by Becca Van
She wasn’t about to let them bully her around anymore. She inwardly winced over her choice of words. They’d never bullied her, but she wasn’t about to let them tell her what to do ever again.
She tugged her hand out of Ajay’s grip and tried to decide how she was going to make her escape. She would either need to climb over the arm of the sofa, or shove one of the men out of the way. Neither was a real option since they were all so much bigger and stronger than she was. If she tried to go over the arm of the couch, she had a feeling she’d be stopped. All Brax would have to do was wrap an arm around her waist. She wasn’t sure she could stand any of them touching her again. Just having Brax’s finger and thumb on her chin, as well as Ajay holding her hand, had set her body on fire.
Jaylynn felt as if she was teetering on the edge of the cliff. There were so many emotions warring inside of her heart and soul she felt sick to her stomach. Maybe she wasn’t well after all.
She placed a hand over her roiling belly, inhaled and swallowed, trying to prevent herself from tossing her cookies. Sweat broke out on her brow and upper lip and even though she felt hot, she was so cold she didn’t think she’d ever be warm again.
Was she reacting this way because she was in shock? Or was she sickening for something? Either way, she didn’t feel so good.
“Let me up,” she ordered, but her voice didn’t come out as strong as she’d been hoping.
“Not until we’ve talked, honey.” Ajay brushed her hair back from her face and then frowned. He placed the palm of his hand over her forehead. “She’s fucking burning up.”
“No, I’m not,” she contradicted as she wrapped her arms around her waist and shivered. When saliva pooled in her mouth she realized that she really was sick.
She shoved to her feet, stumbled between Brax and Ajay and raced toward the door. As she hurried around the doorway she knocked her shoulder into the doorframe and would have cried out with pain if she wasn’t scared to open her mouth. She burst into the restroom and the first cubicle, dropped down to her knees and vomited. After the two cups of coffee had been purged from her system, she ended up dry heaving since there was nothing left in her stomach.
Finally, when the spasms faded, she flushed the toilet and rose on shaky legs. She got dizzy when she turned toward the sink and had to place her palm against the cubicle wall. It took a few moments for her blurry vision to clear and while she’d known that Brax, Cael, and Ajay had followed her into the bathroom, she was hoping by ignoring them, they’d become bored with her and leave. Although she hated that they’d heard and maybe seen her being sick, there was nothing she could do about it, so she pushed her humiliation aside.
Jaylynn stood in front of the sink and after washing her hands, cupped her palm and scooped water up to her mouth, rinsing the acidity away before spitting the water out. When the horrid taste was gone from her mouth, she splashed water onto her face and murmured her thanks when one of the guys handed her some paper towels to dry off with.
“Come on, honey.” Ajay moved to her side, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Let’s get you out of here.”
She wanted to tell him and his brothers to leave her the hell alone, but she just didn’t have the energy and ended up nodding in agreement.
Brax held the bathroom door open, stepping aside to allow Ajay to guide her from the bathroom.
“Jaylynn, are you okay?” Violet asked as she walked out of the kitchen. “My men told me you’re sick. Do you want me to call one of the docs?”
“No,” she croaked. “I’m okay. It’s probably just that twenty-four-hour bug that’s been going around.”
“Oh, you poor thing. Go on up and get some sleep. Don’t you dare come in tomorrow,” Violet told her sternly. “In fact, you can take the rest of next week off, too. You’ve got more than enough sick leave and vacation time to take a break.”
“I’ll take tomorrow but that’s it,” she replied. There was no way she was taking off more time than was necessary. She’d been taking any shift she could to save up for her own place. She’d work twenty hours a day if she had to, and had. If Violet, Delta, and Enya had noticed what she’d been doing, they would have had a fit. Luckily, so far, they hadn’t twigged that she was working so much since the other women’s shifts overlapped. Cindy, the young teenage waitress, had given her a few worried looks, but she was the only one. Jaylynn shrugged Ajay’s arm off and then unlocked the door to her upstairs apartment.
