Completely Smitten

by Susan Mallery

  Okay, she thought as she crossed to the bathroom, last night had been both good and bad. The good had been meeting Kevin. He’d taken care of her, treated her wonderfully, had brought her back here and stayed to make sure she was going to survive. More than that, he’d spent the night with her.

  She smiled at the memory of falling asleep in his arms. Romantic things like that didn’t happen to women like her.

  She’d also found a drink she liked—although maybe two doubles were more than she could handle—and she’d actually spent time in a bar. If she kept this up, eventually she would be worldly.

  Haley paused in front of the bathroom sink to pin back her hair, only to remember that she’d cut it all off on her way out of Ohio. She used a headband from her small cosmetics bag to hold her bangs off her face, then turned on the water.

  The bad things about last night had been getting sick and throwing herself at a man who obviously didn’t find her attractive. As she splashed water on her face, she tried to figure out if she could have said or done something to make herself more appealing to Kevin. Was it something specifically about her, or was she not his type? Not that she knew what being someone’s type meant. She didn’t have a type that she knew of, except for “not Allan.”

  She straightened and pulled the hand towel from the rack. Kevin had been nice and had stayed until he’d gotten called away. So he couldn’t have disliked her too much.

  “There is no way you’re going to figure this out,” Haley told herself as she started the shower, then stripped off her nightgown. “The inner workings of the male mind are a complete mystery.”

  That decided, she stepped into the warm spray and contented herself with the memory of him holding her close as they stretched out together on the bed.

  Thirty minutes later Haley was dressed, packed and eating a breakfast consisting of coffee made in the in-room pot and a granola bar she’d brought with her. She would have liked something more substantial, but she hadn’t seen any fast-food places on her way into town and she hadn’t worked up the nerve to eat alone in a regular restaurant. Plus, she wasn’t sure how her stomach was going to react to a big meal just yet. Maybe it would be better to take things slow.

  She sat on the bed and peeled back the wrapping on her breakfast, all the while staring at the phone number written on the small pad. Kevin’s cell number. Before he’d left he’d asked her to phone to let him know she was all right. Part of her wanted to hear his voice again, but part of her was still pretty embarrassed by everything that had happened. He’d done more than enough. She shouldn’t bother the poor man.

  Indecision made her shift on the bed. As she nibbled on the bar, she reached for the television remote and clicked on the TV to distract herself. A well-dressed, thirty-something woman spoke directly to the camera.

  “We’ll go to that footage in a moment. Our live shots confirm what the authorities are telling us. The prison riot seems to have ended.”

  Haley stared at the screen. Prison riot? Hadn’t Kevin said something about delivering a prisoner?

  “As you can see from this video taken last night, several prisoners started a riot that turned violent. There were over two dozen injuries, including at least three gunshot wounds. One U.S. Marshal was taken to a local hospital at about five this morning.”

  As the woman spoke, the camera panned over heavily armed authorities trying to subdue angry prisoners. From there, the shot focused on a man on a stretcher. The camera zoomed in on his face. Haley dropped her granola bar and came as close to swearing as she ever had in her life. Despite the blood on his face and the thick, blood-soaked bandage around his leg, she recognized the man being rushed to the ambulance.

  It was Kevin.

  Okay, she was an idiot, Haley thought an hour later as she paced in the hospital waiting room. What had she been thinking when she’d decided to check on Kevin at the hospital? Or had she been thinking?

  One second she’d been stunned by the live news report and the next she’d been loading up her car and asking the guy at the motel’s front desk how to get to the hospital. Now that she was here, what was she going to do? She didn’t know Kevin. Not really. He was a competent grown-up who didn’t need her checking on him and probably wouldn’t appreciate her visit.

  She crossed to the door and nearly left, then turned back and walked the length of the room. Okay, she was here. The nurse said she could see him in a few minutes. She would go into his room, thank him for the previous night and duck out while she still had some small measure of dignity.

  “Are you here to see Kevin Harmon?”

  Haley turned toward the speaker and saw a nurse standing in the doorway.

  “Yes.” Haley approached the woman. “Is he all right?”

  “Actually he’s doing surprisingly well, for a man who was shot.” She smiled. “He’s in Room 247. Right down at the end of the hall.”

  “Thanks.”

  Haley clutched her purse to her stomach and headed down the hall. As she walked, she tried to figure out what exactly she was going to say. After “Hi,” her brain sort of stalled. She supposed she could pretend he was just another sick parishioner. She’d visited hundreds of them over the years.

  Yes, that was it. She would think of Kevin as just one more member of her father’s congregation. Not the man who had rescued her and then turned down her offer of carnal knowledge of her person.

  The hospital door stood open. Haley knocked softly as she entered. There was only one bed in the room. The man in it turned his head as she entered, giving her a clear view of his face. Her feelings of concern turned to dread as she took in his bruised face and the bandage around his head. Where it wasn’t bruised, his skin was pale in contrast to his thick, dark hair. His eyes were only partially open. One leg was propped up on a pillow and a thick bandage encircled his thigh.

  “Kevin?”

