by M. L. Ray
“I don’t feel so good,” she said, but they appeared not to have heard her. She tried again.
Knox stopped. “What did she say?”
“I don’t know.”
They were staring at her now, and she wanted to scream at them that her body wouldn’t move, that if she took one more step, her legs would be paralyzed.
“Nook? Nook?”
She was falling then, the world turning upside down. She felt Knox catch her, but after that, she remembered nothing.
Chapter Eleven
Anouk was aware, when she started to come around, that there were too many voices in her room, most of them male. She opened her eyes. Knox, Iris, two men in white coats she assumed to be doctors and a male police officer were all looking at her, all with the same worried look on their faces. No, strike that, Knox and Iris looked stricken.
“What’s going on?”
Knox came to her side. “You’re in the emergency room, baby. You passed out…” He glanced at the doctors, “Sweetheart, they think you were drugged.”
Anouk blinked twice before she understood. “What? How?”
One of the doctors came closer and pressed lightly on a spot on her side. She winced. “You were injected. We found the needle mark. The site is bruised or we might not have spotted it. You bruise easily?”
She nodded. “Yes.” She decided she didn’t like being on her back with all these people staring at her, and started to struggle into a sitting position. Knox helped her and she smiled at him gratefully. She was in a hospital gown with a blanket over her legs, but she was still cold. “Okay, tell me everything.”
“We’re waiting for the tox screen to come back, but we think it might be ketamine. Have you ever taken it of your own accord, Miss Devi?”
She shook her head. “No. I wouldn’t even know how to come by it. Why would someone drug me?”
“The better question is when did they do it?”
She remembered the sharp elbows and jabs at the bar, and told them. “Okay, well, we’ll get down there, see if there have been any other incidents. Miss. Devi, we take this kind of thing seriously. Would you be willing to make an official statement when you’re feeling better?” The police officer asked, and Anouk nodded. “Of course.”
“I’ll be back, then. Hang tight for now.”
One of the doctors went out with the cop, and the other checked Anouk’s vitals. Anouk looked at Knox, who was grim-faced, and Iris, whose face was tear-stained. “I’m sorry if I scared you,” she told them, but both of them just shook their heads.
“It’s not your fault.”
Knox brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed it. “You’ll be okay,” and it seemed as if he were trying to convince himself.
Anouk put her head back and closed her eyes. Nausea was kicking in now, and she willed it away while the doctor checked her over.
“We’re going to keep you overnight,” the doctor told her, “to make sure you don’t have any serious side effects. Your blood pressure is on the low side, so we’ll keep an eye on that. Otherwise, I don’t see any problems. So, hang tight and we’ll get you out of here as soon as we can in the morning.”
“Thank you.”
“Thanks, Doc.” Knox stroked Anouk’s hair away from her face. “How are you feeling, baby?”
“Fine. Just confused about all of this.” She looked at Iris, who seemed on the edge of tears again. “Hey, cutie, I’m fine. Don’t upset yourself, please.”
Iris nodded, but said nothing. She gripped Anouk’s hand tightly. Knox was gazing at Anouk. “Darling… what, with this and the break-in, I’m worried.”
“I’m sure it’s nothing,” she said, but didn’t even sound convincing to herself. The last thing she wanted to do, though, was tell Knox about Shawn. She didn’t want that part of her past to sully her new happiness.
To her relief, when the detective investigating the incident returned later, he asked to speak to Anouk in private. Knox wasn’t happy, but he stood, nodding at her. “I’ll be right outside.”
“Could you call Tom? Tell him what happened? I’m supposed to be in the office first thing in the morning.”
“Of course, babe.”
He and Iris went outside, closing the door behind them. The detective, a good-looking man in his early forties, smiled at her. “Anouk, I’m James Holt. I work with the King County police department. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine. A little tired.” She tried to smile. “Actually, it feels like the mother of all hangovers.”
