His back.
His arse.
His thighs.
I bite my lip…and trip up a step. “Shit.” My face plummets forward, heading for the backs of those thighs.
“Careful.” Theo swivels and catches me, his arse hitting a step as he holds my hips. I’m kneeling on the step below him, his long legs spread wide. His hold tightens along with his jaw. I feel stifling hot, my eyes locked on his chest before me. “Are you okay?” he asks, a certain strain in his voice.
“Your stripy carpet makes me dizzy,” I mumble like a fool, lying through my teeth. It’s him that makes me dizzy. Just him. His hard handsomeness, his voice, his physique. His touch.
“Maybe I should carry you,” he suggests, but there’s no hint of a teasing edge. He’s deadly serious, and though it’s an utterly ridiculous suggestion, I can’t help but wonder just how amazing it would feel to be completely encased in Theo. How safe it would be. “Would you like me to?”
I laugh, since nothing else comes to me. “Don’t be silly,” I scoff, going to push his hands away from my waist, but he shifts and scrambles to his feet like lightning, almost in a panic. I stare up at him, stunned, as I pull myself to my feet. He glances down at his hands for a moment, then back to me, confusion in his eyes. A few awkward seconds tick by, his gaze passing from his hands to various parts of my body. What the hell?
“You’ve had quite a scare,” he mutters, shaking his head and turning. “There’s nothing silly about my offer.”
I’ve insulted him. He offered to help me, and I laughed in his face. “I didn’t mean to offend you,” I call, remaining on the step halfway up the stairs. “I’m sorry.” I don’t know why I feel the urge to apologize, but I can’t ignore it.
Theo veers to the left. “I don’t get offended, Izzy. This way.”
I frown, my feet taking the steps carefully. That’s strange, because he seems highly offended.
Once I’ve caught up with him, I make a conscious decision to keep my mouth shut, tend to Penny, then get the hell out of here. And judging by Theo’s sudden coldness and the fact that he’s now refusing to look at me, he might be thinking along the same lines. He turns the handle on a door. He pushes it open. And then he stands a few meters back, opening up the way. And stares at me. A cold stare.
I sigh, weirdly upset that I’ve upset him. He’s a big man. A very big man. Don’t tell me he has feelings under all those muscles.
First, I spot Penny tucked up in a huge wooden bed, then next to her a trolley kitted out with every piece of medical equipment a nurse could need. I have no clue how he sourced it all, and so quickly, and I’m not about to ask. Get done and get out. No questions, no conversing. I shouldn’t even be here, and neither should Penny. She should be in a hospital.
I get to work, hearing the door close behind me, and look back to find I’m alone. I’m grateful. He upsets my balance. I march over to the bed and quickly check her vitals, finding she’s no better than the last time I checked in the car, but, more importantly, she’s no worse. Pulling the covers back, I see she’s been stripped down to her knickers. Her nakedness reveals more injuries, and my face screws up in disgust at the sight of the scattered bruises, some fresh, some with a yellow tinge that suggest old wounds. The poor woman looks like she got a good beating on a regular basis.
I swallow. She’s safe now.
After washing the cut on Penny’s brow bone, I close it with a few stitches and do my best to clean her up and get her comfortable. Her pulse is steady and her breathing even, and the dilation of her pupils now seems normal.
Releasing her wrist, I look over my shoulder when I hear a quiet sound. Theo is standing by the door, just watching me. How long has he been there? “I didn’t hear you return. Is there something you want?”
“No.”
I wander around the side of Penny’s bed, if only for something to do. “Then why are you here?”
“I like watching you work.”
I look at him, mystified. “Why?”
His big shoulders rise on a shrug, and something tells me that’s all the answer I’ll get. “I’ll leave you to it,” he says, backing away, eyes on me, and reaching for the door handle. He slips out, and there’s a mild groan from Penny and a brief flick of her eyelids.
“Hey,” I say gently. “Can you hear me? Can you tell me your name?” I ask, wanting to check for any signs of memory loss before I go.
