Person of Interest

by Debra Webb

  Please let him be safe.

  When she returned to the living room the old man was still in the kitchen.

  “Thought I’d make you some tea,” he said as she joined him there.

  “Thank you.” She nodded to the phone. “May I try your phone again?”

  He shrugged. “Probably won’t do you any good but you can try.”

  She picked up the phone and punched in the three digits. The operator answered and she explained about being held captive and injuring her captor to escape. She verified the address with the old man fretting over the tea cups and then hung up.

  The police and paramedics would be here soon.

  “Thank you,” Elizabeth said as she took the tea he offered. “I’m Elizabeth Cameron.” She sipped her tea and sighed. The heat felt good drenching her raw throat.

  “Rosco Fedder.” He sweetened his tea, stirring it thoughtfully. “Sounds like you had yourself a fright, Missy.”

  She nodded. “More than you can know.” That was certainly the truth. She darn sure couldn’t tell him that the CIA was involved. He probably wouldn’t believe her anyway.

  By the time she’d finished her tea she felt a little less shaky. She couldn’t stop worrying whether or not Joe was all right. Maybe she should call Director Calder again. The sound of sirens intruded into her thoughts and drew her to the front door.

  “They’re here.” Her voice came out small and shaky in spite of her much calmer state.

  Rosco joined her at the door. “You think that fellow survived?”

  Dread welled in her belly. “I don’t know.” But she wasn’t worried about the awful man who’d been holding her hostage. She worried about Joe. Had the CIA been able to get help to him in time?

  “I’m going over there,” she told Rosco. “Thank you for your help.”

  “That’s what neighbors do, lady,” he let her know. “They help one another. Most any of the folks in this neighborhood would’ve done the same if they’d been home. I’m the token old man ’round here. ’Bout the only one retired.”

  She managed a smile for her Good Samaritan and walked out to the street. Exhaustion made her feet feel as if they weighed a ton each. But she didn’t stop until she’d reached the front walk where three police cruisers and an ambulance were parked.

  A sedan pulled over to the curb drawing her attention beyond the fray of uniformed personnel rushing about.

  The driver’s side door opened and a man emerged.

  Terror exploded in her chest.

  David.

  Elizabeth started to run back toward Mr. Fedder’s house. Her heart threatened to burst out of her chest but she didn’t slow, just kept running.

  “Elizabeth!”

  She felt her feet stop beneath her, almost causing her to fall forward.

  “Elizabeth! It’s me, Joe!”

  Her whole body quaking like mad, she slowly turned around in time for him to skid to a stop only a couple of feet away.

  “Honey, it’s me, Joe.”

  Hope tugged at her. It was Joe’s voice. But the face…

  Her gaze settled on his and her heart leaped with joy.

  The most beautiful blue eyes stared back at her.

  “Joe!” She threw herself against him. His big strong arms closed in around her.

  “I told you I’d be back,” he murmured close to her ear.

  And he hadn’t let her down.

  She drew back and looked into his eyes again. She wanted to tell him the truth…that she loved him despite her best efforts not to.

  But would love ever be enough with a dangerous man like Joe Hennessey?

  Chapter Fourteen

  Elizabeth slipped on her surgical gown then scrubbed up. As she dried her hands and arms she studied her reflection. Her throat was still bruised but she’d get over it.

  Incredibly the man who’d done that damage had survived and the Agency hoped to garner much needed information from him. Elizabeth didn’t care how useful he could be to the Agency as long as he spent the rest of his life behind bars…far, far away from her.

  She’d been stunned to learn that killing off the agents had been a ploy to lure her into a situation, both as a suspect and as an asset to be protected. David had wanted to steal her away in such a manner that an Agency operative, namely Joe Hennessey, would be blamed for her disappearance and ultimate loss. No one would ever be the wiser that David was alive and he would have Elizabeth to use in his new posh escape clinic. She would have been a prisoner, giving sleazy, however wealthy, criminals new faces in exchange for living another day.

  How could she have been so completely fooled by David?

  “Dr. Cameron.”

  Elizabeth hauled her attention back to the here and now, and away from those disturbing thoughts. “Yes.”

  “The patient refuses to be prepped for anesthesia until after he speaks with you.”

  Elizabeth sighed. “I’ll be right there.” She’d been through this routine before.

  With the same patient as a matter of fact.

  She breezed into the O.R. and strode straight up to the operating table.

  “What seems to be the problem, Mr. Hennessey?” She glared down at him, resisting the urge to tap her foot.

  He looked around the room at the Agency’s specialized team who waited to begin. His gaze lit back on Elizabeth’s. “I really need to speak with you alone.”

  Elizabeth rolled her eyes and huffed her exasperation. “Clear the room please.”

  When the last of the four had moved into the scrub room, Elizabeth, keeping her hands where they wouldn’t get contaminated, glared down at her patient.

  “I just wanted you to know that I didn’t mean to take advantage of you.”

  She did not want to talk about that night again. In the past three days they’d scarcely seen each other and when they had he’d wanted to apologize for making love to her. How was that for making a girl feel like she was loved? Not once had he mentioned having treaded into that four-letter territory.

