Sleeping With My Boss: A Standalone Novel (An Alpha Billionaire Romance Love Story) (A Dirty Office Romance) (78 page)

CHAPTER
THIRTY-THREE

Ryan

I
felt like I was
swimming up through murky water even though I could feel my lungs struggling to
pull in air. As I raised my hand and tried to push whatever it was that was
obscuring my vision out of my way, someone pushed my hand back down.

"Easy,
Lieutenant," a firm voice said. "You're okay, you're just waking up
from anesthesia."

"Huh?" I
said as I again tried to raise my hand to push the darkness away from my eyes.
Again, I was met with resistance. "Stop it! What are you doing?"

"Just take it
easy," the voice said as a hand held my wrist. "I'm checking your
pulse right now.
 
You've had surgery,
Lieutenant. You're in recovery."

The voice waited a
few seconds for the words to sink in and then let go of my arm. I lay still
trying to process what I'd heard.

"What
happened?" I croaked as I tried to open my eyes again. "Where am
I?"

"You were
shot, and you're in the hospital," the voice replied as it started to
sound clearer. I could tell that the person speaking to me was a woman, a
nurse.

"Who shot
me?" I groaned as a wave of pain washed over me.

"We have no
idea," she said as she adjusted something near my right arm. "What's
your level of pain, Lieutenant?"

"Ryan,"
I croaked. "Call me Ryan. I'm off duty."

"Okay,
Ryan," she said and I could hear a smile in her voice. "Then tell me
what your level of pain is, Ryan."

"Not too
bad," I replied as I wondered how I could get myself out of here and back
to finding Echo. "Where's Echo? Where's Cece?"

"I'm
sorry?" the nurse said. "Who are they?"

"With
me," I groaned as I tried to move my arms so that I could push myself up
into a sitting position. I quickly discovered that my arms were not working.
"They were with me. Where are they?"

"I don't
know," the nurse said. "But I'll try to find out if you promise me
that you won't keep moving around. You just got out of surgery, Ryan. You were
shot and they had to remove a bullet from your abdomen. You're so lucky that it
didn't do any major damage. You must have an angel on your shoulder."

"I need
Echo," I said staring at the nurse.

"Promise me
that you will not try to move around and I'll go get someone to find her,"
she said returning my laser like stare. She waited and then said, "If you
get up and try to move around you will pull out the stitches the surgeon put in
and you'll bleed out before I can get back and help you. Promise me."

"Fine,"
I groaned as I lay still. "I promise."

"I'm taking
you at your word, Lieutenant," she said as she headed for the door.

"Ryan, it's
just Ryan," I called after her.

A few minutes
later, the door opened, but instead of the nurse it was Commander Donnelly.

"Lieutenant,"
he said as he walked toward me.

"Sir," I
replied as I tried to salute out of habit and found the pain too intense.
"I'm sorry, sir."

"Son, you're
in surgical recovery, there's no sorry necessary," he chuckled as he
pulled up a chair and sat down near me. "How are you feeling,
Lieutenant?"

"I'm fine,
sir," I said. "Never been better."

"Ah, still
have your sense of humor," he smiled. "That's good because you're
going to need it as you recover. What were you doing, Lieutenant?"

"I'm sorry,
sir?" I asked knowing what he was asking but stalling for time in order to
figure out how to respond.

"You heard
me," he said. "What were you doing when you got shot,
Lieutenant?"

"Trying to
help a friend, sir," I admitted. It was an honest answer, but one that
didn't give much away, and he knew it.

"Son, I have
heard a whole lot of bullshit in my career, so you can cut out the evasive maneuvers
and get to the truth," he said sternly. He reminded me of my father the
way he cut to the chase and somehow already knew the truth. I didn't want to
tell him what I'd been doing because I was afraid it would get me kicked out of
the Navy.

"Sir, I was
helping rescue a friend who'd been kidnapped," I said in a voice as
official as the circumstances would allow, then groaned as I felt the pain
returning to my left side.

"Lieutenant
Powell, we can sit here and go round and round with me asking questions and you
barely answering them," he said leaning forward. "Or you can spill
the entire story and save us both the time and breath. Which is it going to
be?"

