by S. L. Scott
Surprised, I reply, “Um. Wait a minute. Let’s back up here. You asked a woman out although she might have died in your arms?”
“She wasn’t going to die. I wasn’t going to let her.” He shrugs. “Anyway, she’s pretty.”
“I’m not sure what to say. You either have the worst intuition about women or the best game I’ve ever seen.”
“Game,” he says with a smug nod.
The door opens, and the doctor who performed the surgery enters the room. As if told to, we all stand at the same time. He looks around, not sure who to speak to, so I volunteer for the job. “How is she?”
His French accent is thick, but his English is great. “She did well. We’ve been monitoring her closely for the past few hours. She’s stable, so we’re moving her out of ICU to a room. Monsieur Everest requested a private room, and one has been secured.”
“What about her injuries?” I ask.
Touching his chest close to his shoulder, he explains, “No major organs were afflicted. The bullet was lodged into the muscle, and she lost a lot of blood. She’s very lucky. One inch lower would have done damage she might not have survived.”
“When will she be moved?”
“She’s already being moved.”
Winter asks, “Can I see her?” She joins my side.
“It’s fine for you to wait with her. We only ask that you let her rest,” he says.
“I will. Merci,” Winter replies and looks up at me, the first signs of joy returning.
I hold her to me and kiss her head. “She owes her life to you.”
Looking back at Lars, she smiles. “She owes it to him. I owe mine to you.” Her arms come around me, and I take the embrace, needing it more than I would have thought. “We’ve been through a lot for practically being strangers,” I tease.
“Strangers,” she repeats, laughing. But then she rests her chin on my chest, and her smile is prettier than any sunset I’ve ever seen on Lake Austin. And those are some damn gorgeous sunsets. “I love you.”
“I love you so much.”
Running my hands down her back, I take a second to look at her before she leaves. “Those words have never been easy for me to say, but this time, it’s different. It’s the first time I feel them, and I feel them fully for you. So they come easier. I joke about us being strangers because we haven’t known each other long, but I feel closer to you than I’ve ever felt for anyone else before.”
“I feel it too, Bennett. I feel full of happiness that made me feel guilty when we met. You know what? I don’t feel guilty for loving you. And if we hadn’t been set up, I truly believe we still would have found our way to each other.”
“We were always meant to meet, baby.”
“I like being your baby, your sweetheart, your ma chérie.”
“I like being yours.” I lose myself momentarily while kissing her. Then the lights come back, and the sound of others return to full volume. Our lips part, but our hearts stay entwined.
Lars places a hand on my shoulder. “They said Winter can wait in the room, but they only want one visitor at a time. If you don’t mind staying a little longer, I’d like to see her right after.”
“Of course.” Winter releases me and pulls a long necklace out from the collar of her shirt and starts dragging it mindlessly along the chain. “You got your necklace back.”
Holding it out to look at it, she says, “I made sure to grab it before we left the apartment.” She opens the locket and stares at the tiny photos. “I don’t know why my father wanted it. He never cared about these pictures before.” I look down at the photos of her mother on one side and Winter as a baby on the other.
I take it in my hand to get a closer look. “Your mom was beautiful.”
“In the lobby, my father stared at me like he was seeing her again,” she says.
“You do look a lot like her.”
“I’d seen him just four weeks prior. That’s not enough time to pass as if you’re seeing someone for the first time. It just makes me realize how he never saw me at all.”
“I see you.”
“Yes, you do.” She smiles and leans against me, admiring the pictures. “Thank you.”
“You’re a smiley, happy baby.”
“I was shaped like a potato.”
“Happy. Healthy. Loved. Cute as a potato.” I smirk. “That’s how babies should be.”
She takes her necklace off and rests her head on my arm. “Don’t you think it was weird that he wanted it? That they wouldn’t give up the box unless I gave it to them?”
“Yes. I don’t know if they were wasting time until the van arrived to kidnap you or he actually wants this necklace.”