She froze when one of them clasped her shoulder.
“What are you doing, sweetness?” Cael asked.
“Going upstairs to lie down.”
“You live upstairs?” Brax asked almost angrily.
She swallowed around the constrictive lump in her throat and nodded, keeping her gaze on the door she had yet to open.
“That’s not safe, honey,” Ajay said. “If anyone knew you were living here all by yourself—you could be in danger, Jaylynn.”
She shook her head. “Good security,” she forced out from her tight throat. Already her stomach was churning again. Whatever she’d caught wasn’t over yet and she needed to get upstairs before she embarrassed herself again. “Thanks,” she said as she opened the door and quickly closed it behind her so that they couldn’t follow her.
She engaged the lock, raced upstairs toward the bathroom.
* * * *
“What the fuck is going on?” Ajay asked frustratedly as he ran his fingers through his hair.
“I don’t know,” Brax answered through clenched teeth. “But whatever it is, I don’t like it.”
Cael led the way back toward the diner and after they were seated again, he said what worried him the most. “She hardly looked at us.”
“I’m aware.” Ajay sighed.
Wilder, Cree, Nash, and Violet joined them at the booth with loaded plates. Wilder wrapped an arm around his woman’s shoulders. “Baby, this is Brax, Ajay, and Cael Rhodes. Guys, the love of our lives, Violet.”
“Hi.” Violet smiled shyly.
“Pleased to meet you, Violet,” Brax said.
“Hey,” Cael greeted.
“Nice to meet you, Violet,” Ajay said.
Cael started eating as his mind whirled in circles. “What’s she doing living upstairs?” he asked after swallowing.
“She asked if she could lease the upstairs apartment a few months ago,” Violet explained. “Since I didn’t need it anymore, and after talking to my partners, they agreed she could rent it.”
“I can see how worried you are,” Cree said, “but you have no need to be. The security system is state of the art and monitored twenty-four-seven. No one can even try to get in without someone knowing about it.”
Cael relaxed a little at knowing that Jaylynn was safe, however, he was still worried about her being alone and ill. What if she passed out again and was sick while unconscious? She could end up choking on her own vomit and suffocating.
“Do you want more coffee?”
Cael glanced at the young woman holding the coffee pot.
“Yes, please, Cindy,” Violet said.
Cindy immediately started filling the coffee mugs.
“I don’t like Jaylynn being all alone when she’s sick.” Cael scrubbed a hand down his face. “She looks as if a good wind could blow her from her feet and she’s lost too much weight. She didn’t have any excess to begin with and is downright skinny. Those dark smudges under her eyes tell their own tale, too. She can’t have been sleeping much.”
“That’s because she’s been working nearly twenty-hour days,” Cindy said and then gasped before covering her mouth with her hand.
“What?” Violet frowned. “Are you serious? Why am I just finding out about this now? Did we somehow muck up the roster? Oh god. She’s sick because we stuffed up.” Violet lifted a shaky hand to her chest.
“You, Enya and Delta haven’t mucked up the roster, Violet,” Cindy said. “Jaylynn’s been volunteering for any shift she could. She’s also been helping Enya wi
th all the baking.”
“She’s been getting up to start work around four and then working the morning and afternoon shift?” Violet asked incredulously. “When has the woman had time to sleep?”
“I don’t know,” Cindy answered.
“Damn it. She’s also been helping me on the late shift.” Cael could see guilt and concern in Violet’s troubled gaze. “If I hadn’t swapped this shift with Delta today, I would probably never have known what Jaylynn was doing. Shit! We need to call a staff meeting. Can you arrange for one to coincide for around three this afternoon, Cindy? That way all three of us will be here. What time are you working till today?”
“Five,” Cindy answered.
“Good, you need to be there, too. Please call Katie and Kiara, as well. I’ll make sure they get paid for coming in on their day off.”
“Uh.” Cindy shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably.
“Spit it out, Cindy,” Violet ordered.