"Sir, my
father left information for a friend of mine and someone kidnapped her to try
and get it," I said trying to give him the story in as few words as
possible. "In the process of rescuing her from the kidnappers, I was shot
by one of them. That's the whole story in a nutshell."

"Where is
this friend now?" the Commander asked.

"That's what
I keep asking," I winced as I a sharp pain shoot through my left side
again. "I don't know where she is. I'm worried that they did something to
her."

"What is your
friend's name, Lieutenant," he asked as he pulled his cell phone from the
inside of his jacket.

"Echo,"
I exhaled trying to keep the pain at bay, but failing and emitting a groan.

"Echo? Echo
Frost?" he asked in an urgent tone. "Is your friend Echo Frost,
Lieutenant?"

"Uh huh,
that's her, sir," I grunted as the pain swept over me and I began to moan.
The nurse returned as the first sounds left my lips.

"Ryan, I told
you not to move around!" she said moving toward the pump that held my
fluids and pain medications. She fiddled with the dials and suddenly the pain
receded a bit, like the tide moving back out. "Is that better?"

"Uh
huh," I nodded as I felt the pain medication flowing through my veins and
loosening my clenched muscles. "Much better."

"You've got a
button here," she said shaking her head as she dug the sensor out of the
sheets and tucking it into my right hand. "Press the button when you need
more pain relief. Don't be the hero right now. Pain will not help you recover more
quickly."

"But
Echo..." I began.

"Son, I'll
find her," the Commander said as he tapped the screen of his phone and
dialed a number.

"I've got
someone looking for her, too," the nurse added. "Between the two of
us, we'll find her."

"I...,"
I said as the pain relievers did their job and carried me out like the tide.

CHAPTER
THIRTY-FOUR

Echo

As
Cece drove the
van toward the address on the top of the hard drive, I turned on my phone and
hit redial on the message that Commander Donnelly had left on my phone.

"Dammit,"
I muttered when the call went to his voicemail. "He's not answering. Why
isn't he picking up?"

"Perhaps he's
on another call?" Cece suggested. "Or maybe he doesn't know it's
you?"

"Of course he
knows it's me!" I said. "He's called me telling me it's important
that I get back to him!"

"Oh, I
see," Cece said. "I did not know this bit of information. Why didn't
you tell me, chica?"

"I
forgot," I admitted sheepishly.

"You forgot
that a Commander from the United States Navy was calling you asking you to call
him back?" she asked in a tone that told me what she was really thinking.

"I got caught
up in the drama over the files Dr. Powell was sending me," I said.

"And perhaps
his handsome son?" she added.

"Cece!"
I protested. "I was trying to do the right thing!"

"Uh huh,
sure," she nodded as she made a turn onto 24
th
 
Avenue and pulled up next to the Navy
Recruiting Headquarters. "Chica, that boy has it bad for you. Really
bad."

"No, he
doesn't!" I retorted. "He doesn't even know I'm alive. To him I'm
just a computer programmer who worked for his dad and has the information he
needs. He doesn't see me as a woman at all!"

"Girl, you
are an idiot," Cece said shaking her head. "That boy is head over
heels for you and you keep ignoring him. Of course he's going to act like he's
not interested! It's self preservation!"

"Cece, he's
had every opportunity to make a move for the past week," I said building
my case. "And he's done nothing. Nada. Zero. Zip. Not even the slightest
move in my direction. He's stayed totally professional and not given me so much
as a hint that he's interested."

"Then why don't
you give him a signal that you're interested?" she asked.

"I can't
believe we're having this conversation," I sighed as I got out of the van
and headed for the front door of the recruiting station. I turned and yelled,
"Be right back!"

The station was
just opening, and I realized that it was only seven in the morning. It was
unlikely that Commander Donnelly was in his office already, but I decided it
was worth a try. At the very least, I could get someone to tell me when he was
expected in the office.

I raced up the
stairs and found a pretty little brunette sitting behind the desk in the outer
office.

"Commander
Donnelly?" I shouted as I headed toward her.

"Ma'am, are
you okay?" she asked. The look on her face was one of surprise and then
horror.

