by Susan Stoker
Midas laughed. “True. Come on, hold out your arm.”
She did, and he vaguely noted that Lexie didn’t look away as he prepped her arm for the needle.
“Not squeamish?” he asked.
“No. I’ve seen more than my fair share of grotesque things.”
“Like?” Midas asked, wanting to keep her talking. He wasn’t sure how difficult it would be to get the IV started. If she was too dehydrated, it might be tough to find a vein.
“Kids with wounds that had maggots in them. Babies with bellies so distended from starvation it looked as if they’d just swallowed a cantaloupe. Women who’d been beaten by their husband so badly, their eyes swelled shut. Men whose feet were so blistered they were covered in blood and pus…and yet they still put on ill-fitting shoes and walked ten miles to try to find work so they could get money for their family.”
Her words were unemotional and flat, but Midas had a feeling that was a protective mechanism.
Thankfully, the needle slid into place in her arm without difficulty and, after he’d hooked up the saline and hung it on a pole by the bed, he sat on the edge by her hip.
Lexie looked down at her arm, up at the bag of saline, then into his eyes. “Wow, that was impressive.”
“Told you I knew how to put in an IV,” he said a little smugly.
“So you did.”
“Still so calm,” he said, shaking his head.
Lexie shrugged, and Midas put a hand beside her opposite hip and leaned a bit closer. She didn’t take her gaze from his.
“I can’t figure you out,” he said quietly. “I have so many questions. And I also can’t help but want to know all your secrets, and figure out what’s going on behind those beautiful hazel eyes of yours.”
Chapter Three
Lexie blinked as she stared up at Midas. He really didn’t want to know what she was thinking right about how. He’d probably be appalled. Or at the very least, shocked to know that she was wondering if his lips tasted as good as they looked.
It was incredibly inappropriate. But Lexie had just made it through three nightmarish months as a hostage. She was allowed to have a few improper thoughts.
Pierce Cagle had always been good-looking. Tall, broad shoulders, slender, funny, great smile, and a good personality to match. When she’d met him in high school, it was so obvious he was out of her league. She was the new kid who’d faded into the woodwork. He was Midas, the golden child of the pool and their entire school. She’d never heard anyone say anything bad about him. He’d even still been friendly with his few ex-girlfriends.
When she’d been assigned to work with him on an English project, she’d been scared to death. But in the end, those couple of weeks had been enough for her to develop an intense crush. Of course, she hadn’t done anything about it, and he wouldn’t have given her a second glance. But even after they’d graduated, and she’d taken her first assignment with Food For All, she’d thought about him now and then. Wondered where he was and what he’d done with his life.
Then, out of the blue, he was back.
It was an odd thing, to have a man you used to know and crush on show up to rescue you…and to find out he was still just as amazing as you’d thought he was a decade and a half ago.
And he wanted to know her secrets? She had none.
She couldn’t help but glance down at his left hand, which was resting on his thigh. No ring. But then again, that didn’t mean much, as she supposed even if he was married, he wouldn’t wear a ring while on a mission.
“What?” he asked.
Damn. He was too observant. She remembered that about him too.
“Nothing.”
“Lex…what?” he insisted, leaning even closer.
“I just was wondering if you were married.”
He looked surprised at the question. “No. I’m not.”
“Oh.” Lexie wasn’t sure what else to say. The man leaning over her had definitely changed physically since high school. He was more muscular. Not as lean. It was hard to tell exactly, while he was wearing his uniform and all that gear strapped to his chest, but it looked like he still had the same broad shoulders he’d had back in the day, though his thighs and butt had filled out.
And yes, she’d noticed. How could she not? She wasn’t dead, and Midas was a hell of a good-looking man.
When he chuckled, her gaze whipped back up to his.
Shit, had she been staring at his legs? Or worse, between his legs?
Knowing she was probably turning bright red, Lexie did her best to hide her embarrassment. “Right, okay… I was just…um…wondering if this detour would make someone wonder when you’d be back home or something.”
Lexie had no idea what she was saying, but she had to at least try to explain why she was checking him out and wanting to know if he was married.
“When we go on missions, we can’t talk about where we’re going or how long we’ll be gone,” Midas said. “National security and all that.”
“That makes sense. Although I’d think that would be hard on you.”
“Hard on me?” Midas asked, his brows furrowing. “Don’t you mean hard on my nonexistent wife?”