“Katie and Kiara were scheduled to work today. Jaylynn overheard them talking about wanting to spend the day in Monticello, Utah for a festival of some kind. She told them she’d cover their shifts.”
Violet covered her face. “I can’t believe what terrible bosses we are. Why didn’t we notice what Jaylynn was doing?”
“Don’t go blaming yourself, love.” Nash leaned around Cree to caress a hand over Violet’s head. “You’ve been too busy to keep up with everything.”
Cael wished he could have spoken to agree with Nash, but he was so angry at what Jaylynn had been doing, he was worried he’d end up cursing up a blue streak. Since there were a few children present, he kept his mouth shut. Thankfully Violet had kept her voice soft when she’d cursed. He wasn’t mad at Violet or the other women, but he was furious that Jaylynn had run herself into the ground. No wonder she was sick. She’d only been getting a few hours’ sleep a night for god knew how long.
“How long, Cindy?” Violet asked.
Cael was glad that Violet was thinking along the same lines as he was.
“About four months,” Cindy whispered and lowered her gaze. “I’m sorry, Violet. I should have said something sooner. I feel so guilty. Jaylynn’s covered a few of my shifts, as well, so I could catch up on classes at school. Mom’s been working so much, I’ve had to skip some school days to take care of my sister.”
“You’re not to blame, Cindy,” Brax piped up. “Jaylynn’s done this to herself.”
“Brax is right,” Violet agreed. “However, things are going to change. I think there’s going to be a couple of new rules put in place. We’ll talk more about this later, okay?”
“Okay.” Cindy nodded and hurried to serve more customers.
“Why the hell would Jaylynn work so much?” Ajay asked.
“Is she in trouble?” Cael asked, directing his question to Violet.
“I don’t think so, but I can’t be certain,” Violet answered. “Jaylynn’s a very private person and doesn’t talk about herself or her past much.”
“Damn.” Brax sighed. “I don’t like this. She used to be an open book.”
“You know her?” Violet asked.
Cael nodded. “We used to live across the street from her and her brother.”
“She has a brother?”
Ajay shook his head. “He was killed in action about twelve months ago.”
“What about her parents?”
“They died in a car accident when she was fifteen,” Brax replied. “She has no other family. Me and my brothers used to look in on her when her brother, Sebastian, was away on missions.”
“She is all alone.” Violet frowned. “I had a feeling she was, but didn’t want to ask in case I upset her.”
“We need to get into her apartment,” Cael said.
“I agree.” Ajay nodded.
“Can one of you recommend a doctor who’d be willing to make a home visit?” Brax asked.
Violet nodded. “Enya’s involved in a relationship with three doctors. I’m sure one of them wouldn’t mind examining Jaylynn.” She rose. “She should still be in the kitchen. Let me go ask.”
Cael watched Violet hurry away before glancing at his brothers. “This has to stop. If we don’t step in, Jaylynn is going to put herself into an early grave.”
“Depending on what the doc says, I think we should bring her home with us,” Ajay suggested.
“I want that as much as you do, but we can’t just take over her life.” Brax sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I know we watched over her, but that little woman has been on her own a lot since she was fifteen years old. She’s independent and mature and is going to make a fuss if we try and take over.”
“I get that, Brax,” Cael said. “However, I agree with Ajay. She’s sick, lost way too much weight and looks as if she’s about to keel over. I’d rather deal with her anger than not having the chance to deal with her at all.”
“Phoenix should be here any minute,” Violet said as she took her seat again. “Apparently he was already on his way to the diner.”
“Thanks, Violet,” Brax said.
“Thanks,” Cael and Ajay said simultaneously.
“How are we going to get into her place?” Brax asked.
“I grabbed the spare key from the office after I spoke to Enya.” Violet held up the key. “She’s worried about Jaylynn, too, and I know Delta will be, as well, when she realizes what’s been going on.”
