Sandy Sullivan (23 page)

"You
bet. I'll baby you all I can. I plan on talking to the hospital's medical
director to see if I can postpone my start date."

"No
you don't. You need this. I'll be fine."

"I
love you. I'm going to be there to help you recover."

"I
love you too, but there wasn't anything major hit except a hairline fracture in
my collarbone from what the doctor said. It's more of a flesh wound. It'll heal
just fine as long as I don't do too much. I'll have to close the office for a
few weeks, but I'm sure my patients will understand."

"You
will
take it easy, mister. If I have
to tie your ass down, I will."

"A
bit bossy for a sub aren't you?"

"When
I have to be."
She frowned before she dropped a
quick kiss to his lips.
"Seriously, Marcus.
You won't
be able to do some things around your house. I'll be there to cook and
clean."

"You'll
do your residency. I won't hear anymore about it."

"Then
I'll drive back and forth on my days off. Natalie and Cade will help too. There
are plenty of people in Red Rock who will help do things for you, I'm sure.
You're a popular guy."

"Don't
send the women over. There's only one woman I want waiting on me.
You."

"You'll
move into my house then."

"You
want me to move in with you?"

"Yes…I
mean it only make sense to…"

"Okay."

"Okay?
No arguments?"

"Nope.
I want to be with you even though this isn't the best of circumstances."

"As
long as I get to hold you when we sleep, I'll be a happy man," he said
softly, drifting off to sleep.

She
shifted to remove her hand from his, wanting to let him sleep now that he was
on the mend, until his eyes popped open again. "I'm going to let you
rest."

"I'll
rest better with you by my side."

"I
know, but they won't let me sleep here no matter how much clout you think you
might have."

"
Which is none around here.
"

"I'll
be back when they move you upstairs, okay? I want to give Cade, Natalie and my
father a progress update."

"They're
all here?"

"Of
course they are, Marcus. They care about you."

"Did
they catch the guy who shot me?"

"Yes,
but we'll talk more about it when you've recovered a bit more."

"All
right.
I love you, Elizabeth, but I think I'll sleep now
for a bit. I'm kind of tired."

"I
love you too, Marcus. I'll see you in a little while."

As
he drifted off to sleep, she heard a soft snoring sound. Slipping her hand out
of his, she went back out into the waiting room to fill everyone in on his
progress.

* * * *

Two
days later, Elizabeth stood at the side of his bed with her hands on her hips.
"You need to get up and move around more, Marcus. You can't be letting
these nurses wait on you anymore. I know with your charming disposition, you
have to be making it difficult for them to do their job."

"I've
been a grump, haven't I?"

"Yes,
now let's go for a walk."

"I
want out of here."

"Tomorrow,"
she said, sliding his slippers onto his feet.

"I
hate these gowns. Couldn't I have some scrub pants? What about my
underwear?"

"I'll
ask the nurses, but if you treated them better, they probably would have given
you scrub pants to wear, you know."

"Maybe."

"No
maybe's about it." She grabbed his hand, tucking it around her waist so
she could steady him on his non-injured side.
"Easy
now."

They
stepped out into the hall, walking toward the nurses' station. Several eyebrows
shot up as they walked nearby and down the other hallway. The nurses seemed
shocked as they walked past. He really hadn't been that bad of a patient, had
he?

"So
what's the progress on the shooter?" he asked, turning back toward his
room.

"He's
in jail for attempted murder."

"What
about the man who paid him?"

"I
wish I'd never told you about that."

"He
can't hide forever."

"I've
given them all the information I can recall from his offshore accounts to his
estates out of the country. They've located him at one of them. Now they have
to get extradition papers to have him arrested. I'm sure they'll have him in
custody soon."

"I
hope so. The man sounds crazy. I don't want him anywhere near you."

"Did
you hear what Dad found out about the vial?"

"No."

"It
was sodium nitrate concentrated.
Enough to kill the whole
herd."

"How
in the world did it get there and why would one of your dad's own hands want to
put him out of business?"

"I'm
not sure, but I have a good idea. I didn't tell you about the cell phone I
found."

"Cell
phone?"

"Yes,
in the mud near where the body was. There were all kinds of calls from Ari's
number on the phone. Apparently, Ari's been paying the guy to poison my dad's
herd ever since our blow up at the airport."

"He
must really have loved you." Marcus didn't like the thought of another man
touching his woman, much less loving her like he did.

"No,
I wasn't anything more than a possession to him. When I walked, he didn't like it."

"Now
I know the man is crazy. Any thoughts on why he tried to have me killed?"

"I
don't know. I don't think he knew about the two of us, but you never
know." When they returned to his room, she helped him get back into the
bed, tucking in the covers around him.

"Thanks,
Mom."

She
blew him raspberries as she continued fussing with the blankets. When she made it
around the other side, she gave him a quick, unsatisfying peck on the lips.

"More."

"No."

"Spoilsport.
You'll pay for your answer when I can wield the paddle again."

"Promises,
promises."

