Sid (The Protectors Series) Book #4

by Gabelman, Teresa

  By the time she made it down the steps and out the front door, Lana was actually sweating. She didn’t want to face Sid. She needed to get her shit together and have an Oprah moment. Oh, who was she kidding? She messed up bad. He was her boss for shit’s sake. How professional was that!

  “Yes, sir, sorry I’m late, but how was that blow job I happily gave you last night?” Lana hissed, mocking herself.

  “You’re not late, breakfast is just now ready, and the blow job was the best I’ve ever had,” Sid’s growl was right behind her. “Now, where in the hell do you think you’re going?”

  Lana jumped a mile high, dropping her bag, which of course fell upside-down, dumping the contents onto the ground. And if her luck wasn’t bad enough, his shirt she stole lay on top of all her shit. Dropping to the ground trying to shove everything back in her bag before he saw, Lana’s mouth silently cursed a string of obscenities. Her eyes closed when a large masculine hand reached in front of her eyes, grabbing the shirt.

  “Is that my shirt?” His deep voice flowed over her.

  Lie, just lie, Lana. Then he can call you lying Lana. Yep, she was losing it. “Yes,” she said, but her head shook no.

  “So you stole my shirt and decided to make a run for it?” Sid asked, helping her to her feet.

  That sounded better than why she was really leaving. Finally, her eyes rose to meet his. “Yes.”

  “Stealing is a crime, Lana.” Sid held the shirt out. “Didn’t you learn that in…cop school?”

  “Yes,” she answered again, frowning when his lips twitched.

  “Why were you leaving, Lana?” Sid handed her the shirt back.

  Lana took the shirt, shoving it in her bag with a sigh. “You were gone.” She shrugged looking back up at him. “I figured you had that morning-after regret thingy.”

  Sid eyed her. “Morning-after regret thingy?”

  “Yeah, you know.” Lana flipped her hand, laughing nervously, and then made a shocked face. “The ‘holy hell…what did I do and how the hell can I get out of it’ moment?”

  Understanding flashed in his eyes. “And because I was gone, you felt I had the ‘morning-after regret thingy’ going on?”

  “Well, yeah, I mean I did act pretty slutty and…” Lana’s words started flying out of her mouth fast.

  Sid laughed loudly, cutting her off. “Lana, honey.” Sid’s grin grew. “First of all, last night was the best time I’ve had in a long time. Everything you did came from you, meaning you were a hundred-percent honest in what you wanted and wanted to give.”

  “Are you calling me a slut?” Lana frowned. She had, in fact, said she acted slutty, but to have him call her one was a whole different matter.

  “Have you ever acted like that with another man?” Sid growled, his eyes darkening.

  “No,” Lana replied, wondering why he was getting angry.

  “Good, because I’d hate to have to kill the son of a bitch.” Sid pulled her close. “A woman who can be herself with a man, going for what she wants, is priceless, and honey, last night was priceless. What man in his right mind wouldn’t want the woman he was with to act a little…slutty…hmm?”

  “But you’re my boss for the moment, and that was totally unprofessional.” Lana looked at him.

  “You’re fired,” Sid grinned down at her. “Since that’s taken care of, come on and get something to eat, then you can act slutty again.”

  Lana smacked him. “I’m being serious.”

  “So am I.” Sid winked down at her. “I’ve been around a long time, honey, and let me tell you, last night was the most I’ve ever been turned on by a woman, and I’m ready for round….”

  Looking up at him when he cut himself off, she watched as he seemed in deep thought. “Round what?”

  “Shush, wait a minute. I’m trying to count.” Sid tried not to grin. “Five, I believe, round five.”

  Lana, feeling better about the situation, grinned then elbowed him. “It’s six.”

  Sid didn’t reply. He pulled her into his arms, kissing her long and hard. Lifting away, he nipped her chin. “I know. I was testing you.” He grabbed her hand, leading her back inside. “You definitely keep it interesting, Lana.”