“Penelope,” she mumbles, and I smile, tucking her in tightly. “But people call me Penny.”
“I think you’re going to be just fine, Penny. Are you in pain?”
She shakes her head and rolls over a little, snuggling down. “No pain.”
“That’s good.” I look to the closed door where Theo just disappeared, contemplating my intention. I’ve experienced danger before. I know the signs, and while Theo displays many signs of being dangerous, I don’t sense he’s a danger to Penny. But I have to be sure. It’s what I’ve been trained to do, and I shouldn’t forget that, no matter how much Theo unbalances me. I rest my bum on the edge of the bed and take Penny’s hand. “Is there anything I can do to help you, Penny? Anyone I can call?” Maybe her mother, or a friend.
“Theo. Get Theo.”
I find myself looking at the door again, picturing his big back walking away. “You’re at Theo’s house.”
“Then I’m safe,” she mumbles sleepily. She’s dozed off again. Just like that. Her words warm me. She settled as soon as she knew where she was and who she was with. Theo eases her. His presence comforts her. Where was that kind of man when I needed him?
I can’t dwell on it too much. I’m here and I’m alive. And, miraculously, I’m mentally stable.
I get my bag and coat and leave Penny to rest, set on finding one of the big dudes who roam the mansion and telling him what to keep an eye out for, and, finally, asking if one of them can take me home. Opening the door quietly, I step out and shut it with equal care.
“Miss?”
I turn to find the older man with round glasses and silver hair who greeted us when we arrived. “She’s fine.”
“That’s a relief. Mr. Kane will be pleased.” He holds his hand out. “I’m Jefferson, the butler.”
He has a butler? I mentally roll my eyes and take his hand with a smile. “I’m Izzy, the nurse.”
He chuckles, his warm brown eyes glimmering with amusement behind his round spectacles. “Pleasure to meet you.”
“And you, Jefferson. The wound on Penny’s eye needs to be cleaned twice a day. She’s responsive, but if she shows signs of any deterioration—dizziness, headaches, confusion, or memory loss—then you should get her to a hospital without delay.” I pull my bag onto my shoulder as he nods his understanding. “Mr. Kane said that there would be someone to take me home, if that’s still okay?” I prompt politely.
“Oh yes,” he chimes. “But first I believe Mr. Kane would like to see you.” He turns and wanders off down the corridor, leaving me in a sudden state of apprehension, unmoving and unwilling to. I don’t want or need to see Theo again.
“If it’s all the same, I really must get home.” I sound as desperate as I feel, not that it has much impact on the old man still walking away from me. I know he heard me. “Jefferson,” I call, going after him, hitting the curved stairs with urgency and being sure to watch my feet on the stripy carpet.
“I’m sure he won’t take up a great deal of your time, since you’ve donated so much already.”
I grit my teeth, following him down to the lobby, where we’re met by the lady who delivered Theo’s drink and took his jacket. She smiles. “Can I bring you a drink?”
“No, thank you. I’ll be going shortly.” I should have asked for some water because I’m suddenly parched by the prospect of seeing Theo again.
“Very well.” She goes on her way, leaving Jefferson gesturing toward a huge door to the right. “It’s just through here.”
“What is?”
“Mr. Kane’s priva
te office.” He indicates with a slight cock of his head that I should lead on. I look across to the double doors, nervous as hell and fidgety. “Knock once,” he says.
Knock once. Not twice or three times? As I slowly make my way over, my heart starts thumping, getting louder with each step I take.
“And keep your distance, miss,” Jefferson adds, his voice now quiet. I swing around, seeing his back disappear through an arch across the hall. Keep my distance? Is he warning me? I look back at the door, my nerves accelerating. It takes a stupid amount of time for me to raise enough courage to knock—once.
“Come in.” Theo’s deep voice resonates through the wood and spreads across my skin. It’s full of authority. Rough and sexy. I close my eyes and get a hold of my wayward thoughts, taking the doorknob and breathing in. Pushing my way into his office, I keep my eyes low as I close the door behind me.