  So, of course, neither had she.

  It was for the best, she supposed. He would go back to his superspy world and she would return to her work.

  No harm. No foul.

  They were both alive.

  That was the most important thing. Right?

  Funny thing was, every time she asked herself that question she got no answer.

  “That night—”

  She held up a sterile hand. “Stop it, please. I don’t ever want to talk about that night again.” She hoped she managed to keep the truth out of her eyes but she couldn’t be sure. The way he scrutinized her face she doubted she hid much from him.

  “I guess I can understand how you feel.” He heaved out a big breath.

  Elizabeth watched his sculpted chest rise and fall with the action. She wanted to touch him so badly that it literally hurt.

  But that would be a mistake.

  Whatever crazy connection they had shared during those stressful weeks was best forgotten.

  “Just give me back my face, Doc.” His gaze connected fully with hers and some unreadable emotion reached out to her, made her ache all the more. “I guess that’ll have to be enough.”

  Elizabeth called in the team and within moments they had lapsed into a synchronized rhythm.

  As Joe slipped deep into induced sleep she surveyed the face she’d given him. This was the last time she would see David Maddox’s face. And she was glad.

  She poised, scalpel in hand, over the patient and took a deep breath. “Let’s get this done.”

  ELIZABETH CLOSED the door of her office and collapsed into her chair. She was completely exhausted. She just couldn’t understand what was wrong with her. No one could claim she didn’t get enough sleep. She slept like the dead. Eight to ten hours every night! It was incredible.

  And food. She ate like a wrestler bulking up to meet his weight requirements.

  As she sat there marveling over her strange new zest for sleep and
food, realization hit her right between the eyes.

  She was late for her period. Only about ten days and that wasn’t completely uncommon. Her cycles never had been reliable. She’d considered birth control pills years ago in order to regulate herself but the risks for a woman her age, though she didn’t smoke, were just not worth the bother. Condoms had always worked.

  But she and Joe hadn’t used a condom.

  Mortification dragged at her as if the earth’s gravity had suddenly cubed itself.

  She was thirty-seven years old. A doctor at that. And she could very well be pregnant by mistake!

  A kind of giddiness abruptly replaced her mortification.

  A baby could be…nice.

  Anticipation fizzed inside her. Okay, better than nice. A baby could be amazing!

  She had to know.

  Elizabeth shot to her feet.

  She needed a pregnancy test.

  Now.

  She rushed out of the clinic without a word to anyone. It was her lunch break anyway. She could do what she wanted. Didn’t need anyone’s permission.

  As she settled behind the wheel of her Lexus she considered the attitude she’d just taken.

  Maybe she was changing.

  What do you know? She might just like this new feeling of liberation. All work and no play had turned into drudgery.

  She drove straight to the nearest pharmacy and bought the test. She couldn’t bear to wait until she got back to her office, besides she wanted privacy from her colleagues.

  Since she was a doctor the pharmacist gladly allowed her to use the employee restroom in the rear of the store.

  Her fingers trembling, Elizabeth opened the box and followed the simple instruction. Then she closed the lid on the toilet and sat down to wait.

  Joe popped into her thoughts. If she was pregnant, should she tell him?

  She chewed her lip. If she did, he would want to be a part of the child’s life. Was that a good thing?

  Maybe not.

  But how could she not tell him?

  Elizabeth groaned. More dilemmas.

  Anger lit inside her. As soon as the restoration surgery on his face was complete she’d been ushered away from the borrowed clinic. She hadn’t even been allowed to stay to see him through recovery.

  Director Calder had refused to give her an update on Joe the two times she’d called.

  And in the four weeks that had passed she hadn’t heard from him once. Joe, not Calder. He hadn’t called, hadn’t come by. Nothing.

  Obviously when he decided to move on he didn’t look back.

  It was for the best she knew.

  But that didn’t make it hurt any less.

  She’d shed a few tears, cursing herself every time.

  Heck, she’d even forced herself to go on a few dates to try and put him out of her mind entirely. But nothing ever worked.

  There was just no denying the truth.

  She loved him and her heart would not let her forget.

  The minute hand on the wall clock moved to the five. It was time.

  Holding her breath she picked up the stick and peered at the results.

  Positive.

  A thrill went through her.

  She was pregnant!

  Shoving the box and the telltale test stick into the trash, she struggled for calm. Bubbles of excitement kept bobbing to the surface, making her want to alternately laugh and cry. Don’t lose it, she warned. Keep it together. She had patients to see this afternoon. She could completely freak out when she got home tonight.

  After washing her hands she made her way back to the front of the drugstore, thanked the pharmacist who studied her suspiciously, then hurried to her car.

  She didn’t drive straight back to the clinic. She was ravenous. Two drive-thrus later and she had what her heart—stomach actually—desired. Two quarter-pounder cheeseburgers, mega fries and an Asian salad with an extra pack of dressing.

  The girls in reception gawked at her as she passed through on the way to her office with her armload of bags. She just smiled and kept going. When she’d gotten into her office and closed the door she dumped her load on her desk and relaxed into her chair. After she ate all this she would surely need a nap. She glanced at her schedule. Not going to happen. Oh well, she’d make up for it tonight.