He chuckled, but there wasn’t much humor in his tone. “I’m so sorry this happened to you. We’ve been at the bar questioning everyone we can. The power outage was a deliberate act of vandalism, and so, we have to assume that the attack on you was malicious. As if being injected with ketamine wasn’t an assault, already. Anouk… we have the record of your break-in recently, and of course, we have the restraining order you have in place for your ex-husband.”
His eyes were kind. “Anouk, do you feel as if this was something your ex is capable of?”
Anouk was silent for a minute, thinking. “I just don’t know what Shawn—if it was him—was hoping to achieve by drugging me?”
Holt was studying her. “A message? I’m still here. I’m still in control of your life?”
“God.” Anouk felt sick.
“I don’t mean to upset you, but domestic issues are kind of my specialty.” Holt shook his head. “I looked into your ex-husband—”
“—technically, he was never my husband,” Anouk interrupted him, but her voice was soft. She met his gaze. “I don’t even know who that person was, or is. And why the hell would he come find me now?”
“From what I understand, he was a pretty obsessive type of person. I talked to the authorities in London. He and his… wife, sorry, seem to have disappeared from the city. Their children were taken out of school a couple of months ago, and no one knows where they are.”
Anouk felt panic rising in her throat, and swallowed it back down. “But that doesn’t mean he’s here in Seattle?”
“What do you think, Anouk? What does your gut tell you?”
She felt miserable. “I hope he’s not here. My life is just getting back to something I enjoy.” Her night with Knox came into her mind; the joy of it, the release of tension, of security. How quickly that feeling had been shattered. “The restraining order…”
“You and I both know it’s a piece of paper.” Holt shook his head. “But look, there’s always the possibility that it’s not him.”
“I don’t know which is more disturbing,” Anouk admitted, “At least, if it’s Shawn, I’d know that he wouldn’t really want to harm me.”
Holt said nothing, and the knot of dread in Anouk’s stomach told her she didn’t believe that. They booth sat in silence for a few seconds, until Anouk spoke up. “I have a theory, but it’s a little convoluted.”
“Go for it.”
“What if it is Shawn, and he’s seen me with Knox? Maybe he was trying to… god, this sounds dumb, but what if it was something as stupid as him trying to stop me from spending the night with Knox?” Anouk, as soon as she’d said the words, felt a rush of embarrassment. “No, that’s…”
“When someone is obsessed with someone else, nothing is out of the realm of possibility. Look, we don’t have the manpower to guard you twenty-four-seven, and although this assault was serious, until we know it was deliberately targeted at you…”
“It’s okay. Look, I’m pretty well protected. We have new locks at home, and the gallery is a safe place, and to be honest, I spend most of my time between those two places. I’m rarely alone-alone, if you know what I mean.”
“Well, be vigilant is all I can suggest. And if you see Shawn Simon at any time, call me or 9-1-1.”
After the detective had gone, Knox came back in. He sat on the edge of her bed and leaned in to kiss her. “Tom’s here. He and Iris went to get coff
ee.”
“Oh, he shouldn’t have bothered coming.”
“He insisted, Nook. You’re his family now. We are a family now.”
Despite everything, when he said that, Anouk felt such a swell of happiness. No one was going to spoil this for her. Seattle was her town, her home, and yes, this was her family. Iris, Tom, her friends at the gallery… and Knox Zapata. “Who would have thunk it, huh?” She said, with a grin, and he smiled.
Knox leaned his forehead against hers. “I’m going to stay here with you tonight, if that’s okay?”
“It’s very okay, but I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
He grinned. “Well, there’s plenty of room in that bed of yours.”
“So, there is.” She pressed her lips to his. The after effects of the drug were beginning to fade now, slowly. As they kissed, pleasant tingles flooded her body. “I can’t promise to control myself, though.”
Knox laughed. “That’s the drugs talking.” His smile faded. “I hate seeing you in here. I’ve always hated hospitals.”
She stroked his face. “But I’m okay, really. Just one night.” She studied his eyes. “Knox… did you lose somebody?”
