by Lori King
“Get out,” she said softly, refusing to meet his eyes. “Please just go, and leave me alone. I need to think.” Devin looked stunned and stood silently for a few moments before he turned to the door.
“I will be outside if you need me, Caroline. We will talk more later, but believe me, we will finish this.” He walked calmly from the room, and Caroline leaned back into her pillows and cried herself to sleep.
Chapter 4
Tina woke her from her slumber several hours later to check her vitals.
“You’re awake!” She smiled at Caroline warmly as she checked her blood pressure. Caroline couldn’t resist smiling back at her closest friend. “How are you feeling?”
“I’m pretty sore right now. My lungs hurt, and my throat is raw.” She reached for the ice water still sitting on her bedside table, and took several swallows.
“Yeah, you will be a little raw tonight, and then feel better by tomorrow. Your bruises won’t heal very fast though. That one on your left hip had us worried when they brought you in. Thankfully the X-ray showed that it wasn’t broken, just bruised.” Tina chattered away as Caroline lifted her gown to look at the bruise in question. It was black and purple, and really did look bad. It must have come from her tumble down the stairs. She laid her head back against the bed as Tina shined a flashlight into her eyes, and looked at her throat. Then she offered Caroline a pain pill, and waited patiently as she swallowed it down.
“So, are Mr. Sexy and Mr. Damn Sexy good friends of yours that you never told me about? If so, why the hell didn’t you tell me about them? They are sitting outside your door looking like guard dogs right now. And one of them told Dr. Lou he was your fiancé?” She sat on the edge of the bed and smiled conspiratorially at Caroline.
“Their names are Devin and Damon. I’ve never met them before today. They are firemen, and the one with the dimple on the right cheek is Damon—I think—anyways, he is the fireman that helped me out of the building. No, I am not seeing them, and I’m not sure why they would tell people we are engaged. Oh my God! I hope that doesn’t get passed around the rumor mill. I’ll have to talk to them and make sure they don’t have the wrong impression. Anyways, how did you end up on this floor tonight?” She settled back into her pillows, enjoying the comfort of chatting with Tina.
“Dr. Lou owed me a favor, so I called it in tonight. I couldn’t have my best friend in the hospital and not be her nurse, could I? Why wouldn’t you want them to have the wrong impression? How could you not want to explore the possibilities?” Tina was clearly not interested in discussing her job, and wanted the dirt on the brothers. Caroline sighed heavily, and looked down at her fingers which she had unknowingly clenched tightly together.
“They say that they feel something for me. I guess they think it’s like love at first sight or something? I’m sure they won’t stick around much longer. They are pretty hot though, huh?” She shared a smile with her friend and licked her lips.
“Honey, if one of them even hinted at an interest in me, I would drop my panties and jump on him! I think that you need to relax and enjoy the attention. Maybe I can have whichever one you decide you don’t want?” Tina moved from the bed, patting Caroline’s hand as she stood. “So what are you going to do when you leave here tomorrow? The apartment building is toast. Where will you go?”
“I don’t know yet. I guess a hotel.” A teary sting filled Caroline’s eyes for just a moment at the reminder that all of her worldly possessions were gone.
“You could stay with me if you want to, but you will have to take the couch. The Red Cross might help you with the cost of the hotel if you prefer it.” Caroline smiled at Tina, knowing that her offer was generous, but unrealistic. Tina lived in a tiny one-bedroom townhome that was barely enough space for her, much less a live-in guest.
“No, actually the guys offered to let me stay at their place in a spare room. I’m a little apprehensive about taking their offer though.”
