by T. M. Cromer
“I’m her fiancé,” he shouted. “I need to see her.”
Poor guy. Erica could tell he was having an emotional crisis.
“Erica Sutton.”
Her name got her attention. Trying hard to concentrate, she came to the conclusion the overwrought man was Zack.
“Zack,” she whispered. Against all odds, over the noise of the hospital, machines, and people milling about, he appeared next to her and rushed to keep up with the gurney.
“Hey, babe,” he greeted her gruffly.
“I told them not to bother you.”
“Are you serious right now? Why in the world would you say such a thing? Do you really think I wouldn’t come after hearing you were stabbed?” he demanded, incredulous.
“Just a knick.”
“Not so much,” said another voice. “While I believe the knife missed all major organs, it’s no small cut. We’re taking you to the O.R. That wound needs to be opened, explored and irrigated. Then you are going to need quite a few stitches and a whole lot of rest until it heals completely.”
“You must be the doctor,” Erica said, bestowing on him a pained smile.
“Yes, ma’am. Doctor Evans at your service,” said the cute thirty-something physician.
“Are you single?”
“Erica,” Zack growled.
“She’s had blood loss. Don’t hold it against her.” Erica heard Doc Evans’ soft chuckle. “I get it a lot.”
“Arrogant much?” Zack asked.
The chuckle turned into an all out laugh.
“I wasn’t asking for me,” Erica clarified. “My friend, Shonda, is single.”
“Good, because you aren’t available.”
“Okay, fake fiancé,” she giggled.
She heard Zack groan when she unintentionally blew apart his lie.
“Sorry, this is as far as you go. A nurse will come tell you when she’s out of surgery. I’ll make sure they know you can be with her during recovery,” Dr. Evans said.
“I’ll be here when you wake up, okay,” Zack told her softly.
“Okay.”
The kiss he gave her was light and comforting. Reluctance to let her go was written all over him.
“I’ll be fine, Zack. Promise,” she said. He needed the reassurance more than she did. “You should see about Jacob.”
“Charlie’s got him. I’m staying,” his voice was firm and brooked no argument.
And right then Erica knew beyond a shadow of a doubt she loved him. He was the type of man every woman dreamed about having in her life; strong, compassionate, loving, and protective all rolled into one. She poured all the emotion she was experiencing into the smile she shot in his direction. And in her delirium, she believed his return smile mirrored hers.
Dr. Evans cleared his throat. “We have to go.”
Zack paced the small waiting room outside the surgical operatory, praying to a God he wasn’t sure he even believed in. Hoping with every fiber of his being the stab wound was as minor as the good doctor believed.
He was pissed at himself for letting his guard down. Pissed because Erica didn’t tell him she planned to go off on her own again today. Pissed he couldn’t seem to protect the lone woman he’d come to have feelings for over the last few weeks.
Perhaps he should have been surprised how fast he’d come to care for her. But she’d taken his life by storm, and he had no regrets. Okay, maybe one—they hadn’t made love yet. Now they would be forced to wait at least a few more weeks while she healed. It didn’t matter. He intended for her to sleep in his bed from here on out, if only to reassure himself she was safe. He needed to be able to wake up and have her beside him, breathing and well.
Whipping out his phone, he dialed Bucky and provided the details of the attack. Of course, his friend had already heard about the incident and was amping up the patrol around Zack’s residence along with Charlie’s, which was three doors down from his own.
Feeling marginally better, Zack placed a call to Mason, who had been MIA since his scheduled return from the Caribbean three days ago. “Mason, I really need you to call me back. Erica’s been stabbed and is in surgery. Call me!”
After disconnecting, he dialed Dane and filled him in on everything that had happened to date. He left it up to his brother to inform their mother or not. The fifth degree he’d receive if he told Connie Sharp about this situation would be too much to handle right then. She’d be a pitbull with a bone.
Dane did feel the need to chew him out for not telling them everything before now. Family could be overprotective that way. It was the primary reason Zack hadn’t said anything. He didn’t want the drama of it all.
Within twenty minutes, both brothers were charging into the waiting room, followed by a blonde woman who looked vaguely familiar.
“What happened to Erica? Is she all right?” the woman asked, anxious and on the verge of tears.
“I’m sorry. Who are you?” he asked.
“Shonda. Erica’s best friend. I—”
“How the hell did you even hear about this? Did the hospital call you?”
“Yes. I’m Erica’s emergency contact since her parents moved to Florida.”
Without warning she burst into tears. Because Zack was at a loss as to how to deal with his own emotions, panic set in. His hand shook as he raised it to comfort her. When he would have touched her shoulder, he found himself shoved to one side by Mason.
“Don’t cry, love. She’s going to be fine. Promise.”
Shock sent his eyebrows skyward. He shot a glance toward Dane in time to see the stunned disbelief on his youngest brother’s handsome face. Their astonishment was warranted. In the past, Mason would have been the first man to abandon ship if there was a crying female. The only constant he wanted in his life was the business. Women were interchangeable and meant to be discarded after he’d achieved his personal goal of getting them between the sheets. Emotions of any kind terrified him. To see him comforting this stranger threw his two brothers for a loop.
