Gentleman Sinner

by Jodi Ellen Malpas

“Damn it, I’m mad at you. What happened?”

  “Someone intervened.”

  Her mouth snaps shut as I begin to chew on my lip, my hands gripping my mug tighter. “Intervened? Like saved you?”

  “Not just me. There was a woman I stopped to help. She’d been beaten up.”

  “Oh my God.”

  “She’s fine. Just a bit battered. I thought whoever was responsible had fled, but when I tried to help her I was attacked. He came out of nowhere.” I shudder again, dreading to think what could have happened. “But he was interrupted by…some men.”

  Her eyebrows rise, interested. “Plural?”

  I nod. “Two of them, but one was…” I pause, thinking how best to word Theo’s status. “The boss.”

  “The boss?”

  I nod again. “Important. I don’t know. He was massive. Well, they were both big, but him exceptionally so.”

  Jess leans forward over the table. “Massive?”

  I’m nodding again.

  “Massive fat, or massive solid?”

  “Fit,” I confirm. “And very tall.”

  “Handsome?”

  “Deadly.” I think I mean that in more ways than one.

  Her lips purse. “And what did he do?”

  “Took me back to his house.”

  Her eyes widen.

  “Or mansion,” I add.

  “Mansion?”

  “That was massive, too.”

  She’s concealing a grin now. “I wonder what else would be massive.”

  “Jess!”

  “I’m just wondering,” she argues, defensive. “Who was he?”

  I get up from the table and rinse out my mug, then place it on the drainer by the sink. “I have no idea.” I reflect a moment, remembering Theo evade that question when I’d wheezily asked it.

  “I do,” Jess says. “A rich, hot man with a big house and, potentially, a big cock.”

  My shoulders drop. She’s obsessed with cock, probably because of all the vaginas that are thrust in her face daily. I head to the bathroom to get showered and ready for my shift, and, of course, Jess is in hot pursuit, hungry for more information. “What did you do at his house?” she asks, sitting on the loo as I turn on the shower.

  “Took care of the girl who was attacked. Twenty-one and a prostitute. Her father died. I think Theo was close to him.” While feeding Jess’s curiosity, I’m also feeding my own. And I shouldn’t. Curiosity is a dangerous thing, especially when Theo Kane is the subject. I should never have mentioned it at all. Forget about it. That’s what I should do.

  “Theo? His name’s Theo?”

  “Theo Kane.” I strip down and jump in the shower, not in the least bit bothered that Jess is sitting on the toilet watching me, now seemingly wide awake. I can see her mind racing. I inwardly laugh. And she hasn’t even met him. Didn’t see his mansion. Or have a gun offered to her. She has no idea.

  “Were there—”

  “No.” I cut her right off.

  “You don’t even know what I was going to say,” she protests.

  I wipe away the condensation and give her a look through the glass. I know damn well what she was going to ask, and the answer will always be no. There were no sparks. There were no looks. There were no electric shocks each and every time he touched me. There was no loss of breath or lustful thoughts. I should never go there. “Nothing,” I reiterate finally.

  “Well, that’s disappointing.” She grumbles, losing complete interest in the conversation, which is exactly why I made the wise decision not to feed her intrigue any more. Now I just need to work on starving my own.

  * * *

  “Who keeps taking my thermometer?” I mutter under my breath, rootling through the basket on the trolley. Damn it, how many times do people need to be told?

  “Here.” Susan passes me a spare with a knowing look, tapping her watch, a reminder that my shift is almost done, not that I stand much chance of getting out of here for at least another hour. I have handover to do, as well as observations on all the patients. Just one more shift tomorrow, I tell myself, seeing the biggest mojito awaiting my arrival in Vegas.

  I return my attention to my patient. “Let’s see how hot you are today, Mable,” I say cheekily, spiking a wicked cackle from the dear old lady.

  “Flaming,” she says on a laugh. “Hey, when are you going to Dallas?”

  “I’m going to Vegas, and I leave on Saturday.”

  “Oohhh, I bet you’ll be getting yourself some American scrumpet.”

  I laugh as I note her temperature and check her charts. “How’s your pain, Mable? On a scale of one to ten.”