She lifts it and looks at it in her hand, her thoughts lost on it as she stares.
The little tinkering sound it makes when she rattles it has me wondering. “Is it worth a lot?”
“I don’t think so. She had it made, but it’s just silver.”
“Have you ever looked up the stamp on the back?” Peering down to get a closer look, I read, “Browning.”
Leaning in, she gets a closer look. “Browning. I never noticed it before. I think I took so much for granted since I had it most of my life.”
The longer she stares at it, the more tension that grows. I finally ask, “What are you thinking?”
“He was upset I’d lost it. The silver isn’t worth enough to justify what they’ve done to me. That means—”
“It’s not about the silver.”
A heavy pause hangs between us. She glances at me and then opens the locket, popping open the tiny silver frame. The photo stays in place. As if she has to justify it, she says, “It’s old.”
“It’s okay.”
She nods and uses her nail to pry the little photo from sticking to the locket. I see her shoulders fall like mine do. “There’s nothing there.” Showing me the blank shining silver, she says, “Well, that’s a letdown.”
Watching her put the photo back in, I ask, “What’s that thing you say when you shake it?”
“Ring the bell and make a wish. You’ll receive what you need.” I listen as she shakes it.
“What makes that sound?”
Shrugging, she replies, “I don’t know. I never had the key.”
“Do you think it’s anything?”
“Braden used to tell me it was one of his baby teeth so I never wanted to open it.”
She hands it to me. I turn it over in my hand, the chain hanging over, and jangle it again. Fascinating. “What if it’s not?”
“I guess we find a key to fit it when we get back to New York and find out.” She turns to the door. “I want to be there when Chelsea wakes up.”
I pull her back to me and kiss her on the head. She smiles and a faint blush crosses her cheeks when she looks back before we leave.
Lars opens the door, and we walk together past the security detail outside the door. A nurse leads us to Chelsea’s room and gives Winter instructions before she steps inside and tends to her. Winter stays in the doorway and takes my hand. “You’re staying at the hospital?”
“Yes,” I say, looking around the room. The nurse excuses herself and marks on the chart when she exits. I add, “We’ll be in the room down the hall. Victor will be stationed here. Let him know if you need anything, and he can contact us. All right?” I reach around her and pull us together. “I won’t leave until you do.”
“Thank you.”
Then I kiss her head again, so fucking thankful she’s okay. “I’ll check in on you later.”
“Okay,” she whispers.
I’m about to go, but something in my gut tells me to stay. Leaning inside the room, I look through the open door. Chelsea has lost some color, but she looks peaceful while she sleeps. The machines have a soft whirr to them, and her heart is steadily beating. The rest of the room is standard for a hospital room. Nothing catches my eyes, but something feels off. I can’t leave her here. “I’ll stay.”
Winter l
ooks up at me when I take her from the room and tuck her behind me. She says, “You’re tired. Get some rest.”
“I shouldn’t leave—”
“You should. Victor’s right here. I’ll be fine.”
Ethan comes down the hall, and says, “How is she?”
“She’s doing well. Asleep right now,” Winter replies.
I step in but keep my voice down. “Have they found McCoy?”
Ethan says, “No. They’ve sent out the photo. We’ll have more interviews tomorrow, but after that, we’re getting on the plane and heading home.” To Winter, he adds, “Chelsea’s parents will be here by morning to stay with her until she can travel back. We’ll also station a guard while she’s here.”
“What about after that?” Winter asks.
“Her parents have money, Winter,” Ethan says. “They’ve turned down my offer to fly her home and said they’ll handle it. As for security, they don’t trust us, and it’s understandable. They’re confused about what happened. Kurt was engaged to their daughter. They have a lot coming at them and don’t know who to believe.” Checking his phone, he starts texting. When he’s done, he’s distressed. “If they want my help, they’ll have it.”
“Thank you,” Winter replies.