  Still a stickler for neatness, she arranged her lunch on the burger wrapper, with the salad bowl anchoring one corner. The first bite made her groan with pleasure. What was it about being pregnant that made food taste so good?

  She would have to get a handle on her diet…just not today.

  A tap on her door distracted her from her salad. She frowned. If Dr. Newman asked her to go out with him again she was just going to have to tell him that it would be unethical. Their working relationship prevented her from pursing a personal one with him. That should do the trick without hurting his feelings.

  “Yes.”

  The door opened and the next bite never made it to her mouth.

  Joe Hennessey, in all his splendor, from that sexy jawline to that perfect nose, waltzed in.

  “They told me that you were having lunch.” He glanced at the smorgasbord laid out in front of her. “Looks like there might be enough for me to join you.”

  Elizabeth snatched up the ever present bottle of water on her desk and washed a wad of fries down.

  “What do you want, Hennessey?”

  He hadn’t contacted her in four weeks. The director of the CIA had refused to give her an update on his condition. How dare he show up here now!

  The positive results of the pregnancy test flashed in front of her eyes and another wave of giddiness swept over her. She clamped her mouth shut. Couldn’t say a word about that until she knew why he was here. And maybe not even then.

  He walked up to her desk but didn’t sit down. “I should have called you.”

  That was a start. “Yes, you should have.” She nibbled on a fry. She would die before she’d tell him how lonely she’d been. How badly she’d yearned to have him in her bed.

  He bracketed his waist with his hands and took a deep breath. “The truth is I didn’t want to see you or even talk to you until I was me again.”

  Stunned, she dropped the fork back into her salad bowl. “I’m not sure I’m following,” she said cautiously but she knew what he meant. He wanted her to see him when they talked…his face.

  He leaned forward, braced his hands on her desk. She inhaled the clean, slightly citrusy scent that was uniquely Joe Hennessey. Her gaze roved his face. Every detail was just as it was before.

  Damn she was good.

  Elizabeth blinked. Chastised herself for staring. Since he hadn’t answered her question he’d obviously paused to take notice of her staring.

  She cleared her throat and squared her shoulders. “You’re going to have to explain what you mean, Agent Hennessey.”

  “Don’t play games with me, Elizabeth,” he warned, those blue eyes glinting with what some might consider intimidation. But she knew him better now. That was his predatory gleam. And she was his prey…he wanted her.

  “Really, Hennessey, you should be more specific.”

  “I love you, Elizabeth. I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I miss you. I need to be with you.”

  I…I…I, was this all about him? Let him sweat for a bit.

  She shrugged indifferently. “I’ve been sleeping fine.” She glanced at the food in front of her. “Eating fine as well.”

  He straightened, threw up his hands. “What do you want me to do? Beg?”

  That could work, she mused wickedly.

  “No,” she told him to his obvious relief.

  He eased one hip onto the edge of her desk and popped a French fry into his mouth. “Then tell me what you want, Elizabeth. I’m desperate here.”

  His work was her first concern. But she would never ask him to give up his career.

  “I don’t think we could ever work, Joe,” she confessed. She looked directly into those gorgeo
us blue eyes. “You know the reasons.”

  He downed a swig of her water and grimaced. “What if I told you I’d gone off field duty?”

  She froze, her heart almost stopped stone still. “What did you say?” She prayed she hadn’t heard wrong.

  “I’m taking a position with a new agency, one that compiles intelligence from all the other agencies and prepares reports for the president. I’d tell you more about it but it’s top secret.” He grinned. “I’m officially a desk jockey. Is that safe enough for you?”

  She shook her head. Afraid to believe. “You can’t do that for me. You have to do it for you.”

  He reached for her hand, engulfed it in his long fingers. “I did it for us, Elizabeth.” He peered deeply into her eyes. “And just so you know, even if you kick me out, I’m not going back to field work. I’m done with that. So what’s it gonna be?”

  Elizabeth jumped to her feet and stretched across her desk to put her arms around his neck. “Yes!” She smiled so wide she was sure it looked more like a goofy grin.

  His brows drew together in a frown. “Yes what?”

  She knew he was teasing by the sparkle of mischief in his eyes. “Yes, I’ll marry you, you big dummy.”

  A grin widened on his sexy mouth. “Well, now.” He reached down and nipped her lips. “I guess that means you’re going to make an honest man out of me.”

  “Actually…”

  He kissed her and for a few moments all other thought ceased. There was only the taste and heat of his mouth. God she had missed him. Never wanted to be away from him again.

  She drew back just far enough to look into his eyes. “Actually,” she reiterated, “I thought I’d make this child I’m carrying legally yours. You okay with that?”

  It was Joe’s turn to be stunned. “A father? I’m going to be a father?”

  Elizabeth nodded.

  He kissed her with all the emotion churning inside him. He told her how much he loved her over and over until they were both gasping for breath.

  He pressed his forehead to hers. “I’m definitely okay with that, Doc,” he finally murmured.

  Elizabeth pulled away from him. “You’d better get out of here.”