"You're
really asking for it now," he threatened good-naturedly.

"Yes,
Sir."
She grabbed her purse. "I really
need to get back to Dad's. I need to pack since my Master insists I come back
here in a few days to start my residency."

"Yes,
he does. You'll be great."

"Thanks."
She kissed him again. "I love you."

"I
love you too. Be careful driving home."

"I
will. You have your cell so I'll call you when I get there."

"All
right."

Quiet
surrounded him the moment she left. He leaned back in the bed and smiled. She
belonged to him. Thank God!

Chapter Fourteen

Elizabeth
sang to the country tunes on the radio as she pulled into her dad's driveway. A
car she didn't recognize sat pulled up to the porch with a rental tag.
That's weird. I wonder who is visiting.

After
she grabbed her purse, she slid out of her car, walking by the sedan. A
briefcase and overcoat sat on the front seat.
Who wears an overcoat in Montana in the middle of summer?

"Dad?"
she called, walking through the door. "I'm home.”

"Welcome
home, Elizabeth."

The
hair stood up on her arms.
"Ari.
What are you
doing here?"

"I
came to retrieve my fiancé."

"You
never asked me to marry you."

"No,
but you assumed I would so now I've come to rectify the situation."

"I'm
not going anywhere with you." She glanced around to see her father sitting
in one of wing chairs. His gaze shifted from her to Ari and back.

"He's
fine. For now…"

"Why
do you insist on this? You don't love me. I've realized I don't love you."

"Oh,
but I always get what I want. You walked out on me. No one walks out on Armand
Listolini
."

"You
can have whomever you want. Any of the women you've fucked while you were with
me would love to be with you, I'm sure. Take one of them."

He
sighed, shifted and pointed the gun she hadn't noticed before, at her father.
"I'll kill him and your boyfriend. You see, no one fucks me over."

"You
cheated on me, but it's not right if someone doesn't play by your rules anymore?
You're crazy, Ari."

Before
she could blink, he lifted his left hand and slapped her hard across the cheek.
Finding herself on the floor by the end table, she touched where the ring on
his finger cut her face.

Her
father started to move, but sat back down when Ari lifted the gun in his
direction.

"I
would stay put if I were you. What I do with my fiancé isn't any of your
business, old man."

"The
hell it's not, you fucking bastard," her father growled. "I may be
thirty years older than you, you son of a bitch, but if I get the chance, I'll
beat the hell out of you."

"You
won't get the chance."

The
butt of her father's .45 stuck out from under the end table. She inched her
hand closer, trying desperately to reach the gun without Ari seeing her. One
thing her father had taught her and her siblings…how to shoot.

Her
cell phone jingled a saucy tune from her purse. She wasn't about to retrieve it,
but she knew by the ringtone who was on the other end. Marcus. He would have expected
her to call already. Once her cell phone quit ringing, the home phone started.
All three of them stared at each other until the answering machine picked up.

"Elizabeth,
sweetheart, are you there?"

"How
touching," Ari grumbled.

"Honey,
pick up the phone." A long pause accompanied the silence. "I called
your cell but you didn't answer and you've got me worried. You should be home
by now."

"I
need to pick it up, Ari. If I don't he’ll send the law out here."

"Fine,
grab the phone, but no funny business. Just tell lover boy you're fine and he
can go about his business."

She
grabbed the phone. "Hello?"

"Baby,
where were you?"

"I'm
sorry, Marcus. I didn't hear the cell and I was talking to my dad. I wasn't
going to call you because I didn't want to disturb you."

"Something's
wrong."

"No,
it's fine. I'm fine, really. We're waiting on the results from the vial. That's
all."

"He's
there, isn't he?"

"Yes,
I know you want to know the results, but the lab is supposed to call the sheriff
with them."

"I'll
call them the moment we hang up. Be safe, honey. Help is on the way. I wish I
could be there."

"I
love you."

"I
love you too."

She
hung up the phone. Ari made a gagging sound as he waved the gun around. His
eyes looked wild. Sanity dimmed in his gaze the longer she looked. He'd really
lost his grip on reality.

"You'll
never see him again."

"Listen
Ari, I'll go with you if you leave Marcus and my father alone. They haven't
done anything to you. You want me. I get it. Let's go away, just the two of us.
We'll leave this mess behind."

"You'd
leave with me?"

"Of
course.
I don't want my family hurt."

Sirens
could be heard faintly in the distance. She cussed under her breath. Surely
they weren't stupid enough to come up to the house with sirens blaring. Her
hope died as they came closer.

"You
called the cops?"

"How
could I have called them, Ari? They're probably going next door."

He
jumped up and glanced out the front windows as the sheriff pulled up in front
of the house. With his back turned to her, but still able to keep her father in
his sights, he didn't realize she had the .45 in her hands until she pulled it
out.

"Put
the gun down, Ari so we can let the police handle this."

"No!"
he screamed, swinging around to point the gun at her. "If I can't have
you, no one will. You're mine!"

The
gun exploded with a loud pop.

* * * *