“My mom. Cancer is a fucker. She was in so much pain at the end, that every time we went to see her, it was like… Christ, I don’t even know how to describe it. It was like seeing someone being murdered in slow-motion.”
Anouk winced and put her arms around him. “Oh, Knox… I’m so sorry.”
He hugged her tightly. “She died on her own. She’d got out of bed, disorientated, and wandered into a stairwell. She fell down three flights of stairs, and died from the shock of the fall. They didn’t find her for over an hour.”
Anouk was horrified. She reached over and pressed the call button. Knox frowned. “What are you doing?”
“Getting you out of here.”
The nurse came in and Anouk nodded at her. “Can you please tell the doctor I’m discharging myself now?”
“Nook, no.”
“Yes,” she said firmly, “please, Nurse?”
“The doctor wanted you to stay overnight.”
“I know he did, but I feel fine, and I want to go home.” Anouk was pushing the covers back and swinging her legs out of the bed, pushing Knox’s hands away when he tried to stop her. He gave up then, and Anouk grabbed her clothes from the closet and started to put them on.
An hour later, much to the distress of the doctor, Anouk was on her way home, with Knox driving. Tom and Iris sat in the back of the car. “Are you sure you should be doing this?” Tom’s voice was heavy with concern, but Anouk nodded.
“There’s no reason to stay in that place. I’m happier at home… with Knox.”
Knox was shaking his head, and she could see he was conflicted. But after his story, she couldn’t have made him stay one more night in a hospital.
They dropped Tom off at home, and when they got back to Anouk’s apartment, Iris kissed her friend’s cheek, told her she loved her, and made herself scarce, with a wink at Knox.
Knox and Anouk went to Anouk’s bedroom. Anouk stripped off her clothes. “I need a shower. Come hold me up,” she joked, but Knox frowned.
“I’m still not convinced you shouldn’t be back in the hospital.”
“I’m fine, babe. Come get wet with me.”
They showered, Knox wrapping his arms around her, then they lay down in her bed. Anouk rested her head in the crook of his shoulder. “That’s better, right? Better than any old hospital gurney?”
“Nook, did you discharge yourself because of what I told you?”
She looked up. “Yes. Yes, I did. I feel fine, Knox.”
He frowned. “I’m not sure I like the idea…”
“It was my choice.”
His arms tightened around her. “Then… thank you. I’m not sure I approve, but like you said, it was your choice. Just promise me, if you start to feel sick…”
“I promise.” She kissed him. “Now, hush.”
Anouk’s breathing became regular and Knox knew she was asleep, but he couldn’t switch his mind off. She left the hospital because of his hatred of places like that. This girl, this sweet woman in his arms. Had he realized what she was doing, he would have tried to stop her, but god, the fact she had put him first…
Knox felt both touched and guilty. He’d opened up about his mother’s death unexpectedly. He’d never talked about that terrible day, not even to his family. Not to Levi, not to Flynn. It had been one of the reasons he’d stayed away from them for so long. And yet… in just a few weeks, this woman in his arms understood him so much, she was unwilling for him to go through any kind of pain.
What she didn’t realize was, he was already in pain. The thought of someone hurting her, deliberately or not, was making him hurt. Worse, it made him murderously angry. When the doctor told them what was wrong with Anouk, that she been drugged, Knox had wanted to put his fist through the wall. Thank god—thank god—she was okay, but still the anger remained.
And what was worse, he knew deep in his soul that she was keeping something from him. When he’d been outside the room with Iris, as the detective talked to Anouk, he’d asked her friend if she knew anyone that would try to hurt Nook. Iris had denied it, but he’d caught the way she looked away from him. There was something. He knew it, and it terrified him not to know what it was. It had been there from the beginning of their relationship, friendship, whatever this thing was.
No, he thought, this is a relationship. He knew it in his heart, more certain of that than anything else. He and Anouk had found each other at the right time, and their future was exciting.
He just hoped the past would not destroy them.