“Izzy.” He says my name in a breathy whisper, and my body rolls with something that mystifies me, though I refuse to allow myself time to try to figure out what it is, because I sure as hell know that I’m not going to be comfortable with my conclusion.
Say what I need to say and leave, and make sure I don’t look at him while I follow my plan. “She’s okay.” I swallow, trying to moisten my dry mouth. “Beaten, but okay. I’ve given Jefferson instructions and told him of the symptoms you need to keep an eye out for.”
“I’m glad, thank you. But what about you?”
I frown down at the deep red carpet. “What about me?”
“Are you okay?” he asks, his voice still low but getting louder. He’s coming closer.
I step back, retreating without thought. “I really need to go.” I’m not at all comfortable with the reactions I’m having to this man, least of all because I’ve already seen he carries a gun, and I watched one of his men virtually strangle someone before my eyes, before having him hauled off to…where? Where did they take him? And, more importantly, what did they do to him? Is he dead? I flinch, trying not to go there. I shake my wondering away. It shouldn’t matter to me, anyway. What matters is that this man is a perfect stranger, and a dark one at that. There are so many signs that are screaming at me that he’s bad news. Yet there’s a sense of ease that is unfamiliar to me, and I’m not at all comfortable with how much I like it. He saved Penny tonight. Took her away from the danger. There was no man to save me when I needed it. No strapping beast of a male to rain holy hell on my tormentor.
I don’t realize that I’ve taken more than one backward step until my back hits the door. The contact startles me, and I look up without thought, finding Theo only a meter away. He could reach me with his hand if he were to extend it. “Who are you?” The question tumbles past my lips before I can stop it.
He ignores me, his eyes dropping to my neck. His hand lifts and reaches up. I press myself into the wood, silently begging him not to touch me. His fingers skim the black waves around my neck for a fleeting moment before he pushes them away, tilting his head. “What’s this?” he asks, his fingertip meeting my flesh and tracing down one of the scratch marks. I freeze, forcing air from my mouth as he makes a point of feeling every line on my neck. My skin flames, my heart galloping uncontrollably. I can’t speak, and after a few tense but pleasurable seconds of him grazing my neck with his touch, he goes on. “Who did this to you?”
“A patient,” I say quietly, convincing my hand to lift and replace his at my neck—not that I’m trying to hide the marks, more trying to free myself of his touch so I can move away from him. He’s not holding me in place. Not physically. Yet when he’s touching me, I find myself incapable of movement. But a microsecond before my hand reaches his to detach it, he jerks away, saving me the trouble.
He steps back, a slight scowl on his face. “A patient?”
“He’s old. Senile.” I find myself rushing to explain, not liking his reaction. There’s no softness anywhere to be found now. “Perks of the job,” I joke, feeling the need to break the tension. He doesn’t laugh, doesn’t even crack a smile. Yikes, he looks furious. “I should be going now.” I thumb over my shoulder blindly.
Theo flinches, shaking his head mildly. “Certainly.” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a card, handing it to me. “I’ll have a car waiting for you outside. Callum will take you home. This is my card, should you need to contact me.”
My eyes drop to the black card held lightly between his fingers, with red type in one single line across the middle. His name. And a mobile number. “Why would I need to contact you?” I ask, not bothering to point out that I can’t, because my phone is in a million pieces down an alleyway, and I’m not likely to be able to replace it until I’m paid on Friday. But that’s irrelevant. I should never contact him again. He’s definitely a man who should be avoided.
He comes forward and slips the card into the top of my bag. “Don’t ever walk home alone in the dark again,” he warns, glancing away for a second. It’s only a second, but his craned neck reveals a sliver of ink peeking up over the collar of his shirt. Black ink, shaded subtly at the edges. I find myself straining to get a better look, silently begging for him to turn his neck farther and reveal more of the art. But he doesn’t, looking back at me instead.
“Are you asking me or telling me?” I say.
“I’m telling you. No woman should roam the streets of London at night alone.”