"I'm fine!
Where's the Commander?" I said more urgently.

"He's...he's...he's
not in yet," she stammered as her eyes grew wider. "Are you sure
you're okay?"

"Yes,
why?" I said irritated that she'd ask such a ridiculous question when I
was trying to find the Commander.

"Ma'am,
you're covered in blood," she whispered. "Are you sure you're
okay?"

I looked down and
saw that my shirt and pants were soaked in Ryan and Butch's blood. I looked up
at her and then reached up to touch my face wondering if it, too, was covered
in the same blood. Then I started laughing.

"It's not
mine!" I laughed as she reached for the phone. "No! Don't call
anyone! I'm fine! I don't have time to explain, but I'm fine and I haven't done
anything wrong. I need to find the Commander and deliver something to him
personally."

"Ma'am, why
don't you leave whatever it is here with me and I'll give it to the Commander
when he comes in?" she said with wary helpfulness.

"No! I have
to give it directly to the Commander," I said shaking my head. "No
one else."

"Um,
okay," she said without taking her eyes off of me. It suddenly occurred to
me that I looked like someone who was trying to harm the Commander and that she
might have already alerted security.

"Look, I'm
not crazy and I don't want to harm the Commander," I said seriously.
"I have a package for him from Dr. Alan Powell and I was told that it has
to be given directly to Commander Donnelly and no one else. Okay? Can you tell
him that I have this package for him?"

"Yes,"
she nodded as I headed back out the front door of the office. As I entered the
stairwell, I heard her yelling, "Who are you?"

I didn't have time
to stop, so I trusted that if she told Commander Donnelly what I'd said, he'd
know exactly who I was.

#

"
He's
not in," I said as I got back into
the van. "But I gave his secretary a message."

"And a heart
attack?" Cece asked as she looked me over.

"Why didn't
you tell me I looked like a stabbing victim?" I asked.

"You didn't
exactly give me time to evaluate your fashion sense," she said dryly.
"What now?"

"Back to my
place and clean up?" I suggested. "Otherwise we're going to have a
ton of problems over at the hospital."

"Yeah, they'd
probably throw us on gurneys and haul us into the ER," she said as she
shifted the van into drive and headed toward home.

"More like
they'd immediately know who we are and toss us in a cop car," I said.
"Cece, did it ever occur to you that they think we did it?"

"Why would
they think that?" she replied.

"Reason
number one, we left," I said. "They're going to be looking for
us."

"Then we need
to get the hard drive to the Commander and be done with it," she said.
"But first, we clean up, and I need to get the van back to my guy before
he puts a price on my head!"

Two hours later,
after having cleaned up and returned the van, we were in a cab on our way to
Bellevue.

"Why don't we
stop by headquarters first and drop off the hard drive?" Cece asked as she
looked out the window.

"Because
we're going to get stopped and questioned," I said. "And I want to
see Ryan before we do."

"Ah, yes,
lover boy," she grinned as she turned and patted my head.

"No, he's a
good guy," I grumbled. "I just want to make sure he's okay after
everything he did to get me out of there."

"Mmmm
hmmm," she nodded still grinning. "You keep telling yourself that and
maybe one day it'll be true, chica."

"Why are you
pushing?" I said shifting away from her and feeling irritated.

"Because it's
so obvious that the two of you have the hots for each other, it's painful to
watch," she said. "I can't figure out why you both keep denying
it."

"Because he's
not interested in me!" I said more forcefully than I'd intended.

"Uh, okay, I
wouldn't agree with that," she shrugged as she moved back. "But
obviously you know best, chica."

"I'm sorry,
Cece," I said looking out my window and sighing heavily. "I've
tried."

"Try again,
chica," she said softly as she reached out and squeezed my hand as we
pulled up to the front door of the hospital.

Cece went to the
information desk and asked where Ryan was, but the receptionist told her she
wasn't allowed to give out patient information without permission. Cece tried
working her magic on the woman, but she wouldn't budge.

"Give me a
minute, I'll figure something out," Cece said as she stepped outside and
made a call on her cellphone.

"Excuse me,
ma'am?" the receptionist called from across the lobby. "Are you Echo
Frost?"

