for Cade, he managed to school his expression at the very last second.

“No soaking, see my doc in a week, wear the sling for at least two days…and take something for pain when needed.” Cade flashed her a grin and a wink. “I think I can handle that.”

“I hope so.” She smiled back. “As nice as it’s been seeing you again, I’d really prefer it if you stayed away from my E.R.” Her almond-shaped eyes grew wide from her own words. “As a patient,” she blurted. “I meant to say, I hope I don’t have to have you as a repeat. Not that I mind caring for you, because I don’t. I just meant that I don’t like the idea of you…getting hurt.”

“It’s okay, Doc.” He released a deep chuckle, secretly loving the fact that she seemed genuinely concerned for his physical safety. “I know what you meant. And trust me, getting shot again is definitely not on my bingo card.”

The adorable rosy hue that had crept into her cheeks subsided. For some reason, Cade found that he rather enjoyed knowing he could get her all flustered.

“Good to know. Okay, so here are your discharge papers.” She stepped closer to the bed and held out the small stack for him to take. “My work number is on the bottom of the front page. I also added my personal cell at the bottom. I wasn’t sure if you still had it and wanted you to have it in case there’s an emergency and you can’t reach me otherwise.”

Cade looked at the scribbled digits and grinned. “What if there isn’t an emergency?”

The skin between her brows crinkled with a look of confusion. “What do you mean?”

Just say it, already.

“I mean, what if I wanted to call so I could invite you out for coffee?”

“Coffee?”

“Or dinner. Or lunch, or?—”

“Oh.” Kerrigan’s confusion seemed to clear as understanding filled the woman’s wide-eyed gaze. “Um…”

The pause that followed her non-response had him scrambling in an attempt to save face.

“Listen, Kerrigan.” He purposely used her given name. Taking a few more steps, he brought himself closer to where she stood. “I know I’m throwing all of this at you from out in left field, but I just…”

“You just…what?”

Really like you. Can’t stop thinking about you. And I’d love nothing more than to taste those kissable, bow-shaped lips.

Cade didn’t say those things, of course. But he’d sure as hell thought them. And while it was probably wishful thinking on his part, he could’ve sworn he saw a spark of interest flickering back from her beseeching stare.

“When we found you in that building with the other hostages,” he started to explain, “I almost immediately felt this sort of…I don’t know. Connection, I guess you’d call it. Which I know is crazy since we didn’t know each other. And actually…” He blew out a heavy sigh. “Now that I’m hearing myself say the words out loud, I realize just how crazy this all must sound. So, I’m going to shut up now and promise never to mention it again.”

“I’m flattered, Cade. And you don’t sound crazy at all. I…” Something akin to affection reflecting in the greens of Kerrigan’s eyes. “I thought I felt something, too, but…you’re my patient.” Her ponytail swished gently from side to side with a shake of her head.

Oh. That.

Hope bloomed as Cade quickly came back with the perfect rebuttal.

“Didn’t you say these released me from your care?” He held up the papers still clutched in his free hand.

Because if that was her only reason for turning him down…

“Technically, that’s true.” Her lips twitched with an almost indiscernible smile.

Taking it as a good thing, he decided to press on.

“And you signed them, right?” Cade once again referred to the papers.

The corners of her mouth lifted even more. “I did.” Kerrigan nodded. “But I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that you’re also still somewhat medicated right now. Which means the practicality in your thinking could very well be compromised.”

The practicality in my…

“Trust me, Doc, this ain’t the meds talking.” Cade brought himself closer, not stopping until he was standing directly in front of her. “Truth is, I’ve wanted to call you ever since we got back from Mexico.”

His admission seemed to surprise her.

“So why didn’t you?” She crossed her arms, tilting her head slightly to the side.

“Didn’t want to upset you.”

“Why would your calling cause me to be upset?”

“Come on, Kerrigan. I was there, remember? Smack dab in the middle of what had to be the most terrifying moment of your life.”

A haunted look flashed through her, but the incredible woman blinked it away.

“So you’re saying you thought my hearing from you again would be unpleasant,” she mused. “Yet, you insisted the ambulance bring you here, and that I be the one to treat you.”

Suddenly feeling like a kid who’d been caught with his hand in the cookie jar, Cade couldn’t help but smile. The woman had just called him on his shit, and as twisted as it was, he fucking loved it.

“Okay, well…” A touch of heat crept up the back of his neck. “I’m pretty sure that was the meds talking. But before you say it, you know as well as I do that drugs like those are known to lower a person’s inhibitions.”

“And you think that’s what happened with you tonight?” Kerrigan inched a bit closer, her gaze searched his closely. “The drugs the medics gave you worked as some sort of truth serum that led you here, to me?”

“I mean, stranger things have happened.” Cade grinned but quickly grew serious. “Look, all I know is that, in recent months, I’ve picked up the phone to call you more times than I can count. But if I’m way off base with this, and you aren’t interested in getting to know me better, just say the word, and you’ll never hear from me again.”

She didn’t respond right away. Didn’t move so much as a muscle. Cade’s heart raced with nerves he wasn’t used to feeling, and after several seconds of silence, he’d all but convinced himself he’d made a giant mistake.

But then?—

“You’re not off base with anything, Cade.” Kerrigan gave a quick lick of her lips. “Like I said, there was a sort of connection between us back in Mexico. And I’ll admit, I’ve thought a lot about you, too, but?—”

“Ah, come on, sweetheart,” he purposely interrupted. “You’re seriously killing me here with of all these ‘buts’.”

“ But as you pointed out, I’d just gone through a pretty traumatic experience. The kidnapping, being held hostage, being rescued by you and your team…you.” She held his gaze. “It was all a lot to process, you know?”

“I hope you found a way to work through it.”

“I think I have. Mostly.” She smiled. “And, if the invitation is still there, I think I’d like to take you up on that date after all.”

“Yeah?” His pounding heart soared.

Kerrigan nodded, letting her arms drop back to her sides. “But only if there’s food involved. I get enough coffee here at work.”

“Food, it is.” Cade’s smile grew wide. “When are you free?”

Rather than answer, she asked him a question of her own.

“Is your phone number still the same?”

His heart gave a hard kick. “You still have it?”

Kerrigan laughed, the sound doing… something to him. Something so deep and profound, he couldn’t even begin to explain it.

“Yeah.” She tapped the side of her head with her right index finger. “It’s still here.”

Cade held the uncertain look for half a beat longer before taking a leap of faith that she wasn’t pulling his leg.

“I’ll text you the upcoming dates I have free.” The intriguing woman turned and began walking toward the door. “You can check your schedule and let me know what works for you.”

“Sounds like a plan, Doc.” And a damn good one, too. “I’ll call you soon.”

Kerrigan stopped just before exiting the room. She looked back with a smile, and with her heart-stopping gaze on his, she told him, “You’d better.”