“What? Are you joking? Two sexpots rescue you from a burning building, fall madly in love with you, and now they want you to come and live with them—together? Have I just stepped into the twilight zone? Earth to Caroline. Say yes!” Caroline laughed out loud at Tina’s outburst. Tina was such an outgoing, carefree soul, and she seemed to say what was on her mind without a filter. Caroline knew that Tina had a softer, more self-conscious side to her, and that she didn’t truly trust too many people, so she took it as a good sign that Tina was so easygoing with the twins. She couldn’t help that she second-guessed her choices because she tended to be more reserved. The two women balanced each other well, and had become fast friends when they met their first year of nursing school. Tina had been such a spot of sunshine in Caroline’s dreary world that Caroline had quickly gravitated toward her, and thankfully Tina had helped to pull her further from her depression. They shared the bond of having both lost someone they dearly loved in a horrific tragedy, and they bonded over their grief. They considered each other best friends and yet the only time they seemed to spend together anymore was at work. Caroline made a mental note to herself to make plans to go out with Tina soon. She missed having a social life.
“Caroline? Are you all right? You seemed a long ways away for a minute there.” Tina’s brow had furrowed out of worry, and Caroline sighed again.
“I’m okay, Tina, and you’re right. I need to take more chances. They seem like nice, respectable men, and they are firefighters. I think I will test the waters and agree to stay with them for a few days to get back on my feet. Maybe something will come from it. I haven’t had a relationship in so long though, and I wonder if I would even remember what to do with them if I got them naked.” Her face heated as she shared her thoughts out loud, and Tina licked her lips and smacked them in an air kiss.
“It’s like riding a bike, sister. I’m sure you will manage!” She left the room, laughing loudly, and Caroline heard her pause at the doorway and say to the men. “Hi, I’m Caroline’s best friend, Tina. Keep an eye on her for me, and tell me if she gets disagreeable, in any way.”
Caroline couldn’t hear the twins reply, but she groaned at the implications of Tina’s comment. What was she getting herself into?
The next morning Caroline’s friends from work filtered in and out of her room checking in on her. There were so many female visitors that she began to wonder if they were actually there to see her, or the man meat outside her hospital-room door. According to Tina several other firemen had visited the hospital, talking with her twins and then leaving. Why would the whole fire department seem to give a damn if she lived or died at this point? This whole damn situation was getting away from her.
She had a promise from her boss that her job was safe, but that he wanted her to take a couple of weeks off to recover. That was okay with her because she had a lot of things to figure out. She had several weeks of paid time off saved up that she had hoped to use for a vacation someday, so she could afford a little bit of time to herself.
Carter hadn’t been back, and she was relieved at that. As much as she appreciated his concern, she also didn’t want to lead him on. He was such a nice guy, and it was impossible not to feel bad for him. She also found that she enjoyed the spark of jealousy she had witnessed from the men when he was around, and it scared her.
As she lay in her hospital bed waiting on the charge nurse to bring her the discharge directions, and bill to sign, she thought again about Molly and Tyler. They were so dear to her, and she had no idea when she would see them again.
She had met the two of them four years ago when they were all moving into the apartment building over the same weekend. Molly, being a single mom with a two-year-old, was struggling to figure out how to simultaneously watch her energetic son, and unpack boxes that the moving company had dropped all over the apartment. Caroline had always wanted to have children of her own, but when her parents died, she realized that if she wanted a stable future she needed a good income, and a career. She had settled for dreaming of personal
stability instead of men and love, and it suited her just perfectly.
She had just enrolled in nursing school the year before they met, and the move to the apartment was intended to cut some of her expenses because she could walk to both school and the diner where she was waitressing her way through school.
She had offered to hang out in her free time with them, in order to help keep Tyler occupied, and a true friendship was born. From then on she spent every Friday evening babysitting Tyler for Molly, who had been waitressing at the same diner that Caroline once had. They had dinner together at least one night each week, and Caroline had even trusted Molly enough to share her dreams of a family with her. Molly was encouraging and wanted Caroline to date more often, even though she herself declared that one ex was enough to deal with and she had no desire to date until Tyler was at least out of college.
Caroline even spent last Christmas teaching Tyler how to roll the cookie dough to the proper thickness so that the sugar cookies were just soft enough, and then he had shown her how messy frosting cookies could actually be with a preschooler helping. Caroline had enjoyed the feeling of family that she had when she was with them.