  He managed a slight smile. “You should see the other guy.”

  She bit her lower lip as she approached. “You look really beat up. How do you feel?”

  “Like I was shot.”

  “I saw you being taken away on television. That’s how I found out what happened.”

  “Thanks for visiting.” He motioned to a straight-back chair against the wall. “Take a load off.”

  She pulled the chair closer and settled next to him. Without thinking, she took his hand in hers and squeezed. His fingers were warm and strong, and more than a little distracting.

  “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  His mouth curved up again. “Yeah. Don’t talk to me about being fruit.”

  She remembered bits and pieces of their conversation of last night, when she’d wanted to be forbidden fruit. Embarrassment flooded her, making her cheeks burn. She quickly dropped his hand and stared at the floor.

  “Yes…well, I wasn’t exactly myself.”

  “For what it’s worth, I liked whoever you were.”

  She raised her head and stared at him. “Really?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “But I was an idiot.”

  “You were charming.”

  “I was drunk.”

  “A charming drunk.”

  Their eyes locked. Despite the bruising and the bandage, Haley found herself getting lost in his gaze. Her insides shivered slightly. Her heart beat faster. A strange, unexpected yearning filled her and while she couldn’t say for what, she ached with need.

  The powerful sensation frightened her, so she did her best to ignore it. She forced herself to look away from Kevin’s face. Instead, she focused on the bandage around his head.

  “Was the riot the reason you were called away last night?” she asked.

  “Yeah. They knew I was still in the area. All available personnel were summoned. By the time I got there, the riot had already turned dangerous.”

  “What started it?”

  “It seems the prisoner I delivered yesterday had a lot of enemies in residence. A few of them got together and t
ried to kill him. They jumped a guard and took his gun.” He touched his injured leg. “I got caught in the cross fire. Just dumb luck.”

  Haley didn’t know what to say. Kevin spoke matter-of-factly, as if this sort of thing happened every day. “Have you ever been shot before?” she asked.

  “Nope. And let me tell you, it hurts like a sonofa—” He caught himself and grinned. “It hurts a lot.”

  “You can swear. I don’t mind. In fact, I plan on learning to swear.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  She shook her head. “I don’t want to do it a lot and there are some words I’m not interested in using. Once I learn to do it, then I can figure out if I like it or not. I was thinking of mostly the D-word or the H-word.”

  Kevin closed his eyes. “I’ve never heard anyone call it ‘the D-word’ before.”

  “I can’t actually say it here.”

  He opened one eye. “In my room?”

  “I’m in a hospital.”

  “That’s not exactly like being in church.”

  “I know, but serious things happen here. Sometimes people die.”

  He opened his other eye. “You can’t swear where people are dying?”

  “No. Death is a sacred experience.”

  He rubbed his forehead. “You’re from another planet, aren’t you?”

  “Sometimes it feels like I am,” she admitted, thinking how different her world was from his. “I did very well in my classes at college, but none of them prepared me for this sort of thing.”

  “Are we talking about swearing or prison riots.”

  “Both.”

  “Uh-huh.” He closed his eyes again.

  She took the opportunity to study him. Even with his injuries, he was a tough-looking man. She supposed he should have frightened her, but he didn’t. She knew that underneath the power and muscles beat a good and noble heart. He wasn’t the kind of man to take advantage of a defenseless woman. Which was just her bad luck.

  “How long will they keep you in the hospital?” she asked.

  “Overnight. They want to make sure my head injury isn’t serious. Somebody nailed me with a metal chair. I ducked, but not fast enough.” He fingered the bandage. “There’s some bruising around my inner ear, so I’m a little wobbly.”

  After last night, she knew the feeling.

  “What about your leg?”

  “It was a clean shot. Through the meat. It’ll need regular changing, but it’s just a matter of letting it heal.”

  He’d spoken without opening his eyes. Haley had the feeling that he was getting tired. She knew she should go and let him rest, but first she had to thank him for all that he’d done for her. And apologize.

  “Kevin, I—”

  A faint ringing interrupted her. He opened his eyes.

  “Dammit, that’s my cell phone,” he mumbled, turning his head toward the sound. “It’s in my jacket pocket. Probably in the closet. Would you get it?”

  “Sure.”

  She rose and crossed to the small closet. As she opened the door, the ringing got louder. She pulled the phone out of his chest pocket and carried it to him. Kevin pushed a button.

  “Harmon,” he said, his voice brisk and all business.

  A little shiver went through her. He was competent, she thought. So in charge. Not like any man she’d ever met, certainly nothing like Allan.

  She crossed to the window and tried not to listen, but when he chuckled and said, “Hi, Mom,” she couldn’t help tuning in to the conversation.

  She wouldn’t have thought of him as someone with a mother. Not that she’d assumed he’d hatched from under a rock or anything, but for him to have a family meant he was just like everyone else. But now that she thought about it, she remembered him mentioning a brother. That part of last night was still a little blurry.

  “Nothing much,” he said, his words filled with warmth and affection.

  Haley recognized the emotions and they warmed her. She liked that Kevin cared about his mother. Some people didn’t get along with their folks. She’d never understood that. Didn’t parents always do their best?