Chapter Twelve
Anouk didn’t know whether to laugh or scream. Every five minutes, it seemed, Tom was hovering, asking her if she was okay. Eventually, choosing comedy over cussing, she grabbed him, and steered him into his office and into his chair, as he laughed. She pretended to throttle him with his computer cable, as Ruby and Dahlia busted up laughing.
“Oh, okay, I’m sorry. It’s just that I feel like a proud Daddy,” he said when Anouk grinned at him.
“I know, but everything is running as it should.” She checked her watch. “Show starts in three hours and everything is done. We could go for pizza right now, and everything would still be ready.”
“Ooo, pizza,” Ruby said longingly, and Tom grinned at her.
“Call out for enough for everyone. And get some champagne up here. Will Knox be here soon?”
“Argh,” Anouk said, pretending to throw her hands in the air, “I forgot the damned artist.” She grinned at her boss. “He’ll be here any moment.”
Knox walked into the gallery, his nerves tingling, both with excitement and anticipation. On the walls, his work, each wall containing only one piece. But the way Anouk had arranged them, as he walked through the gallery, he could see the story they told, the way they complemented and challenged the other pieces. Knox knew it was the finest show of his career.
Flynn had called him earlier to reassure him for the thousandth time that she, Levi and his father would all be coming this evening. “Dad even had a new suit tailor-made for the occasion,” Flynn chuckled, not realizing the profound impact her words had on Knox.
Gregory Zapata had a new suit made for his show. Knox was been glad no one was around to see the tears. He could barely wait to see Nook and tell her, and here she was, coming down the glass staircase to greet him. She wore a dark red, wrap-around dress which clung to her curves, heels, for once, and her long, dark hair was pulled over one shoulder.
“Wow.” He grinned, as she approached him, and she broke into a smile, which made his stomach quiver with desire.
“Wow, yourself,” she said, and kissed him. “Your big night, Mr. Zapata. How do you feel?”
He put his arms around her. “Like the luckiest guy in the world. The show looks astonishing, Nook,
and that’s all because of you.”
“Ha. Remember when I painted all those pieces? Oh, no, wait, that was you.” She giggled, and he tickled her.
“Okay, fine, but you made this happen.” He nuzzled her nose with his and then kissed her. “And I’m crazy about you.”
He saw the flush of pink on her cheeks as she smiled at him, the way her warm eyes sparkled. “This is your night, baby. No one deserves it more.”
Anouk took him through the final details of the arrangements, and soon it was time for the guests to begin arriving. Jeremiah was among the first to congratulate his best friend. “This is spectacular,” he told Knox, then smiled at Anouk, “And you’ve certainly lived up to the gallery’s reputation.”
Knox was almost more delighted for Nook than he was for himself, all his artist's ego put aside this time, and when Anouk was called away, Jeremiah grinned at him. “You’ve gone soft.”
Knox hid a grin. “I have not.”
“Yes, you have. You’re crazy about that girl.” He nodded in the direction of Anouk, who was talking to some of the art critics studying his work. “And I don’t blame you. She’s beautiful.”
“She’s more than her looks,” Knox said softly. “She’s smart, funny, opinionated, kind.”
Jeremiah’s eyebrows shot up. “Ah.”
“Ah, what?”
“You’re in love with her.”
Knox blinked. “It’s a little early for that word.”
Jeremiah shrugged. “Why? If that’s what you’re feeling, that’s what you’re feeling. I haven’t seen you like this since…”
“Don’t. Don’t say her name. Not tonight.”
Jeremiah nodded, his eyes serious. “Okay. But it is true. If you feel even a millionth for Anouk, what you felt for…”
Knox shook his head. “Stop, Miah.”
“Fine.”
Luckily, Flynn chose that moment to arrive, flinging herself on her brother with a shriek. Knox laughed, his unease dissipating in the face of his sister’s exuberance. “Hello, trouble.”
“Get with the big artist in town,” she crowed, and laughed, “look at all these people.”