His attention is elsewhere. He starts typing again and then walks away. “I need to make a call. Are you staying?”
Putting the necklace over her head, I set it so the design faces out. “We’re staying.”
He nods. “Walk with me, Bennett.” While heading toward the exit, he says, “Look, I need to get back tomorrow. Singer’s not feeling well. She’s with Hutton and Ally. They’ll help her until I get back, but I want to be there for her.”
“You should go if she needs you.”
“I’ll talk to the detective once more before I leave. By the way, one of the renters had a camera in the hall. We’ve been cleared of any wrongdoing.”
“I was worried we’d be stuck here for a month dealing with it.”
“Nope. You’re free to go since you already gave your statement.” He pats my back. “You doing all right?”
“Hanging in there.”
“Don’t hesitate to call if you need anything tonight.”
“I won’t and thanks for being here.” I give him a hug, though we pat it out before it gets mushy.
“She’s a good woman. Her heart is in the right place,” he says.
“She is, and it is.”
“You’re a good man, Ben.”
“I am,” I say, laughing.
He steps back with a guard behind him. “Take care, little brother.”
“You too, big brother.” I shove my hands in my pockets and return to Winter. “I think I should wait in the room with you.”
“I don’t want to scare her. She doesn’t know you.”
“Still so stubborn, but you’re probably right this time, so I’m not going to fight you on this.”
“Really?”
“Yup. I’m too tired. I’m going right down that hall and sleeping. If you need anything, you know where to find me.” I kiss her cheek and start walking. “And Victor is staying outside the door. Yell if you need him.”
When I turn around, she calls, “Hey, you!”
“Yeah?” I ask, looking back with a raised brow.
“I love you, movie star.”
“Good thing I love you too, or this would be awkward.” She rolls her eyes and laughs. “Bonsoir, ma chérie.”
36
Winter
When Chelsea stirs, I sit up. Her eyes open, and I move to her side. “Hi,” I whisper.
“Hello,” she says and then clears her throat.
I reach for the pitcher of water and pour some into a cup with a straw. “Here.”
She takes a sip but starts coughing, a little water dribbling. A nurse rushes in and fusses about, so I step back and give her the room to work. When we’re alone again, I stand by the bed and hold the railing.
She watches me. A lot like I’ve been watching her.
“How are you feeling?”
She grimaces. “Like I’ve been shot. Will I be okay?”
“Yes. The nurse was just here. The doctor will be in soon.”
“Did you get hurt?”
“I’m fine. Bennett and Lars, the man who carried you, arrived and . . . well, they saved us from what could have been much worse,” I say shakily. I’ve thought of the scene over and over again during the past however many hours, and I’m still trembling.
“And Kurt?” By the way her voice quivers, I know she doesn’t really want to know the answer, but I just don’t have it in me to lie anymore.
“We don’t know where he went. But the police and the Everest security team are looking for him. They’ll find him, Chelsea. They will.”
She looks away for a moment, and I see her suck back a sob. So, I add, “I don’t know if you want this, but you have a friend, Chelsea.” She doesn’t say anything, so I keep rambling, “If you want. There’s no pressure—”
“I’d like that.”
“You would?”
“Yes. You saved my life, Winter. But I don’t understand why.”
I’ve thought a lot about this over the past few hours, and I don’t have an answer other than saying, “It was the right thing to do.”
Her body lies so still that if the monitor wasn’t beeping along to the beat of her heart, I’d be worried. “After I saw what he did to you, I tried to talk him into letting you go.”
Standing there, I’m not sure what to say. Thank you? I don’t know. My gut twists over this one.
She adds, “I believed his lies that you were the one stalking him. I wanted to believe anything he said. He loved me supposedly, but after he broke up with me at dinner, I saw you differently. I saw some of you in me. Once in love with a man you thought cared about you, but then discarded for someone else. I had no idea he could be so cold. So vicious.”
