Vulnerable: (McIntyre Security Bodyguard Series - Book 1) (47 page)

Beth grinned. “At Clancy’s, a couple of weeks ago. He was there on a Friday evening. We spoke, and then he asked me to join him in the cafe.”

“You couldn’t have known who he was.”

She shook her head. “No. I thought it was just a random meeting. That he was... you know, picking me up.” She felt her face flush.

Tyler shook his head, clearly displeased. “He deceived you, Beth. He knew exactly who you were.”

“I know,” she said. “We’ve... talked.”

“How did you find out?”

“Gabrielle told me yesterday morning. I spent most of last weekend with him. When I told her I was falling in love with him, she – well, she told me everything. She thought I should know the truth.”

“I’m sorry, Beth,” Tyler said, squeezing her hand.

“It was... difficult. I realized he’d lied to me the entire time we’d known each other. That was hard to take.”

Tyler sighed. “I’ve known Shane for a long time, Beth. I may not always see eye-to-eye with him, but I’ll admit he’s an honorable man. He didn’t set out to deceive you. He was ethically bound to silence, because of our... business arrangement. And to be honest, he wanted to tell you everything from the beginning. I wouldn’t let him.”

Beth nodded. “I just wished he’d told me himself, before I heard it from Gabrielle.”

Her gaze sharpened as she eyed her brother. “Shane’s not the only one who kept things from me,” she said, unable to completely mask her resentment. “You kept Howard Kline’s parole from me. That was wrong. And you told Gabrielle, but not me! I had a right to know.”

Tyler frowned. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t want you to worry.”

Beth shook her head. “You can’t keep information like that from me, Tyler. It’s
my
life.”

“You’d been through so much already. I wanted to protect you from all that.” Tyler’s expression turned serious. “Shane’s going to ask you to stay with him until we get Kline back behind bars. I think that would be a mistake. I want you to come live with me, at least until it’s safe for you to be on your own again.”

Beth gave her brother a melancholy smile. “Don’t you think that should be my decision?”

There was a quick rap on Beth’s door, and then Shane walked in. He was alone – there was no sign of Lia. Beth was sure Lia had better things to do than hang around her hospital room all evening.

Tyler stood as Shane approached. The two men stood, practically glaring at each other across the foot of Beth’s hospital bed.

“Were you listening?” Tyler said.

“Yes,” Shane said unabashedly. He crossed his arms over his chest. “Anything that concerns Beth concerns me.”

Tyler scowled at him. “You presume a lot, Shane,” he said. “I think it’s in Beth’s best interest for her to come stay with me, and I’m sure our mother would agree.”

“That’s Beth’s decision to make, not yours. She’s an adult, Tyler.”

“Guys,” Beth said, raising a placating hand as she glanced from one to the other. The two men in her life were eyeing each other like junkyard dogs, each one waiting for the other to make a wrong move. She couldn’t help grinning.

Beth reached for Shane with her good hand. He smiled at her, relaxing his stance, and pulled one of the chairs around to his side of the bed and took a seat. He cupped her hand in his, then kissed the back of it.

“Everything okay?” Shane said, looking from Beth to Tyler and back.

“All good,” she said, smiling at him.

Shane looked up expectantly at Tyler, who stood glowering over them both. “It’s late, Tyler,” he said. “She needs to rest.”

Shane knew this had to be hard for Tyler. Tyler was used to being the only man in Beth’s life. Now he had to share that role, and Shane knew that couldn’t be an easy adjustment.

“You’re staying the night?” Tyler said, confirming what Shane had already told him.

“I’ll be here all night. So will Cooper, Lia, and Miguel. She won’t be alone, ever.”

Tyler nodded. He leaned down and kissed Beth on the top of her head. “I’ll be back in the morning, kiddo,” he said. “Call me if you need me.”

“I will.” Beth looked at the two men flanking her. They were so different from each other, and yet they were so much alike. She loved them both, and the fact that she had both of them in her life filled her with a degree of contentment she’d never known. “Tyler?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

He smiled. “I love you, too.”

The evening shift nurse stopped in Beth’s room and took her vitals. Then she helped Beth walk to the restroom to take care of business. Beth’s ribs burned, making standing very difficult, let alone walking. With the nurse’s help, Beth used the facilities and brushed her teeth and hair before shuffling back to her bed.