“How is it that you’re here? I didn’t expect to see you again.”
Zack decided her question, directed toward Mason, needed privacy. He didn’t want to bear witness to histrionics when his brother crushed her heart, as he was bound to do. Searching his brain for an excuse, he hit upon caffeine.
“Anyone need coffee? I was about to hit the kiosk in the lobby.”
“I’ll go with you,” offered Dane.
The words were rushed. Zack suspected his younger sibling desired to be gone from the scene about to unfold, just as he himself wanted to.
“We’ll take coffee. One black, one with two creams, no sugar,” Mason said.
“You know how she takes her coffee?” Dane blurted, taken aback. As a result, the question held little tact.
The dark look Mason was developing had Zack dragging Dane from the room to save him from a beat down.
“What?” Dane asked. “It was legit.”
“Yeah, maybe. But his expression said this one is different. I wouldn’t tease him about it until all this has died down.”
All he received for his warning was a shrug. Oh well, Dane had to make his own mistakes. It might be the diversion he needed to see the two of them square off.
“So you’re pretty serious about this chick in surgery? Wait! She’s not the Erica from high school is she? The one who turned you down for prom?”
“Shut up.”
“She is!” Dane crowed.
“Keep your voice down, idiot. In case you forgot, we’re in a freaking hospital.”
“Ha! I wonder if Mason remembers.”
“No, because I never told him. I wouldn’t have heard the end of it,” Zack groused. “I didn’t tell you either. You just happened to hear me pouring my heart out to Mom.”
“That’s right. You were moping around the house for a long time after she said no.”
“I really liked her,” Zack said quietly.
All teasing left Dane’s face as he
flung an arm around his brother’s neck. “She’s going to be fine, bro. Don’t worry.”
“Yeah.” He cleared his throat and gave Dane a tight smile. “Let’s go get our coffee.”
* * *
It was another hour before Dr. Evans appeared in the doorway of the waiting room. The doctor zeroed in on Zack as he popped out of his chair.
“How is she? When can I see her?”
“Ms. Sutton was very lucky to find help so fast. The surgery went well. She’s in recovery for the next half hour, then they will be moving her to a private room. You’ll be able to see her after they get her settled.”
“How soon before she’s able to go home?” Shonda asked.
“I’d like to keep her for the next day or two. I want to be sure she doesn’t experience a fever or infection. If everything looks good in a few days, she’ll be discharged,” Dr. Evans explained. “She’s going to need to rest for the next ten days or so. We’ll go over everything when we discharge her. But I expect Ms. Sutton will make a full recovery.”
Overcome, Zack could only nod and pump the doctor’s hand in gratitude.
“She’s going to be fine, Mr. Sharp.”
“Thanks.”
“You all should try to eat something. The cafeteria food isn’t too terrible.”
“Are there donuts?” Zack asked.
“Excuse me?”
“Erica’s going to be wanting donuts when she wakes. It’s her go-to food for stress.”
The doctor laughed and shook his head as he exited the room.
“I can make a donut run,” Dane offered. “Text me what everyone wants.”
“You guys don’t have to stay.”
“Three musketeers, remember?” was Mason’s low-voiced reply.
Zack studied his two brothers. Mason, only a year older than him, and Dane, a little over a year younger, could have been mistaken for twins. Their dark hair, pale eyes, and tall, lanky bodies, set hearts aflutter their entire lives. While his hair was blacker, eyes a darker, more aqua blue, and height about four inches shorter, he’d never been excluded by them, which sometimes happened with the middle child.
“The three musketeers,” he concurred. “In that case, you can pick up a dozen, four need to be the powdered lemon-filled. The rest is whatever you all want.”
“You know Erica’s favorite flavor?” Shonda asked. Amazement warred with delight on her pretty face. Her green eyes were lit from within from some thought he wasn’t party to.
“It’s not like she’s kept her donut addiction a secret,” he hedged.
“Uh, yeah, she normally does.”
“Right. The woman is all about the carbs; cake, pie, pizza. I hardly think that’s something she’s able to hide for long.”
“You don’t understand. Not even her last boyfriend knew what she liked. She’s actually a very private person,” Shonda explained. “She never even speaks up for herself.”
“Are we talking about the same Erica here? She swears like a sailor and grumbles every time she has to go to the gym. One morning she threatened my life because I couldn’t produce coffee fast enough.”
“She only gets testy about coffee when she first wakes up…Oh!”
“Oh, what?”
“You’re sleeping together,” she stated. “It’s the only way you would know.”
“She’s been living in my house since hers burned down two weeks ago.”
“What?! Her house… ohmygod! She loved that house. How did it happen?”
“A screwball firestarter who seems to have a hard-on for hurting Erica,” Zack said, anger heavy in his voice. “It’s why she’s here.”
“How—”
“Look, I’m sure she would have explained it if you’d bothered to return her calls. As it is, you’ll have to wait to talk to her. I don’t care to go into it.”
“Zack!” Mason barked. “Don’t speak to her like that. She’s not done anything wrong.”
“No, nothing you didn’t do, right? You’ve avoided me for the last three days. If you’d have returned a damn text or call, this might have been prevented. I could have been with her today while you ran the office.”
