by Dale Mayer
He smiled. “Then we’re a perfect fit.”
She sagged against him as they waited for the results of the X-rays. “I hope you mean that.”
The radiologist walked out of his office and said with a smile, “You did quite a number on your hand and wrist, my dear. A cast is definitely required. You broke two fingers, fractured your wrist and a couple small bones in the base of your hand.”
She winced, glanced down at her hand and said, “I knew it hurt but hadn’t realized how bad.”
“It’ll take a few minutes, but we’ll get it taken care of. So you won’t be going home anytime soon. Hand this to someone at the nurses’ station.”
She winced. “I understand the drill. Thanks very much, Doctor.”
He nodded as Logan led her back to the main reception room and handed one of the nurses the X-ray report. The woman nodded and said, “Figured it was broken. Okay, let’s get you down to one of the treatment rooms. Not sure how long you’ll have to wait. It’s still really crazy.”
“Thank you,” Alina said giving him a small smile.
Logan looked at her as she sat on the stool in the treatment room. “You want me to get you coffee or something to eat?”
She shook her head. “I want this over with. We’ll talk about food afterward. Now I’m feeling a little bit on the queasy side. The pain from having the X-rays is… Wow. I hadn’t really thought about it before, but rearranging broken fingers so they can take pictures is… not fun.”
He leaned down and kissed her on top of her head. “But you were so valiant.”
She shot him a look. But he appeared perfectly serious. “You got it bad,” she muttered, “if you think that.”
“I do think that.” When his phone went off, he pulled it out. “It’s Harrison. I need to take this.”
She nodded, already feeling the pain of separation. “That means you have to go outside the hospital.”
As he stepped toward the door, he turned and looked at her. “You going to be okay?”
“Did you get all the bad guys?” she countered.
He nodded and said, “You should be safe now.”
“Safe. I hope so. Especially if it will prevent anybody else from being kidnapped again.” She lifted her broken hand. “This is going to stop me from doing a whole lot.”
He chuckled. “Actually, it won’t. Once that has a cast on it, it’ll really be a weapon.”
She brightened. “Then send the doctor in here and get this sucker fixed.”
It’d been a shaky couple of days. But he was a hell of a light at the end of the long, dark tunnel. Then she smiled at that. Did he even know what her name meant? Alina meant light. She’d asked her mom about it a long time ago, and she said her birth had been a light after their journey.
That’s how she felt about Logan. He was her light. She’d have to tell him about it later.
And she had no idea what later would mean. Were they going back to the same hotel? Were they flying out? With this stupid hand, she’d have an even worse time moving. She didn’t even know where to start.
First, she needed to hand in her notice. And cancel her lease. Her mind filled with all the logistics of moving. At the same time, she needed to relax. It was her right hand. While she waited, she tried, with her left, to send a text to Caroline. It was a bit garbled. But Caroline appeared to understand. And her demands were clear, something along the line of Get your ass over here.
Alina smiled. She put her cell away as the door opened to let in the same doctor who had examined her earlier. She asked, “You can put the cast on now?”
He smiled. “Sure, if you’re ready. It’s been a hell of a night so far.”
The next few minutes were spent getting her arm bundled up in fiberglass.
“I understand you’re a nurse. So, you know how to take care of this, what to watch for, should a problem arise.”
She nodded. “And hopefully I won’t be alone overnight, so I’ll have someone to watch over me, to make sure I’m doing okay.”
“If the man pacing outside the door right now is yours, he won’t be leaving you to sleep alone. That’s for sure.”
She felt a smile climb her face. She couldn’t think of anything she wanted more than to be sleeping with Logan tonight. Even if it meant Harrison was in the hotel bed beside them. She just wanted to be held. To wake up and know she was safe and sound, and, even more important, that he held her close because he wanted to.
*
Logan waited until the doctor opened the door again, saying, “She can go home now. She needs to keep an eye on those fingers for swelling. The next forty-eight hours are important.” And he turned and walked away.
Logan got his first look at her standing there. She sported a bright purple cast on her right arm and over the bulk of her fingers—just the tips were showing.
She straightened and smiled at him. “I don’t know where we’re going from here, but food and a place to crash would be awesome.”
He nodded. “Coming right up.”
“The doctor had more good news,” she added as he held her left hand, walking her outside. “They put a rush on the rape kit and apparently it came back negative. Also, the drug Colin gave me was a common date rape drug. No long-term side effects, thank heavens.”
Logan wrapped an arm around her and held her for a long moment. “That is good news, indeed.”
Stepping back, she looked around. “What vehicle are we driving?”
He pointed. “I have the rental car. Harrison came with me, then took a cab to the airport. He’s heading to another job. As this has concluded, Levi’s ordered us both home.”
He watched as her face fell. Helping her into the car, he reached around and got her buckled up. He knew that, for quite a while, she would need help. She was also prickly and stubborn and wouldn’t take kindly to being looked after.
“I guess we knew that time was coming,” she said sadly. She sank back against the seat and closed her eyes.