“Don’t get out of you bed during the night without help,” the nurse told her. “Don’t even stand up without help. You could easily fall.”

The nurse looked at Shane. “Are you staying the night?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Don’t let her get out of bed by herself.”

When they were alone, Shane dialed the lights in the room down to a low, twilight setting. He didn’t want Beth to wake up in the dark and panic. A movement in the partially open doorway caught his attention. It was Jake, standing there with his hands on his hips, looking like business.

“I’ll be right back,” he told Beth. “I need to have a quick word with Jake out in the hall.”

Shane stepped out into the hallway. “What is it?”

Jake frowned. “Well, it’s not good news,” he said. Jake quietly closed the door to Beth’s room. “Kline’s been looking at bus routes that service Hyde Park, specifically the Kingston campus.”

“Fuck.”

“Yep. That’s what I said.” Jake crossed his arms over his chest. “He has a gun, ammo, and now he’s planning transportation to her workplace. He’s going for her.”

Shane nodded. “Good.”

“Excuse me?” Jake said, raising a cynical brow.

“I want him to go after her. That’ll give me the justification I need to take him out.”

“Shane, I know you want to put an end to this guy. We all do,” Jake said. “but you’ve got to be careful.”

Shane nodded. “I’m not going to let this asshole hang like a bad cloud over Beth’s head for the rest of her life. I just have to figure out how to do it without putting Beth at risk and without breaking any laws.”

Shane walked back into Beth’s room, closing the door behind him, and took a seat beside her bed. “We need to talk, sweetheart,” he said, taking her hand.

“Hmm?” she said, turning to face him, blinking her tired eyes.

“You look like you’re about to pass out. Never mind. It can wait until morning. You need sleep.”

As if on cue, Beth yawned, and they both chuckled. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. “I’m so tired.”

Shane lowered the head of the bed to a suitable sleeping position. “Go to sleep,” he said, stroking her hair.

“You’ll stay with me?” she said.

Beth’s question sounded an awful lot like a plea, and he felt his chest tighten. A horrifying thought resurfaced in his mind – a thought he’d been trying to keep out of his head since her attack.
What if Mary Reynolds hadn’t been there to stop Andrew Morton
? There was no telling how this day might have ended.

He smiled at her. “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away.”

Smiling, she closed her eyes again, letting her muscles and bones relax for the first time that day. “Shane?”

“Yes?”

“I regretted walking out on you,” she said. “When I realized what I’d done, I was miserable, but I didn’t know how to fix it.”

“It was my fault, Beth. All of it. I should have told you the truth sooner.” He kissed the back of her hand. “And I was beyond miserable; I was devastated, terrified I’d lost you.”

She made a sleepy sound. “Never,” she said, her voice drowsy. “Can we start over?”

“I would love that.” Shane stood and leaned over her, his mouth hovering over hers, just short of touching her. “I would give anything to be able to kiss you right now,” he whispered against her lips.

His warm breath on her lips made her shiver. “Do it,” she whispered.  “Kiss me.”

“I can’t,” he said. “Not until your lips are healed.”

“Do it,” she whispered against his lips. “Please.”

He made a sound, part frustration and part resignation, then he touched his lips to hers, just barely making contact.

Beth sighed. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, sweetheart,” he said, smiling as he sank back into his chair. He sat there without moving, watching her fall asleep.

Lia came up behind him, laying a hand on his shoulder. “Do you want the cot?” she said quietly, indicating the narrow bed the nurse had rolled in for them.

“No, you take it. I’ll sleep here, in the chair.”

* * *

Beth’s scream rent the air in the dead of night, wrenching everyone in the immediate vicinity fully awake.

Shane, who’d fallen asleep with his head resting on his arms at the edge of her bed, shot to his feet, sending his chair crashing to the floor. In that split second, he’d already scanned the room, looking for a threat. Cooper, who’d been on guard duty, burst into the room, his 9mm Beretta steady in a two-handed grip.

Lia sat up in the cot and glared at the two men. “Good God, what was that awful sound?”

Shane looked down at Beth’s restless figure in the bed, then glared at his sister. “She was having a nightmare,” he said.