Cael was so worried about Jaylynn he didn’t finish his breakfast. Normally nothing could stop him from appeasing his hunger, but his stomach was too knotted with concerned tension.
He wouldn’t relax until he knew Jaylynn was okay.
Chapter Four
Jaylynn had never felt so ill in her life. After throwing up yet again, she was too exhausted to get up off the floor. The cool tiles felt amazingly good on her hot face, yet she was so cold she was shivering, and her bones were aching. No, not just her bones. Her whole body was aching. The only consolation was she’d been able to grab a bottle of water from the fridge before having to rush back to the bathroom. At least she’d been able to rinse her mouth out before slumping to the floor. She really wanted to brush her teeth and gargle some mouthwash, too, but moving was way too hard.
She closed her eyes and drifted in a dream-doze like state between awareness and sleep. Every now and then she could feel and hear her teeth chattering together and her body quaking on the floor.
For a moment she wondered if she was dying and while the thought brought tears to her eyes, it was tempting just to let go. She missed her parents and brother so much, it was a physical ache. There was no one left in her life to care about her and it was alluring to just give up.
Yet she couldn’t. Brax, Ajay, and Cael were in town. She wanted to see them again and wished she could go back downstairs and tell them how much she’d missed them, how much she loved them, but she couldn’t. Firstly, because she was so weak she couldn’t move, and secondly because there was no way she was going to humiliate herself by telling them what was in her heart. They’d never see her as anything but a kid.
Goose bumps raced over her flesh and she trembled violently as she grew colder by the second. When she felt her arms and legs go rigid before she started jerking, Jaylynn knew she was in real trouble.
Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes and just before she passed out, she wondered if she’d ever wake up again.
* * * *
“Fuck!” Brax roared with fear when he saw Jaylynn convulsing on the floor. He grabbed a towel from the rail, hurried over to her, knelt, carefully lifted her head and put the towel under her so she wouldn’t give herself a head injury.
Dr. Phoenix Carter had been introduced to them by Violet before coming upstairs with him and his brothers.
“Her temperature’s way too high. It’s a hundred and four. If we don’t get it down, she could end up with brain damage,” Phoenix said after pressing a digital thermometer into Jaylynn’s ear. He grabbed a syringe out of his medic
al bag as well as a vial of something and filled the needle. After swabbing her upper arm, he injected the medicine into her system. “I’ve just given her a high dosage of antibiotics to help combat whatever she’s fighting. I’m also going to give her a painkiller which will help bring the fever down.”
Brax and his brothers sighed with relief when she stopped convulsing.
“What can we do?” Ajay asked. He and Cael were leaning against the vanity, staring at Jaylynn with worry.
“How well do you know her?” Phoenix asked as he prepped another syringe.
“Well,” Cael answered. “We used to live across the street from her.”
“What I want to know is if she’ll be pissed or upset if one of you saw her naked. She needs to be stripped down and put into a lukewarm bath. That’s the fastest way to lower her fever.”
“She can be pissed all she wants.” Brax practically growled the words. “I’ll do whatever’s necessary to make sure she gets better.”
“I could call an ambulance and admit her to the hospital,” Phoenix said. He injected the painkiller, pulled a stethoscope from his bag and listened to her heart. “Her heart rate’s elevated but that’s to be expected.” He felt along her throat and after lifting her arms to the side, he felt in her armpits. “Her glands are up in her throat, but the ones under her arms are normal size. I think she has a bad case of the flu or glandular fever.
“She’s been pale for a while and from what Violet told me before I came up, she’s been pushing herself way too hard. If she doesn’t slow down she could end up with chronic fatigue syndrome, if she hasn’t already got it.”
“Shit!” Ajay crossed his arms over his chest.
Brax clasped her small hand between his two much larger ones. He hated seeing her like this, so pale and sick, but now that he and his brothers were in town to stay, they would look after her like they had when she’d been growing up. However, this time she would be in their home. There was no fucking way he was leaving her here by herself. She needed a caretaker so she could get her health back on track, and she was going to have three.