  Her own father sometimes made her crazy, but she knew every action was motivated by love. Her need to get away wasn’t about her father—at least not completely. There was also Allan, and her need to grow up and be independent.

  “No, I’m okay,” Kevin was saying. “What? I’m in the hospital. I was shot.”

  Haley couldn’t help glancing over her shoulder at him. He held the phone away from his ear and gave her an “aren’t parents a pain, even though we love them” look that made her feel as though she was part of the in crowd.

  The momentary connection lightened her spirits. She’d never felt it with a man before. She’d thought that sort of thing only happened with girlfriends. It had certainly never happened with Allan, but a lot of things hadn’t happened with him.

  “No, you don’t have to come get me,” Kevin said. “I’ll be fine. Yes, I’ll be home in a couple of days. You’re sure it’s not an emergency, Mom? Promise?”

  He listened for a couple of minutes, then sighed. “Mom, you don’t have to worry. No, they don’t think I’ll have a limp, but I’ll have a scar and you know how chicks go for scars.”

  Haley turned her attention back to the window and tried not to think about the scar on Kevin’s leg. Would she find it attractive? She was female, but she’d never thought of herself as a chick.

  “Okay. I’ll keep you informed. I love you, too. Bye, Mom.”

  She heard a high-pitched beep as he disconnected the call.

  “How did she take it?” she asked, turning back to face him.

  “Not bad, considering. She’s distracted. Apparently a family situation has come up in the past couple of days.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Hell if I know. She says it’s not an emergency, but she also told me we have to talk. What is it about women and conversation?”

  Haley was momentarily distracted by his easy use of the H-word. It took her a second to respond to his question.

  “Men have conversations, too.”

  “Maybe, but we never start them with the words ‘we have to talk.’” He shuddered. “Four of the most frightening words in the English language.”

  She laughed. “Why?”

  “Because they usually mean the guy has screwed up somewhere. He’s in big trouble and she’s about to tell him everything he’s going to have to do to make it right. Who wants to hear that?”

  “I see your point,” she said, which reminded her of her own. She crossed to the bed.

  “I don’t want to stay too long. I know you need your rest. But I did want to thank you for last night.”

  He brushed aside her comment with a wave of his hand. “No big deal.”

  “It was to me. You were very considerate and I appreciate that.” She clutched her purse tightly in both hands. “I’d never been drunk before.”

  “No kidding.”

  She shifted her weight from foot to foot. “I didn’t really mean for that to happen.”

  “I don’t buy that for a second, Haley. You were ordering margaritas, so you meant for something to happen.”

  “I guess you’re right.” She circled the bed and sank down into the chair. “Life is very confusing right now. I have a lot of decisions to make about my life. I thought the drive would give me time to think things through.”

  “Long drives always work for me.” He smiled at her. “It’s only been a couple of days. Give yourself a break. You’ll get it figured out.”

  His faith in her made her smile. “Thanks. What about you? What are you going to do?”

  “First, take advantage of the very generous hospitality here. I’m off duty until I’m cleared by the doctor. It could be three or four weeks.”

  “Will you go home?”

  “As soon as I can.”

  “Do you want me to take you to the airport?”

  He shook his head, then
winced and touched the bandage. “You don’t have to stick around for me. Besides, I’m not flying home.”

  “Why not?”

  He pointed to his bandaged ear. “Until the swelling goes down, I’m not allowed in the air. Something about pressure and elevation.”

  She glanced at his injured leg. “So how will you get there?”

  “Drive.”

  “How?”

  “I’ll wait until I’m well enough.”

  Haley didn’t know that much about gunshot wounds, but she didn’t think they healed all that quickly. Not when the bullet had gone all the way through his leg.

  A thought occurred to her. It wasn’t as if she had an appointment or anything. Driving was driving. So what if she got to California a few days late? She could offer to take him home.

  She glanced at him, then away. Maybe that wasn’t a good idea. Kevin had been really nice and everything, but he obviously didn’t find her attractive. Would he want to spend that much time in her company? Still, she owed him. She should at least offer. It was the right thing to do.

  What she refused to acknowledge, even to herself, was the sense that she didn’t want to say goodbye. There was something about being around him that made her feel good about herself.

  “I’ve taken several first-aid classes,” she said cautiously. “We offer them at the church and in the past couple of years, I’ve been teaching them. So I have some basic first-aid knowledge.”

  He watched her without speaking. Haley cleared her throat.

  “My point is, I could probably change your bandage.”

  “Thanks, but if I can’t do it myself, I’ll just make my way to the hospital.”

  “I didn’t mean I would stay here. I was offering to drive you home.”

  It seemed that he was still inviting trouble into his life, Kevin thought as Haley spoke. She detailed all the reasons it made sense for her to help him, concluding with, “I owe you for last night. For not, um, well, taking advantage of me.”

  The last couple of words came out as a mumble. She ducked her head and he could barely make out what she was saying. Still, it was enough for him to remember helping her back to her room. Even drunk and practically incoherent, she’d been appealing. Too appealing.