“Is that why you came with me? Because you thought I was pathetic, and you didn’t want to turn out like me?”
“No, I saw how strong you were.” She struggles to take a deep breath, and I know I need to let her rest rather than discuss all this. I’m about to get up when she says, “You gave me hope that I could be more than I was. I see what he sees in you.”
“Who?”
“Kurt.” She coughs. “You’re more than a pretty shell. Your heart shines.” I grab tissues for her and reach for the call button, but she stops me, glancing at the monitor. “I’m fine.”
My fingers tighten around the rail, and my eyes well with tears. I tilt my head back, not wanting them to fall like the fool I am, but when I look at her again, two tears fall like heavy raindrops from my chin. Her hand covers mine. It’s cold, but the emotion that comes with it is warm. “Thank you,” she says.
“How can you thank me when you were shot?”
“I lived because I was shot. I’d be dead if I lived another day of that life.” I cover her hand, and she adds, “So yes, I owe you a thank you.”
I bend down and gently embrace her. “You’re going to get through this.”
“I hope.”
“Hope is worth hanging on to.” Standing up, I give her a sympathetic smile. “You should rest. Get better, Chels, and when you’re up for it, call me when you’re back in the city.”
“I will, and Winter . . . Thank you for staying with me. So I wasn’t alone.”
I’m not sure if she’s referring to the apartment or the hospital, but either way, I still want to hug her. So I do. She has so much to get through. To live for.
Just before I leave, she says, “Do you think you could put in a good word for me with Ally Everest. Kurt was the one to encourage me to work there. I now know for his own access to the Everests, and I’m afraid, me being selfish, I snubbed my nose to actually working for charity.” Tears fill her eyes. “But I’ve come to realize that everyone needs a hand every now and then. You gave me a second chance. Maybe I can help others get th
eir second chance, too.”
“Answering the helpline?”
She nods.
“I’ll talk to her, but let’s get you better first.”
“Thank you.”
I quietly exit the room, and Victor stands from leaning against the wall. Pointing toward the other room, I say, “I’m going back to the other room.”
He asks, “Should I come with you or stay?”
The room is within sight. “Stay here to make sure she’s safe. I’ll be fine. I’m just going right there.”
“Oui.”
I walk down the hall. Victor’s eyes are still on me, but when I see the bathroom, I detour. “I’ll be quick.” Inside, I bend down to check for feet in both stalls. All clear. Then, I mentally scold myself for being paranoid.
I can’t walk around in life fearful that Kurt will find me. I can’t let him control my life like that any longer. Stopping in front of the mirror, I take in the shocking sight of myself. Earlier, I purposely avoided the mirror, but now I can’t avoid it anymore. I wet a paper towel and dab under my eyes. My makeup has long worn off, but residue remains. At least the bruising is receding. It’s still ugly, but it should be gone soon.
Tossing the towel in the trash, I finger comb through my hair and then fluff. There’s nothing else I can do to save it. It’s just funny that Bennett still looks at me like I’m beautiful when I’m in such disarray.
The handsome charmer.
The thought of him makes me smile, and I realize that’s all I need—him and the happiness he brings me. Ready to get back to the slumbering giant, I choose the second stall. As soon as I push the door open, a hand clamps down over my mouth as I come face-to-face with Kurt.
I scream as my eyes go wide. The sound muffled as Kurt grabs the back of my head with his other hand and forces me backward at an aggressive speed too fast for me to grab hold of anything.
There’s nothing to help me, my arms flailing until I reach out to push him away by the face. My body slams into a full-length mirror, and he releases me, letting me fall like rain to the ground. I cry out in pain as shards dig into my hands and knees.
“You turned your back . . . me. Dismissed my feelings . . . weren’t good enough for you . . . I wasn’t good enough . . . the nerve to take what’s mine and turn her against me. Did you think . . . get away with it? Did you not learn your lesson the . . . ”