"Yes," I
replied before I realized that maybe answering this question wasn't the best
idea.

"You can go
up and see Lieutenant Powell, ma'am," she said. "The nurse said he's
asking for you. Room twelve thirty."

I motioned to Cece
to come back inside, but she waved me off. So I told the receptionist to tell
here where I'd gone when she came back in and headed to the bank of elevators
off of the lobby.
 
As I stood waiting I
felt a presence behind me. I started to turn around when I felt something hard
and sharp being jabbed into my back.

"Don't turn
around," the familiar voice hissed. "And don't scream or I will slide
this knife in and twist."

I swallowed hard
and nodded as I closed my eyes and hoped that Cece would show up before this
ghost of a person got me alone in the elevator. I tried to keep my wits about
me and think ahead, but the knife in my back made it extremely difficult to
think. The doors to the elevator slid open and my captor shoved me forward.

"Don't turn
around," the voice repeated. "You know what I want, so give it to me
and this is over."

"I don't have
it," I said trembling as I heard the ghost push a button and then pull the
emergency stop lever. The elevator was immediately filled with the sound of the
ringing alarm.

"I'm not
kidding," the voice said as I felt a hand tightly wrapping around my neck
and cutting off my air. "I want that hard drive and if I don't get it,
there will be consequences."

"I don't have
it," I repeated as I suddenly realized that if this was the same person
that had held me hostage and attacked me in the lab, they had been weakened by
the shot that Cece had fired. I couldn't remember which arm it had been in, but
by the strength of the grip around my neck I was guessing it wasn't the right
arm. I quickly formulated a plan and hoped I was right otherwise...I didn't
want to think about otherwise.

"You stupid
little bitch," the voice hissed as the owner pressed the knife into my
back. The sharpness of the tip made me cry out as its holder squeezed tighter
around my neck cutting off my air supply. I knew I had only one shot at this.

"Don't call
me a bitch," I growled as I quickly pulled my right elbow forward and then
slammed it backwards as hard as I could into the knife-holder's arm. My
instincts had been right as the scream that came from the mouth of my captor
rose above the sound of the alarm. What I hadn't counted on was the strength of
the hold on my neck and the next thing I knew, everything went black.
 

#

When
I came to, I was staring up at the ceiling of the elevator car as the door
opened and someone screamed. Soon I was surrounded by nurses and staff who
lifted me up onto a gurney and raced me into the ER.

"Fine, I'm
fine!" I croaked. "Cece, where's Cece?"

"What
happened, honey?" a nurse asked as she took my vital signs and asked
another nurse to find Cece. "Do you remember what happened, honey?"

"Kidnapper in
the elevator," I said as she took my temperature and then started an I.V.
"Oh God, Ryan! Ryan! Twelve thirty! Call the room!"

"Honey, calm
down, slow down and tell me what's going on," she said as she slipped the
needle into my arm and taped the line to my skin.

"Get Cece,
she needs to know," I cried. "Get Cece!"

"Echo! Where
are you?" Cece yelled followed by an angry, "Get your fuckin' hands
off me! I'm not even kidding!"

"Cece! Cece!
The kidnapper was in the elevator," I said as my words tumbled out.
"Wants the hard drive. Tell them to check Ryan in room twelve thirty! Tell
them!"

Cece turned and
ran to the desk and quickly told the duty nurse what needed to be done before
returning to me. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it tightly not saying
anything.

"Cece, tell
them to check the ER for someone with a shoulder wound," I whispered.
"You shot the kidnapper. I nailed him with my elbow in the elevator before
he choked me unconscious. Tell them to check. He might still be here."

Again, Cece ran
out to the desk and, in low whispers, told the duty nurse what I'd said before
returning.

"They'll be
on the lookout," she whispered. "Ryan's okay. Are you okay?"

"I'm
fine," I said taking a deep breath and wincing as I turned my head.
"I need to get out of here and get the hard drive to Commander Donnelly.
Can you get me out of here?"

"Can I get
you out of here?" Cece grinned. "Chica, don't you know anything about
me by now?"

I smiled up at her
knowing that if anyone could figure out how to smuggle me out of an ER, it
would definitely be Cece.