Now she was facing starting over without them around. Knowing Molly’s financial situation, it was unlikely that she would be able to afford to move back to Kansas City after this. She would have to stay in Denver with her sister, and would probably just settle down there. Caroline would miss little Tyler more than she could bear to think about.
Lying in bed, dozing in and out and thinking through her history with Molly and Tyler, she felt a gentle breeze across her cheek. She knew one of the twins was in her room because she could smell him, and feel his heat. She opened her eyes to find Damon watching her apprehensively. His eyes seemed to light up when their gazes met, and she couldn’t hold back her smile.
“Caroline, I’m sorry I was so hard on your friend last night. I didn’t mean to upset you,” he said to her quietly. It was so quiet that she almost wondered if he actually spoke it, or if she just heard his thoughts somehow.
“Thank you for that. You need to understand that I’m not yours to order around, Damon. I’m my own person, and I will make the decisions where my friends are concerned.” She wanted to make sure that he got the point so that they wouldn’t have this misunderstanding again.
“I will try to remember, and control the urge to break his scrawny neck in the future.” The laughter in his eyes calmed her jumping heartbeat as she realized that he was just teasing her.
“Good, I’m glad we have an understanding.” She smiled back, unable to help it. She loved seeing how it made his face light up. God, he was such a sexy man. He was all rough edges, and a soft heart with an unusually deep-seated need to protect her. These two brothers were going to be her undoing. She could sense it.
“However…” He paused dramatically, waiting for her to focus her attention back on his eyes before speaking. “You are mine. Mine and Devin’s. You will come to accept that, but I’m willing to give you more time to fall head over heels in love with me.”
His smile was playful, but his words carried a strong message. She wasn’t sure she liked his assumptions, but she didn’t want to argue with him again. Settling for rolling her eyes at him, she noticed the shopping bag in his hand.
“What’s that?” she asked.
“Leave it to a woman to sniff out new clothes.” He chuckled. “The Red Cross worker that came in last night said that the hospital would have had to throw out the clothes you were wearing, so I went and got you some things to wear. Hopefully they fit. I had to ask your friend Tina what sizes I should get for you. She also said that your favorite color is purple, so…”
He looked so hopeful that she would be happy with his purchases that she couldn’t help but smile wider. “Thank you. You didn’t have to do that, you know. I appreciate that you and Devin want to help me, but…”
“I know, I know. You don’t know us. That’s okay, beautiful, we can slow down and give you time to get to know us, but don’t shut us out. Now, out of bed with you, let’s see how they fit so that we can get you out of this place.” He reached his hand out as if to help her stand, and she arched her brow at him, crossing her arms under her breasts.
“Damon. You will not be helping me change clothes. I will put them on, but you will wait outside while I shower and get dressed.” She hoped the look on her face was serious enough for him to resist arguing, but she could feel her own laughter bubbling up. She liked this lighthearted, flirty side to him.
“You may not be strong enough to stand up and move around on your own, Caroline. Let me help you.” He looked both concerned and devilish as he made his plea, but she wouldn’t back down. She shook her head and pointed to the door, grinning.
“I will be fine. I’ve been dressing myself for thirty years now. Thank you for your offer.” She smiled back at him.
“Fifteen minutes, beautiful, and then I come looking for you,” he called out as he headed back to his chair in the hallway.
His easy laugh sent ripples of desire through her. How could these men have such an effect on her? She was such a sane woman, and she had never been so attracted to anyone. As she learned their different personalities, her desire for them increased, and it made her wonder if there wasn’t something to their claim that she was fated to be with them. She shook her head at her own crazy thoughts, and opened the shopping bag. Inside she found a pair of blue jeans, and a purple sweater as well as a pair of lacy purple panties with a matching push-up bra. At the bottom of the bag was a box with a pair of new tennis shoes and a pair of white socks, and last she found a small bag that contained toiletries for a shower.