  “Five,” she answers quickly, making me smile. Always a five. The poor woman took a tumble and broke her hip, and not once has she complained about it. She’s as sharp as a pin at the ripe old age of ninety-two. “American men,” she muses, looking off into the distance, a fond smile on her face. “I remember the excitement when a ship full of American sailors docked during the war. Me and the girls put extra lipstick on that night before we danced down to the pub.”

  “You floozy,” I tease, wagging a finger at her. “And was the extra lippy worth it?” I dip to release her full catheter bag.

  She chucks me a devilish smirk. “I was quite a catch, you know. When I was a girl and my bosoms weren’t tickling my knees.” She gives the catheter bag in my hand a quick look of disdain, and I feel immediately guilty for reminding her that she’s no longer a young woman. Now she’s an old lady with memories of a time gone by. “But then I met my Ronald. Ooh, that man did things to me that no other man ever had.”

  “Like what?” I ask, fascinated by the twinkle in her eye and the sudden rouge of her cheeks.

  “Like give me butterflies in my tummy and too many heart-stopping moments for me to remember.” She sighs, sinking into her pillow. “He looked at me like a man should look at a woman.”

  “How’s that?” I smile as I straighten her sheets with my spare hand.

  “Like he was struggling to keep his hands off me. Like he wanted to ravish me from top to toe.” She pats my hand with a chuckle. “One day, my love. You’ll meet him one day.”

  I frown. “Who, Ronald?”

  She laughs loudly, wincing a teeny bit from her sudden movement, though she doesn’t yelp or curse. Just settles back down without a fuss. “No, silly girl. Ronald went to play in God’s green garden seven years ago. I mean your life changer.”

  “My life changer?”

  “The man who will flip your world up on its head and you won’t care one iota.” She laughs. “Just you wait. A pretty thing like you won’t be on the shelf for long.”

  “Who said I’m on the shelf?” I ask, maybe a little delayed, but still. I’ve had interest, just no time or desire. And no world flipping, as she calls it.

  “Oh, my love.” She looks embarrassed for a moment. “Forgive me, but if there’s a long-term man in your life, then I’m afraid you might be wasting your time on him. There’s no twinkle in your eye.” She pats my cheek.

  “There is no long-term man,” I admit. “No man, in fact.”

  “So you are on the shelf.”

  “You make it sound like I’m there to be taken by whoever comes along and likes the look of me.”

  “That’s the long and short of it,” Mable says frankly with a shrug. “If a man wants you badly enough, he’ll take you.”

  “What if I don’t want to be taken by him?”

  She smiles, like she’s privy to something that I’m not. “I think Dot needs some help.” She nods across the way, and I see Dot struggling to sit up in her bed, grabbing the table to help, but it rolls away.

  “Wait there, Dot,” I call, gathering up my things. “You’re not a gymnast. See you later, Mable.” I head across the bay.

  “I need a piss,” Dot snaps curtly.

  “Then I’ll have someone bring you the commode, okay?”

  “Make it quick.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I quip und
er my breath, getting her comfy before making my way to the nurses’ station. I grab a health care assistant on my way and ask her nicely to help Dot and empty Mable’s bag of pee, before racing through the rest of my section, checking everyone’s obs before I hand over.

  I feel utterly wiped out by the time I’m done. After giving the next duty nurse the rundown, I grab my coat and swing it over my shoulders before scooping up my bag and waving my goodbyes.

  As I pass Mable’s bed, she wolf-whistles, making me grin and twirl midstride. “Why, thank you.” I laugh, spotting one of my patients struggling to sit up in bed. “Hey, Deirdre, what are you up to?” I hurry over to her.

  “My damn back is aching. It’s these pillows. They’re too soft.”

  “Then let me fix that for you.” I spend a few moments plumping her pillows and wedging a rolled-up blanket behind them to make her more comfortable. “Try that,” I say, easing her back down to the bed. “Better?”

  “Oh, yes, much.” Deirdre sighs and squeezes my hand. “You’re an angel, Izzy.”

  I return her gesture before placing her hand back on the bed. “You need anything else before I go?”