  “Not a boring minute with me.” Lana smiled, feeling better after their talk. In all honesty, she should have just been the woman she knew she was and faced it like she had before, but with Sid, it was different. Not only was he a vampire, which was definitely a new venture for her, but he oozed alpha male confidence and she knew they would clash. She didn’t take well to demands from anyone, even drop dead sexy alpha vampires.

  Lana’s phone rang, and when she looked at it, she grimaced, feeling conflicted. She and Sid did have sex, but was that all it was or was it something more? To her, it was something more. She liked sex, yes, but she just didn’t go around spreading her legs for anyone. To Sid it was probably just another sexual encounter, and though that hurt, she was a big girl and knew what she was in for before dropping her panties.

  “You going to answer that?” Sid eyed her, his happy mood disappearing quickly. “Who is it?”

  “Ah, it’s Doug. I’ll just call him back.” Lana went to put her phone in her back pocket.

  “The fuck you will.” Sid grabbed her phone, answering it.

  “Hey!” Lana grabbed for her phone, but he was too quick.

  “This is Sid Sinclair and Lana is no longer available. If you call her again, I will hunt you down,” Sid growled into the phone. “You got me, Dennis? Good!”

  “Why did you do that?” Lana looked at him with a wide-eyed stare. “And his name is Doug.”

  “I don’t give two fucks what his fucking name is,” Sid growled, handing her the phone. “I suggest you block his number if you want him to live.”

  “What is wrong with you?” Lana stepped back, shocked by his anger, but in all honesty, he was amazing. She’d never had a man act like this by her just talking to another man, and it made her feel…special. What in the hell was wrong with her? She was a cop, a woman who knew who she was and didn’t need an overbearing alpha male bending her to his will…or did she?

  Sid took one-step, invading her space. “You are mine, Lana.” Sid’s eyes were black with possessiveness. “I have never said that to anyone in my long life, but you are mine. I don’t share with anyone, and I will hunt that motherfucker down if he calls you again.”

  Lana’s stomach was doing all kind of weird flips and flops; her knees felt weak, and all she wanted to do was hold on to this man and never let go. So much for clashing. It was like his alpha side was singing her favorite song, pulling her in and that totally shocked her. But she also had a little alpha in her and she had to make one thing clear; then she could feel that their relationship could go further. “I don’t share either, Sid,” she responded, taking her one-step toward him. “So make sure you really mean what you’re saying. I know how much you love the ladies, and—”

  He grabbed her up in his strong arms and kissed her hard, his tongue pushing deep into her mouth. It was a kiss she had only read about in romance novels. Her toes actually curled as he bent her backwards. Finally, he lifted his mouth from hers, staring into her eyes. “I haven’t looked at another woman since I met you. And that surprises me more than anyone else,” he growled as he nipped her lower lip. “You are mine, Lana Fitzpatrick.”

  She knew she had a decision to make. No words of love were spoken, but what did she expect? Did she want to be his just until it lasted? Could she guard her heart enough to just have some fun until his eyes moved on to someone else? She knew the answer to those questions before she even asked herself. She wanted this. She needed it. She could handle it. Wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, Lana breathed deeply and then jumped in with both feet. “I’m yours, Sid Sinclair.”

  They walked into the kitchen hand in hand, and all went silent. Forks stopped in mid-lift. All eyes fell on her and she wanted to step behind Sid; she knew she was a screamer and now everyone in the
compound knew it too.

  Pulling Sid down, she whispered in his ear. “Are the rooms here sound-proof?”

  “No, they’re not.” Sid winked at her. “Don’t pay any attention to them. They’re just jealous, and if one of them says a word, I’ll kill them.”

  Surprised at how serious he sounded, she let him pull her toward the food. “Did you make all of this?”

  “Yes, so eat up.” Sid handed her a plate. “I don’t like to see food I’ve made wasted.”

  Lana wasn’t afraid of food. She loved food. It didn’t matter that she couldn’t cook, but she sure as hell could eat. Filling her plate with eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns and a biscuit, she glanced at the table where the other Warriors were eating. Deciding not to go there, she placed her plate on the counter and started to dig in.