Caroline almost cried at the thoughtfulness of this man. He had thought of everything a girl would need, and had even gone shopping for it. She didn’t think she had ever received clothing from a man in her life. Her one ex-boyfriend had not been big on gifts, so she wasn’t used to accepting them. At that moment she knew that she had no chance against these men if they kept treating her like she was someone special.
She decided to ignore those feelings for now, and she headed for the bathroom that was attached to her room. All of her muscles were screaming in pain. She turned the water on as hot as she could and gave a throaty sigh as she settled into its heat.
As she relaxed into the water, her mind alternated between images of the two men. Damon seemed to be so much more impulsive then Devin, but he was also the one that was more thoughtful of her needs. Devin was more serious, and could clearly keep his calm in the face of her temper. She felt Devin’s desire to protect her even from a distance, and she could sense Damon’s need to see her smile when he looked at her. The only physical differences were their dimples on opposing cheeks, and just slightly different-colored green eyes that made her want to purr when they looked deep into her. They were quite the puzzle, and she was determined to figure them out somehow, and to move at her own pace in this new relationship.
As she came out of the steamy shower, her head spun a bit. It seemed she wasn’t quite as strong as she thought. She slid down the wall to sit naked on the floor with her head resting on her knees. Her vision spun, and she felt nauseous. The previous day’s events hit her again, and she started to tremble violently. She crawled across the tiles to the toilet and retched. Her stomach was empty, so she couldn’t vomit, but her body seemed to want to get rid of all of the pain from last night. Settling on the floor next to the toilet, curled in the fetal position and shivering, she knew she couldn’t get herself back up to get dressed, and that scared her.
Just a second later, the door to the bathroom burst open, and both Devin and Damon stood there staring at her with fear on their identical faces as she broke down in shock on the floor of the hospital bathroom. She felt a quick rush of embarrassment, before she was wracked with a second wave of violent tremors. She clenched her eyes shut, trying to slow the spinning of the room and relax her breathing.
She felt one of the
m pick her up, as the other wrapped a towel around her, and they took her into the other room. Instead of sitting her down on the bed, she felt the twin carrying her settle into the plastic chair, and adjust her across his lap with his arms wrapped around her tightly. Her body shook hard enough to make her teeth chatter, and she couldn’t seem to catch her breath. She looked up to see Damon holding her tightly while Devin stood inches away watching her. Damon rocked her back and forth for a few moments, until her body began to relax into his hold. She kept her cheek pressed against his hard chest, absorbing his strength. His arms around her felt like iron supports holding her together so that she didn’t fall completely apart. It was wonderful.
“I’ll go get the nurse,” he said to his brother.
“No!” she gasped, and she pulled out of Damon’s arms to stand. She had to grip the towel tightly to keep her dignity in front of them. “I’m…I’m okay, I promise. I just got really light-headed after my shower. My head was spinning, and it made me nauseous, so I had to sit down, and then everything just seemed to hit me all at once. My stomach is settling now. I just need to catch my breath for a minute. Oh God! I’m so embarrassed!” She used her free hand to cover her face as she blushed and prayed that they would take the hint and just get up and leave. Instead they stayed put, and again in the silent tension, she got the idea that they were communicating with each other.
“You shouldn’t be embarrassed, Caroline. You have been through a lot.” Devin’s voice was close to her ear, and she felt that sizzle of need as it rumbled through her.
“Yeah, please let us help you, so that you can take it easy,” Damon added.
“Thank you for coming for me. I don’t think I could have gotten up.” She still covered her face with her hand, and her breath left her lungs in a shudder. Her wet hair dripped down her back, and her toes were getting cold now that she was coming back to reality.
She tightened the towel around her and ran for the bathroom. “Oh my God, I need to brush my teeth. I’m sure I have terrible breath right now.” She heard the two men snicker as she quickly broke open the toothbrush that someone had placed on the counter, and after a couple of moments she returned to the room where they waited for her patiently.