“Well, sure. I mean, it would suck not knowing where you were or what you were doing, but I can imagine that it would be just as stressful on you. Wondering what your wife was doing, if she was all right, if the toilet was overflowing, if the yard was being mowed…you know, that sort of thing…” Her voice trailed off at the end and she felt stupid. “Never mind. I’m obviously delirious.”
Midas shook his head. Had he leaned even closer?
He had. Holy shit. It took everything in her not to reach up and pull his head down to hers. She wasn’t normally a very sexual person, but now that she was safe, clean, and feeling much better, she couldn’t seem to help her crazy thoughts.
“Mustang is married,” he said softly.
“He is?”
“Yeah. He met Elodie on a mission. Not too far from here, actually. She was on a cargo ship that was taken over by pirates.”
“Oh my!” Lexie exclaimed. “She’s okay?”
“Yeah. Anyway, she ended up in Hawaii and they started dating. Some other shit happened, but they’re good. They got married…and you’re right, Mustang does worry about her. I think it’s just part of who we are. We solve problems. We know too much of the dark side of life, and knowing he isn’t there if something goes wrong eats at him. Elodie can take care of herself, and she’s got people who look out for her when we aren’t there, but it’s not the same.”
“Elodie. That’s an unusual name.”
Midas nodded, but Lexie saw his gaze flick down to her lips, and she couldn’t help but lick them.
He leaned even closer, and just when Lexie was sure he was going to kiss her, the door opened and a dark-skinned man wearing a long white coat entered the small exam room.
Midas stood and backed away from the table, but he didn’t go too far. He stayed near her feet, as if ready to protect her if the doctor did anything he didn’t like. Lexie wanted to protest, to tell him he was being ridiculous, but after being on her own for what seemed like her entire life, she couldn’t deny she liked having him there.
“It is so good to see you, Lexie Greene,” the doctor said with a smile. “All of us here at the hospital have been worried about you.”
“Thank you,” Lexie told him, overwhelmed.
“When you were taken, we feared for you,” the doctor went on. “We were not sure you’d return.”
Lexie scrunched her nose and nodded. “Me either.”
The doctor glanced at Midas, then looked back at her. “Somalis are good people. Not all of us want to harm Westerners.”
“I know,” she told him. “I’ve been here long enough to see that for myself.”
The doctor nodded, then said, “You look good. Better than your friend.”
“How is he? I was afraid he’d had a stroke. He started slurring his words and he seemed w
eak on his left side,” Lexie said.
The doctor nodded, but said, “I am sorry, I cannot offer particular details about other patients.”
“I understand,” Lexie said immediately.
The doctor glanced at Midas once more. “I need to examine my patient,” he said.
Midas crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not leaving. My mission is to return Miss Greene safe and sound, and I’m not letting her out of my sight until I complete that mission.”
Lexie’s heart dropped just slightly at the knowledge that she was just his “mission.” It was a good reminder, though, that Midas was doing a job. He hadn’t come to Africa because of her specifically, but because he’d been ordered to.
She was suddenly very glad she hadn’t completely embarrassed herself by kissing him. God, that would’ve been mortifying.
“Lexie?” the doctor asked. “Does he have your permission to stay?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
“I’m assuming this is your handiwork?” the doctor asked, picking up Lexie’s arm to study the IV line Midas had inserted.
“Yes.”
The doctor examined the needle and nodded. “It looks good.” Then he continued his examination, asking about what had happened when she was in captivity and how she felt.
Lexie wasn’t embarrassed to answer his questions. She hadn’t done anything wrong, and while she hadn’t enjoyed what had happened to her, she knew things could’ve been a lot worse.
After twenty minutes of poking and prodding and questions, the doctor stepped back. “You’re dehydrated, sunburned, and you’ve got sand flea bites all over, but I suspect none of that is a surprise. I don’t see anything that is immediately life threatening, but I recommend you check with a doctor when you get back to the United States and have a full blood panel done. While you look good, and were very lucky, you could still have underlying issues that aren’t obvious from a physical exam. You’re sure you weren’t sexually assaulted?”
Lexie shook her head. “I wasn’t.”
She saw the doctor’s gaze flick to Midas once more, before he met her eyes again. “I can have a female nurse come in to talk to you if you prefer.”
“Honestly, they didn’t touch me like that. I swear.”
The doctor still looked skeptical, but nodded. “All right.”
“How much longer do you think Dagmar Brander will be here?” Midas asked.
“I am not sure. His physician insisted on bloodwork and our lab is working on analyzing that now. He…he is a very sick man.”