  “A new body.”

  I smile, though it’s sad. “You sleep well tonight, okay? And I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Okay, dear. Have a good evening.”

  I tuck her in and wander away, looking over my shoulder and smiling in satisfaction when I see her snoozing comfortably. She’ll rest easy now. And I believe I will, too, when I make it home.

  Returning my attention forward, my heart stops, my smile drops, and my pace slows. And I’m pretty damn sure my world just flipped up on its head.

  “Izzy,” Theo greets me softly, looking as sharp as he did the last time I saw him. His straight face takes me in, his eyes running up and down my body. I suddenly feel self-conscious, and I reach up to pat my hair down. Good grief, I bet I look a fright. Damn it! Then I quickly ask myself why I’m bothered by how drab I must be looking after my shift and what Theo must think of that. Why do I care? I don’t know, but I do. Annoyingly, I really care.

  Today he’s alone, no other big guy to be seen. “Your hair’s perfect,” he says dryly, and my hands freeze atop my head, my cheeks flaming. “But it’s nice to know you care.”

  He has me pinned, so I don’t insult him by denying it. “Is Penny all right?” I ask, wondering if she needs my medical assistance again.

  “She’s fine.”

  “Then what are you doing here?” I feel eyes on me, not just Theo’s, and turn to find Mable probably enduring agony so she can get a better look at my surprise visitor. I roll my eyes and she grins, giving me a thumbs-up.

  “I like watching you work,” Theo says, bringing me back to face him, leaving Mable ogling from behind.

  “What?”

  He glances over at Deirdre. “Looking after people. It’s nice to see you doing that.”

  “It’s my job,” I reply, holding back my laugh. He looks so serious.

  Nodding mildly, Theo turns back toward me. “You haven’t called.”

  “I haven’t needed to.”

  “I was hoping you would need to.” His quick response knocks me back a little. “And then I thought that maybe it’s because you don’t have a phone.”

  “How do—”

  “One of my men found the broken pieces.”

  “Oh,” I breathe. One of his men? He thought? He’s been thinking about me? Hoping I’d call? He’s being perfectly polite, yet a little brusque. I don’t mention the fact that I still have his number, regardless of the small matter that I don’t have a phone. It would only highlight that I could have called him, and something tells me that that’s what’s bothering him. He wanted me to call. And I didn’t.

  “So Penny’s okay, then?” I ask, uncomfortable with the silence that’s fallen.

  “On her feet,” he answers but says no more, telling me Penny isn’t the topic of conversation he had in mind. Penny isn’t why he’s here. “I’ve come to take you home.” Stepping to the side, he swoops his arm out for me to lead on. “My car’s waiting.”

  I smile a little, though it’s nervous. “I don’t need a chaperone home, Theo.”

  “I say you do.”

  “And I should listen to you?” What’s he going to do? Pull a gun on me?

  “You should definitely listen to me.” There’s slight menace in his words that doesn’t faze me in the slightest. He might be deadly handsome, but intimidation seeps from every inch of his towering frame. For some reason I haven’t yet figured out, all of that comes second to the insane attraction I have for him and his dangerous allure.

  “Why should I listen to you?” I ask evenly, looking up at him through my lashes.

  “Because only those who are unwise do not.”

  “I think I would be very wise not to listen to you.” I watch as his handsome face twists a little in growing frustration. Theo isn’t the kind of man who is refused. He’s dark and he’s dangerous. He’s a no-go zone for a sensible, regular girl like me. So why is he thinking about me, let alone actually tracking me down to my place of work?

  “Your bravery intrigued me at first,” he says. “Now I think it annoys me more.”

  I look down at his hands, letting my thoughts wander to places they shouldn’t go. “I’m not scared of you,” I say mindlessly, as if to enforce what he already knows, biting down on my lip.

  “I know.” He sighs. “You keep telling me. So why won’t you let me take you home?”

  “Because I’m afraid that you might expect more, and I’m even more scared that I’ll give it to you.” I look up at him, face straight, with no regret for saying what I’m thinking. And when our stares lock, his cobalt eyes wide, his head cocked in question, I know my fear is warranted.