He drove back to the hotel and helped her into the same room they’d been in before. Only this time it was just the two of them.
“What about you? Are you going back tonight too?”
He chuckled. “No. I’m staying here for three days. That’s as long as I’ve got.”
“Why do you have that?” she asked cautiously.
He gave her a grin. “Because I asked for them. I figure that’s how long it’ll take to deal with the contents of your apartment, get you packed up, purchase your airline ticket and, if you have anything to ship, get that done too. We’ll have to work our asses off though, if you plan on flying home with me. Alternatively,” he added, “we could drive your car. It will take us a while, but we’ll get there that way too.”
She grinned. “I really could use my car in Texas,” she admitted. “And I don’t know if we can make all that happen in three days, but I’d sure like to give it a good try.”
“Good. First things first—food. I placed an order with room service, and then it’s crash time. You need sleep.”
She nodded. A knock came at the door. “That was fast.”
He laughed. “I called it in from the hospital. Once I realized you were getting a cast, I could give them a time frame.”
He opened the door, accepted the trays on the trolley, paid the man a tip, closed it and turned, saying, “I wanted it to be ready. And then you get some sleep. Because tomorrow will be a long day.”
While Logan brought the tray over, she sat on the bed and thought about all she had to do. “It doesn’t have to be. I’m not caught up by having tons of possessions I must keep. Besides, it’s limited to what the car can hold. As for my furniture, it can go to someone else.” Taking in the aroma of their meal, she felt her stomach protest its emptiness. “The food smells wonderful.”
She readjusted her position on the bed, propping herself against the headboard. He brought her a plateful of food. By the time she had eaten, the effects of shock were wearing off. She excused
herself and went to the washroom.
She let out a small gasp at her face in the mirror. She opened the door. “You let me walk around in public like this?”
He took one look at her and smiled. “You’re beautiful no matter what.”
He went into the small room, grabbed a washcloth, soaped it up in warm water and carefully washed her face. He took a minute to clean the strands of hair along her face, still covered in dried blood. Then he turned her to look in the mirror. “Better?”
She smiled and said, “Yes. I’d love to do these fingers now.”
He turned the warm water on to run over the tips as she let them soak underneath the tap for a few minutes. They were still so sore that she didn’t want him to dry them. She let them hang to drip-dry and said, “That’ll do.” When they went back into the main room, he put their dishes on the tray, took it outside the room and left it on the floor in the hallway. Then he came back and said, “Bedtime for you.” He pulled back the covers and looked at her. “What do you want to sleep in?”
She winced and stared down at her clothes. “This is easiest.”
“You can’t sleep in those.” He picked up her bag and put it on the spare bed, quickly opened it and pulled out the nightgown she’d worn the previous night. “You up for getting into this?”
She nodded.
Gently, treating her like a little child, he undressed her with complete tenderness.
When the nightgown dropped over her head, she smiled at him. “You’d make a great father.”
He shook his head. “Now that’s a long way in the future.”
She crawled under the covers. He bundled up all her dirty clothes, tucked them into the side pocket of her bag and reached for his laptop, placing it on the spare bed.
She looked at him and said, “Can you turn the lights”—she snuggled farther under the covers—“off?”
*
He watched as she drifted under sleep’s embrace. It had only taken seconds. He watched her eyes slowly close. She was exhausted. Shock was like that, and so was injury and pain. He grabbed his laptop and phone to check up on the world, to see if he had any messages. He found an email from Detective Easterly.
Instead of responding the same way, Logan dialed Easterly’s number and waited for him to answer.
“Logan, glad you called. I heard about Alina. How is she doing?”
Logan gave Detective Easterly an update on her condition, explaining she was fast asleep right now with her cast elevated. He stood, walked over to her.
“She really went to town on the woman.”
“Yeah. How bad?”
“Broken nose and cheekbone, plus a concussion. But she’ll survive.”
“I have to ask this next question for Alina’s sake. Can you confirm that this woman was involved in the trafficking?” Logan reached over and gently stroked Alina’s shoulder while she slept. “She was really concerned she’d attacked the wrong woman.”
“You can definitely put her mind at ease on that point. It appears she was one of the coordinators in the group. We also picked up the last man, Bill Morgan. The woman is talking, so with any luck, we’ll pick up the entire network when we do a full sweep.”
Logan reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I sure as hell hope you can track down that system and help recover the missing women.”
“The superintendent is setting that up right now. The female coordinator’s name as it was on Colin’s cell is Roma Chandler. She is giving names, dates, places, and the whole line up. She was originally trafficked herself. So on one hand you can kind of understand, but on the other, well, it’s like the worst thing possible. With any luck, we’ll find these women. But you know it won’t be a fast solution. A warrant has been issued on the house you asked me to look into. We’re hoping it’s involved in this mess, but it’s too early to tell. Also…” He lowered his voice. “A couple names from Roma indicate a law enforcement connection—confirming Colin’s mention of two bad cops. That will take even longer to sort out.”