  “I’m done.” Slade stood and took his plate to the sink. “Take my seat.”

  Not wanting to seem rude, Lana picked up her plate and headed to the only available seat, between Damon and Duncan and across from Jared, who sat next to Jill and Steve. Noticing once again that everyone had stopped eating and was staring at her plate, Lana smiled. They were about to be amazed.

  “No way you can eat all that,” Jill eyed her plate.

  “Oh, I can and will eat all of this,” Lana nodded with confidence. “There isn’t an overflowing plate I haven’t been able to demolish yet.”

  “How do you stay in shape eating like that?” Jill looked at her then her plate again.

  The room grew silent as they all looked at her. Lana met Jared’s gaze and she knew for a fact he had heard her last night and was dying, absolutely dying, to say something. Not to sound too much like a bitch, but if things were okay between her and Sid, she really didn’t care what others thought.

  “A lot of hard and sweaty exercise that makes you scream.” She peeked at Jared who choked on the drink of coffee he’d just sipped from his cup.

  “Well, you must have been doing some extra-hard exercises last night.” Steve stood with his plate. “Cause I heard a lot of screaming.”

  The room exploded with laughter. Lana’s face turned red, but she smiled, looking down at her food.

  “What?” Steve looked around at everyone. “What did I say?”

  Jill and Lana glanced at each other as the Warriors got up from the table. Steve followed, asking what was so funny. Jill just shook her head with a large smile, but her smile faded as she made eye contact with Slade, who turned and walked out of the kitchen.

  “Have you ever been to Metropolis?” Jill asked, pushing her plate away.

  Lana nodded. “Me and my sister have been a couple of times.”

  “What do you wear to this place?” Jill looked uncomfortable asking.

  Without being too obvious, Lana looked Jill over. She wore sweats and a t-shirt. “Want to go shopping?”

  “Not really,” Jill grimaced. “But I guess I don’t have a choice since I don’t have many clothes.”

  “It will be fun,” Lana assured her. It would be nice to go out with another woman. She hadn’t done that in so long, and it was one thing she missed doing with her sister. “We can go get your hair and makeup done. You’ll feel like a new woman.”

  “I don’t know about all that, but I’d appreciate the help.” Jill actually looked like she was in pain when the word ‘makeup’ was mentioned.

  “You want to catch the doctor’s eye, don’t you?” Lana grinned, exposing the secret she knew Jill held.

  “No.” Was the only response Jill could come up with.

  “Liar.” Lana took the last few bites of food, lifted the corner of her empty plate for Jill to see and then stood. “Let me tell Sid we’ll meet them here later, and then we’ll go.”

  Chapter 20

  Sid dropped Lana and Jill off at the warehouse where Lana’s car was parked. As soon as they were safely in the car and driving away, he grabbed his cell phone.

  He dialed the number then waited. “Hey man, I got a favor to ask you. Can you meet me at University Hospital? Yeah, on my way there now. I’ll meet you out front.”

  Tossing his phone in the passenger’s seat, Sid pulled out of the driveway heading toward the hospital. Thoughts of last night and Lana filled his drive time. She was so different from the women he went after, or actually came after him. She was a mix for sure. She was a hard ass with a huge heart who made him laugh and definitely turned him on. Just thinking of last night had him hard. She didn’t play games. She went for what she wanted in an honest way, and he was more than happy to give it to her however and whenever she wanted.

  “Jesus.” He was getting himself all worked up just thinking about it.

  Pulling into a parking place, he got out and headed to the front where Slade stood waiting for him.

  “What’s up?” Slade asked, looking more like a biker in a motorcycle gang with his leather jacket than a doctor saving lives.

  “I wanted to see if you could check over Lana’s sister.” Sid went into detail about what he knew. “She has been unreachable for a month. The last time I was here, I tried to read her and got very little.”

  “I would love to, but I don’t know much about this sort of thing, and I can’t do anything without release from her doctors.”

  “I got a hold of her father who is meeting us here.” Sid led the way with Slade following. “Her grandmother is also coming. She has the same gift as Lana and her sister Caroline.”