It’s been a long time since I’ve had anyone to worry about me, to care for my well-being. Well, Jess worries all the time. But it’s different when the worry is from family. The fact that a huge, mean-looking mountain of a man like this is concerned about a perfect stranger like me softens my heart to him. “I can take care of myself,” I say anyway, prompting him to glare at me.
“You shouldn’t need to.”
“I really do need to,” I assure him, catching sight of his tattoo again, more undistinguishable shadows and lines. Before I embarrass myself and reach up to pull the collar of his shirt down, I quickly scoot past him, frowning when he quickly moves from my path, putting a good few feet between us.
“Why?” he asks. “Why do you really need to?”
I realize I’ve unintentionally given him another hint of something I didn’t want him to know. Something I don’t want anyone to know. “Because I don’t have a huge man like you to spring out of nowhere and save me.” I flip him a cheeky smile, and his lips quirk through his small frown. He loses so much hardness from his face when he’s amused. It’s riveting.
He clears his throat, as if he’s just realized that, too, and wants to uphold this iron front. The hardness returns. “Don’t walk anywhere alone,” he reiterates, his intense stare burning away my smile.
“Fine,” I say for the sake of it, taking the door handle and quickly exiting his office, falling against the door and taking a few deep breaths.
“Miss Izzy?” A hand rests on my arm, and I jump a mile into the air with a silly squeak. “Oh dear, I didn’t mean to startle you.” Jefferson’s hand recoils, and his old eyes behind his specs run a quick check over me, frowning. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” I breathe, pushing myself away from the door. “I’m sorry.” I rub the sleeve of my coat, my head beginning to pound, and I smile tightly at Theo’s friendly butler. “I’m ready to go home now.”
“Callum is waiting for you outside. It was lovely to meet you.”
“And you, Jefferson.” I make tracks to the giant doors that will get me out of this pressure box, finding a Mercedes idling under the canopied driveway. Callum, the blond guy who was in the alley with Theo, is holding the door open for me, his face expressionless. I notice for the first time that his eyes are deep brown, warm, but he still seems cold. And inconvenienced. As I approach, he takes a step away from the car, giving me way more space than I need, and I give him a small, nervous smile as I slide into the back, a smile that’s not returned.
As we drive away, I look over my shoulder through the back window, a bit bewildered by the turn of events that my regular
evening has taken. The house is still illuminated, glowing up from the ground, and then it suddenly falls into darkness, disappearing from sight. I turn in my seat, resting back, and close my eyes. I’ve never sensed so much danger in my life. And yet, the most disturbing part is how enthralled I was.
What’s Theo Kane’s story? Who is he?
Chapter 3
What are you doing up?” I ask Jess as she plods sleepily into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. It’s eight in the morning. She must have only gotten in from work an hour ago. She plops onto a chair, and I immediately get to making her a coffee.
“I had a shower when I got in. I should never have a shower when I get in from the red-eye shift.” She gratefully accepts the coffee I hand her and takes a hungry sip. “Sleep well?” she asks.
I don’t mean to hesitate, but the beat of silence doesn’t go unnoticed, and she looks at me questioningly. It was a standard question that’s usually answered in a standard way: so-so. I never sleep particularly well, often restless and constantly telling myself that I’m safe, that he will never find me. But last night was a different kind of restlessness. When I finally made it into bed at nearly midnight, I found it impossible to clear my mind and stop thinking about Theo Kane.
“Izzy?” Jess presses, setting down her mug.
“Something really strange happened on the way home.” I take a seat opposite her, needing to get it all off my chest.
“What?”
“I was attacked.”
She coughs and splutters all over the table. “Oh my God. Are you okay?” I can see her immediately start to assess my face and chest. “Where? Are you hurt? Who was it?” Her urgent questions come one after the other, knocking me back a little in my chair. “Shit, Izzy, were you taking that fucking shortcut again?”
I shrug sheepishly, and she lands a furious glare on me. “I’m fine,” I assure her, ignoring the fact that it could have been a very different story had Theo Kane and his entourage not shown up.
Gentleman Sinner Page 3