“Have to admit, we wondered about that last bit,” Logan said. “No, it’s never fast tying up something like this. I know my boss would want me to extend all the help we can give. We have connections around the world.”
Detective Easterly’s voice was light. “That’s really good to know, because it looks like this is going all the way around the world. I’ve asked to be assigned to the task force. Watching how they move those women, that was scary. My sister is about the same size. And thinking of Tracy Evans curled up inside that suitcase is terrifying.”
Logan nodded. “At least we saved the ones we could.”
“There is that. John also confessed to killing his brother. He was pissed about Joe not paying rent,” Easterly said. “Goes to show that you should never piss off family. Speaking of, are you heading out tonight?”
“I’m helping move Alina to Texas. She’s got a friend there she’ll stay with. She doesn’t think she can handle being here anymore. She’s not running away from you though, so if you need her for court or deposition testimony, then we’ll send you the address once we get her relocated.”
“I’m glad to hear that. That woman’s got a lot of grit. And that is never a bad thing.” The detective ended the call.
Logan thought about that and said quietly to himself, “Grit, that’s exactly what she’s got.”
Beside him Alina murmured, “That’s what my grandma used to say.”
He laid his cell on the bedside table, sat gently on the bed, wrapping his arm around her, tucking her against him. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”
“I had a power nap,” she said with a half smile.
But her voice was drowsy, as if she was still looking at going back under. He gave her a gentle hug. “Go right back to sleep.”
“Not sure I want to,” she whispered. “It was really nice to hear you say you are helping move me to my friend in Texas. Clearing the pathway so I could start over.”
“I’m a nice guy.”
She rolled over under the blankets and wrapped her good arm around him. Holding up her injured arm, she said, “I knew that the moment I laid eyes on you.” She pulled his head down and kissed him. “Thank you for the rest of my life.”
He placed his fingers on her lips, gently teasing her. “I was hoping you’d be willing to spend the rest of your life with me.”
She smiled, tears coming to the corner of her eyes. “Are you sure? We hardly even know each other.”
He slid his hand up her body, gently cupping her breasts, his hand still over the blanket. “True, but I know what counts. I know you have heart. I know you’ll stand up for the underdog and will defend our children to the death. You’re adorable when you’re riled. And I admire the honesty I see inside you. What is there not to love?”
A tear sparkled on her eyelashes. She slid her finger across his lips and then pulled him down closer, gently kissing him, dropping little ones on his upper lip, then his bottom and square jaw. As if she didn’t know what to say but wanted to show him instead.
And he was willing to accept a demonstration. With a smile, he let her gently explore his face, running her fingers through his hair, stroking down the side of his cheek with her fingertips.
She whispered something across his ear, and he chuckled. “Now that tickles.”
She opened her eyes, raised her eyebrow and smiled. “You think that tickles? I might be handicapped because of my bum arm, but that doesn’t mean, down the road, I might not take full advantage of you when you’re helpless and see how ticklish you are everywhere.”
He gave her a wicked grin. “One day down the road,” he promised, “you can do what you want. But right now, you look after that arm.”
It was her turn to flash a wicked smile. “So, are you going to lie here and let me do my worst?” she teased.
He chuckled. “Well, I don’t know about just lying here.”
With her good arm, she pulled him down. “I don’t think t
hat’s possible. Something about you makes me ache to have you deep inside.”
At her words his head lowered, and he crushed his lips against hers. He couldn’t imagine not wanting this woman in the future. So much about her was perfect. But even if she wasn’t, it was like his body knew her, and his heart already recognized her. His soul opened, enjoying her, as if seeing somebody he had already known and was reacquainting himself with. He didn’t even know how to explain it.
But thankfully, no words were necessary. When he ripped the blankets off the bed and turned to face her, she shook her head at him and held up her hand. “Oh, no, you don’t. You’re not coming back to bed unless you strip down.”
He gave her grin. “What about you? You’re still wearing a nightgown.”
She grinned back. “And it’s gonna take you to get it off me too.”
At that he laughed out loud and quickly divested himself of his shirt and pants. By the time he kicked off his shoes and peeled away his socks and stood before her in his birthday suit, she was on her knees, trying to hike the nightgown over her waist.
He chuckled. “Let me.”
Obediently she put her arms up, and gently he worked her bad hand and arm out of the nightgown, then threw it over the side of the bed.
When she was again kneeling before him, he said, “If I’d realized this is what you wanted, I wouldn’t have put you in the nightgown in the first place.”
“I thought about it,” she said, “but I was a little too tired.”
“Thank God for power naps,” he said in a fervent whisper.
And knowing she was still sore and banged up from her own captivity, not to mention the beating she’d given the poor woman today, Logan stretched out beside her and gently caressed and teased her until she was writhing with passion. Honest in her response. Open in her joy. And he loved every second of it.
His fingers stroked and caressed, teased and delved, and he found he couldn’t get enough. He leaned over, his lips and tongue leaving wet trails over her ribs, up to her beautifully plump breasts. When he took one nipple in his mouth and suckled hard, she cried out, her body arching under him.