Lia lay back down with an annoyed huff and turned on her side facing away from Beth’s bed. Cooper quietly slipped out of the room, returning to his post outside Beth’s door.

Shane righted his chair and sat back down. It was three o’clock in the morning, but he was surprisingly wide awake after only a few hours of restless sleep. He wouldn’t sleep well here. He wouldn’t sleep well again until he had Beth safely ensconced in his Kenilworth house. She’d be safe there – he just needed to get her to agree to the move.

“Shane?”

He almost didn’t hear Beth’s whisper, it was so quiet. He leaned forward. “What is it, sweetheart?” he whispered back.

“I need to go to the bathroom.”

He smiled. “I’ll help you.”

“That’s okay. I can do it myself.” Beth attempted to sit up on her own, but she groaned at the burning pain in her torso and fell back against the pillows.

“Your nurse gave strict instructions that you’re not to get out of bed without assistance.”

“Shane!” she hissed. “I don’t want you taking me to the bathroom!”

He sighed. “Then Lia can help you. Or, I’ll call for a nurse.”

“No, don’t wake Lia.”

“Too late, Princess,” Lia muttered. “I’m already awake. I’ll do it.”

“Thank you, Lia, but that won’t be necessary.” Beth glared at Shane. “And you’re not doing it either.”

“How about Cooper, then?” Shane suggested, trying to hold onto his patience. “I’m sure he’d be happy to help you.”

“No!” Beth hissed.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” Shane said. “You have to allow one of us to help you.” He leaned toward her, his mouth near her ear. “Why not me? I’ve seen and tasted every inch of your delectable body. What’s the big deal?”

“Okay,
you
,” she said, sounding resigned. “But just to the bathroom door. Once I’m inside, I can manage on my own.”

Shane chuckled. “We’ll see about that.”

Shane helped Beth sit up and swing her legs to the side of the bed. He helped her stand, careful of her broken arm, then supported her as she shuffled across the room.

Shane pushed the bathroom door open. “Do you want the light on?”

“No, thank you. I can manage from here,” she said.

Shane partially loosened his grip on her, and she immediately began listing to the side. “I’ll just help you over to the toilet,” he suggested, tightening his grip on her. “Then you can hold onto the handrail for support.”

“Okay,” Beth said, realizing just how weak she was. If Shane had let go of her, she would have landed on the floor.

When she reached her destination, Beth grabbed the handrail with her good hand, holding on for dear life. Her broken arm, strapped in a sling, was of course no use. She simply stood there, realizing she couldn’t do this alone. She couldn’t lift her gown and sit down and hold onto the railing at the same time. Not with just one functioning hand and hardly any strength at the moment. It was mortifying to be so weak, unable to do the most basic thing by herself.

Shane stood behind her, holding his tongue.

“I can’t do it,” she finally said, her voice sounding thick with defeat.

“I’ll lift your gown,” he said gently. “You sit down.”

When she was seated, he said, “I’ll wait outside. Call me when you’re done.”

Beth managed to take care of business, albeit a bit slowly. Once she was done, she figured if she could keep her gown from falling into the toilet, she could stand and shuffle to the sink on her own. It was just a few feet away. Surely she could manage that on her own.

She tucked the ends of her gown inside her sling and stood carefully, holding onto the hand rail for support. A wave of dizziness hit her, and she closed her eyes for a moment.

She looked over at the sink, wondering if she could walk those few steps without assistance. It wasn’t that far. Keeping her hand on the support rail as long as possible, she shuffled on her feet from the toilet to the sink. She leaned against the sink for support while she used her right hand to turn on the water.

As she waited for the water to heat up, she glanced in the mirror and saw her reflection for the first time since the assault. Dear God, she looked half dead. She must have made a sound, because the door opened and Shane was behind her, his hands going to her waist to steady her.

He frowned, meeting her eyes in the mirror. “You were supposed to call me.”

Beth’s eyes filled with tears as she stared at her reflection. She barely recognized herself. Her face was mottled with a hideous array of red splotches, angry and dark. Her nose was swollen, as were her lips, and she had two black eyes. There was no way she could go back to work looking like this, even if she could move on her own.