  Miles was waiting when the elevator doors opened. “Good to see you again, Sid.” Miles shook his hand and then looked up at Slade.

  “How you doing, Miles?” Sid nodded. “This is Dr. Slade Buchanan. I really appreciate you coming.”

  “Always happy to come see my little girl.” Miles shook Slade’s hand and then laughed. “I’m sorry, son, but you don’t look like any doctor I’ve ever seen.”

  Slade smiled, not taking offense. “I get that a lot.”

  “I bet you do.” Miles stopped them at the door of Caroline’s room. “What is this all about?”

  “I want to see if Slade can help Caroline.” Sid glanced in, seeing an older woman sitting in a chair holding Caroline’s hand.

  “Son, we have some of the best doctors taking care of her.” Miles frowned.

  “I understand that, but none of them are as good as Slade or have the power of getting into a person’s mind. I will go through every VC Warrior we have to see if any of us can reach her. I already tried last night. I saw flashes, but not enough to reach her.” Sid replied, deliberately leaving out the possibility of feeling her move.

  Miles bit his lip, nodding. “I appreciate that very much.” Miles cleared the emotion from his throat. “Where is Lana?”

  “She already has so much guilt about this. I didn’t want to get her hopes up until I was sure one of us might be able to help.” Sid put his hand on Miles’s shoulder. “I think it’s worth a shot.”

  “Anything that can bring my girl back is worth a shot.” Miles moved out of the way, leading them toward Caroline.

  “I need a release from her current doctor before I can do anything,” Slade informed them both.

  “She has three doctors. Do you need all three?” Miles already had his phone out ready to dial.

  “Just the main physician is enough. The one calling all the shots.” Slade, already making assessments, stepped to the end of the bed Caroline was propped up in.

  “This is my mother, Georgia Fitzpatrick,” Miles introduced. “This is Sid Sinclair and Dr. Buchanan.”

  The old woman stood. Her face was wrinkled, but her eyes were bright with intelligence from years of living. She looked both men up and down with her wise gaze.

  “You think you can help my granddaughter?” Her voice was strong.

  “We are going to try, ma’am,” Sid smiled down at the woman.

  “So you’re friends with Lana?” She asked; her eyes sparkled at Sid.

  “We work together.” Sid glanced over to see Miles still on the phone.

/>   “That’s not what I asked, young man.” She snatched his attention back by grasping his arm in a strong grip. “Are you friends with my granddaughter?”

  “Yes, I am,” he grinned, liking her spunk.

  “Make sure you take care of her. Something wicked is at work here.” Her eyes then went to Caroline. “And it’s stronger than me and my granddaughters put together.”

  Sid took her arm, walking her a few steps away from the bed. “Is it possible for you to get physically harmed through a vision?”

  “It’s very rare, but yes,” she replied, a frown marring her wrinkled face. “Has something happened to Lana?”

  “After a reading, she had marks on her neck and her necklace was broken.” Sid divulged small fragments of the facts.

  “You can’t let her read anyone else.” She shook her head. “If she does, she could be lost like her sister. Please don’t let her.” Fear for her granddaughter lit her eyes.

  “I promise to keep her safe,” he assured the worried woman as much as he assured himself. The fear in the old woman’s eyes sent his protective instincts into high gear. Nothing was going to happen to Lana; he would make damn sure of it.

  Miles walked over, pocketing his phone. “It’s done,” he nodded to Slade. “The nurse will be bringing in all of her files.”

  Slade walked around to the side of the bed, moving the chair out of his way. They all moved closer, but far enough away to stay out Slade’s space. Slade reached up, and grabbed the wall-mounted otoscope to use the small light on the end.

  “Caroline, I’m Dr. Buchanan,” Slade’s deep voice soothed a warning to the woman on the bed. “I’m going to look into your eyes.”

  Sid watched as Slade examined Lana’s sister. The last thing he did was grab her small wrist in his large hand, standing still as his eyes stayed on hers. After a while, he finally let go.