  “Why are you afraid of that?” he asks, low and intrigued.

  “I’m busy. With work. I have a career to focus on. I’m not interested in someone like…” I drift off, realizing I was heading toward an insult.

  “Someone like…?”

  “I don’t know.” I might not be scared, but I also shouldn’t insult him. Because that would be plain rude.

  He smiles a little, amused. “Someone scary like me?”

  I laugh a little. “I already told you, Theo. You don’t scare me.”

  “And I quite like that notion. It’s new. Refreshing.”

  “Because everyone is scared of you?”

  “Well, yeah.”

  “Why?”

  “Come to dinner with me.”

  My shoulders drop a little. “Didn’t you hear anything I just said?”

  “Oh, I heard, Izzy. And I don’t believe a word of it.” He moves behind me and presses his front into my back. He sucks in air on contact, and I breathe in heavily. Oh goodness me. I don’t flinch. Not one bit, but past our audible breaths, I hear an old lady gasp. It reminds me of where I am, with Theo currently pressed into me, unearthing a torrent of…

  Shit. It’s lust and want and desire, and it’s making me powerless to move away from him. His mouth falls to my ear. I close my eyes and breathe in. “You’re safe with me,” he says, as if knowing those words will work to his advantage. “Let’s go.” He slips a hand around my waist and steps forward, forcing me into walking. Or staggering. I guess I’m staggering, though it’s hard to tell when Theo is practically carrying me. Oh my God, he’s practically carrying me out of the ward, and I have a horrid feeling that it hasn’t gone unnoticed, not by Mable and not by my colleagues.

  I don’t look back when an opportunity to check for a peanut gallery arises, letting Theo haul me right on out of there. Safe. It’s like he’s privy to how enticing that little word is to me. Like he’s using it as a weapon.

  “Theo,” I complain, wriggling a little but freezing the second he comes to an abrupt halt and hisses under his breath.

  “Don’t do that, Izzy,” he warns. “For the love of God, please don’t do that.”

  I clamp my te
eth together to the point of cracking them, trying to ignore the feeling of something stiff compressed into my bum. “I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah, that’s not ideal, either,” he mumbles, clearing his throat.

  I frown. “What?”

  “Nothing.” He sighs, maintaining his firm hold of me. “Just give me a second.”

  “I’ll let you take me home, just put me down,” I beg, not bothering to try to pry myself free. It would be a fruitless endeavor, and I can’t risk feeling that hardness again, and, worst of all, liking it. “People are staring.” People would be staring whether Theo had me held against his chest or not. The sheer size of him attracts too much attention. I’m more than surprised when I suddenly feel the ground beneath my feet with no further need to plead. “Thank you,” I say graciously, faffing with my coat and bag. I should just let him take me home. It will be easier and less stressful—as long as I avoid eye contact and keep a safe distance between us. “Where’s your car?”

  He clears his throat, seeming a little flustered himself. It’s quite an amusing sight. This big beast of a man, all hot and bothered. Over me? Pointing down the corridor, he stands tall, apparently together now. “Out front.”

  I’m off quickly, Theo’s long strides keeping up with ease. When we reach his car, Callum is holding the door open. His face is unreadable as he nods at me, and once again he moves back, giving me far too much space to get in. I slide into the seat and rest my bag on my lap, getting comfy while Theo joins me. Or as comfy as I can be in the presence of Theo Kane. Especially now that we seem to have…have what? What have we done? I shrink into my seat. I should maybe dedicate a bit of time to considering what I have done. And what I’ve done is confess my fear. I’ve told him, pretty clearly, that if he was to make a pass, I probably wouldn’t deny him. I’m an idiot. Why would I do that?

  As we pull out of the hospital car park, I stare out the window, wishing I could turn back time to the night I found Penny in that alley. If I knew then what I know now, I would have carried on my way. I wouldn’t have gone back to help her. I wouldn’t have let Theo take me to his mansion. I wouldn’t…

  I stop right there. I’m kidding myself. There’s no way I could walk away from a woman in need. I don’t know much about Theo Kane, but what I do know is pretty alarming. And I’m furious for wanting to know a lot more. Like everything.