The rage which had come upon him suddenly, left just as abruptly.
“I’m sorry. I…”
“No, man. You’re right. There’s no excuse to avoid responsibility. It won’t happen again.”
That Mason was so consolatory and understanding made Zack feel worse about his outburst. They all sat in silence after Dane had left to get burgers and pastries. Each lost in their own thoughts.
“Mr. Sharp?” Both men’s head shot up when the recovery room nurse spoke. She directed the next words toward Zack, since he go to his feet and stepped forward. “Ms. Sutton is being wheeled to her room, two-twenty-three. You can head there now. We ask you keep it to only two visitors at one time.”
“Thank you.” He turned to Erica’s friend. “Do you mind if I see her alone first?”
Shonda’s agreement was a soft smile. In the part of his mind where puzzles were worked out, it became apparent why his brother was so attentive to her. Mason was in deep trouble. Suddenly, he grinned and surged forward to give her a tight hug. Bending to speak directly in her ear, he said in a low voice, “Play hard to get. He won’t be able to resist you.” Zack followed with a hard and fast kiss on the lips. His grin widened when Mason stood to object, a frown forming between his dark, slashing brows.
With a wink in the direction of his brother’s new obsession, Zack exited the room and took off at a run toward the elevators. He wanted to be there when Erica woke up.
Chapter Nine
Dull, nagging pain penetrated the darkness. Before she even opened her eyes, Erica moved a hand to feel the area producing the discomfort. Cotton mouth was the second thing to register. For once, she wanted something more than a sweet treat—water. She opened her eyes to mere slits and took in her surroundings before sleep beckoned once again.
“Erica? Erica, it’s time to wake up, hon.”
The words of the nurse registered, causing Erica to attempt to comply. Her eyelids refused to cooperate. All she did manage was the word “Thirsty.”
“Can she have water?”
She recognized the low, pleasant tones of Zack’s voice. If asked prior to that moment, she would have said he had a deep voice, but hearing him speak now, made her think of Mexican hot chocolate with whipped cream. She’d had it once in Cancun. The richness of which she’d never forget.
“Ice chips only. Too much too soon will make her sick.”
Like a baby bird awaiting food from its mama, she opened her mouth as he rubbed the ice against her cracked lips. After a few seconds of moistening her mouth, he slipped the chip on to her tongue. Was there anything so delicious as that first taste of liquid when one’s mouth was drier than the desert?
She gave a happy moan. “More.”
As he had before, he moistened her lips and slipped a chunk of ice into her mouth. This became the pattern for the next five minutes.
“I think you’ve had enough, babe. Try to wake up now.”
Feeling his warm fingers stroke her hair back from her face made Erica want to stay that way forever. If it wasn’t for her wound, she could have. The last thought had her eyes flying open. She remembered. Someone had stabbed her and she had to go into surgery.
Questioning brown eyes sought concerned blue. The second their gazes connected, Zack’s took on a relieved look.
“Hi. Welcome back.”
“Hi,” she whispered in return.
“You had us pretty worried.”
“Us?” She drew her brows together trying to recall if she’d seen anyone else prior to going into the O.R.
“Shonda and my brothers are in the waiting room,” he explained. “She called your parents after the staff gave us the first update. They’re looking for a flight.”
“Where are they going to stay?”
“I figured they can take your room… and you can
move into mine.”
“What about you?” she asked, confused.
His light chuckle made her smile. She was still in the dark as to what amused him, but she loved hearing his laughter. It warmed her from the inside out.
“Well, if you’re against me sharing, then I can sleep on the couch in my office.”
“I don’t mind you sharing, but I think the queen bed in the guest room might be crowded with my parents,” she joked. “They might have something to say about it. Well, Dad might. Mom would take one look at you and kick my father to the curb.”
“Funny. Now on to a more serious discussion. I spoke to Bucky. The police department only got a brief explanation from the handful of your neighbors at the scene. He wants to know when you are up to making a full report. Do you remember what happened?
“Yes. You can have him head over here at any time. I can’t say I saw much, but I can tell him what I do know.”
“Fair enough. Second order of business, I have a special delivery for you,” Zack said. He opened a bag and waved it under her nose.
“If that’s what I think it is, I will sell my soul to have it.”
“Realllllyy. Good to know how much a soul is going for on today’s market. But I’ll let you keep your soul if you indenture yourself to me as a sex slave.”
“Done. Now hand over the donuts.”
“You’re so easy,” he smirked.
“Pfft. Only you know my kryptonite. One day I may have to have you taken out, Lex Luthor.”
If Zack would have responded, he’d have been cut off by another person entering the room.
“Erica?” came Shonda’s tentative voice.
“Well, if it isn’t my long lost friend. You don’t call. You don’t write,” Erica joked tearfully.
Seeing her bestie made her emotional. Suddenly, everything that had happened in her world—the fire in her home, the vandalism of her car, the stabbing—all became reality. Her two worlds finally collided. Until that moment, she could pretend it was all some bizarre dream. However, the truth was someone had set out to kill her.
“Can I hug you?”
“Yes, if you’re careful of my right side.”