Midas nodded. “Can Lexie stay here until he’s discharged?”
“Of course,” the doctor said. “She needs fluids. I’ll have another bag brought in for when that one is gone.”
Lexie supposed she should be irritated that Midas and the doctor were talking over her and not to her, but she was so exhausted, she couldn’t keep her eyes open. The examination table was the most comfortable thing she’d lain on in months and the air conditioning in the building felt heavenly.
She jerked when a hand landed on her shoulder and her eyes popped open.
“I apologize. I did not mean to startle you,” the doctor said. “The best thing you can do is rest. I hope what happened doesn’t turn you off from our country forever.”
“No,” Lexie answered. “I definitely want to come back someday.”
The older man smiled at her, shook Midas’s hand, then turned and left the small room.
Lexie expected to feel awkward, being alone again with Midas after all the questions the doctor had asked about her health, but she was just too tired to work up the energy to be embarrassed.
“Close your eyes,” Midas said gently.
“That would be rude,” Lexie said, but her eyes shut anyway.
He chuckled. “It’s fine. I’m gonna go check with my team, but I’ll be back.”
“Thought you weren’t going to leave my side,” Lexie mumbled.
She heard Midas snort out a laugh. “I won’t be gone more than a few minutes. I’m going to ask one of the nurses to step in here while I’m gone. Besides, you’re gonna be out of it in thirty seconds.”
“Am not,” she protested weakly, not even sure why she was disagreeing with him.
She thought she felt a hand brush against her hair, but decided she must be delirious. Why would Midas be touching her so gently? She was a stranger to him…even if they had known each other once upon a time.
“Sleep, Lex. When Dagmar gets the okay to leave, we’re gonna have another loud, uncomfortable helicopter trip to the Navy ship.”
Lexie nodded, and was just on the verge of losing consciousness when her eyes popped open.
She was surprised to see Midas standing very close to the edge of the bed, staring down at her. She thought he’d left, or at least would’ve been halfway out the door. “Midas?”
“Yeah, Lex?”
“If things get crazy later and I forget…thanks for finding me. I mean, I know it’s your job and everything, but still. Thanks.”
“This has been one of the most enlightening missions I’ve been on in a very long time,” he said enigmatically. “I’ll be back soon. You’ll feel better once all that fluid is in you.”
Lexie nodded. She wanted to ask him why rescuing hostages was enlightening. She’d assumed that, as a SEAL, he did this kind of thing all the time.
Too tired to think about it any longer, Lexie closed her eyes and slept.
Chapter Four
Midas forced himself to walk out of Lexie’s room and down the hall. The woman had him tied in knots for reasons he couldn’t begin to understand. She was shy, generous, funny, and so damn trusting it was almost scary. He had no idea how she wasn’t jaded and disillusioned from working in some of the poorest areas of the world.
It wasn’t until she was talking to the doctor that he fully realized she didn’t really blame her kidnappers for holding her hostage. She honestly believed they were simply desperate men doing desperate things for money.
Midas shook his head in disbelief. Lexie held little or no ill will toward the men who would’ve killed her without a second thought if he and his team, and the Danish special forces soldiers, hadn’t surprised them.
But he couldn’t deny that her…goodness, called to him on a level he hadn’t experienced before. He knew next to nothing about the woman Lexie had become; hell, he didn’t know much about the teenager she’d been all those years ago. But that didn’t seem to matter. She intrigued him, and he was feeling extra protective of her.
Midas ran into Slate in the hall on the first floor and got an update on Dagmar. As Lexie’s doctor had said, he wasn’t doing well. He was hanging in there, but seemed to be getting weaker and weaker rather than stronger, now that he was finally getting medical attention.
“We shouldn’t stay here too long,” Midas warned.
“I know. I want to be gone yesterday,” Slate agreed. “And so does Mustang. He’s been talking to the doctors about when we can move him. He needs advanced cardio care, which he won’t get here. So the longer we linger, the more damage could be done to his heart.”
“What’s the holdup then?”
“His brother is working on chartering a jet to fly him straight back to Denmark. But apparently there’s a lot of red tape involved, not to mention the question of whether Dagmar is strong enough to even make the flight.”
“That’s a good thing, though, right?” Midas asked. “The brother obviously has enough money to get Dagmar home sooner rather than later.”
Slate shrugged. “I think so, but so far the doctors haven’t agreed to release him. And we’ve been asked to help the Jaeger Corps provide security from here to the airport. It wouldn’t do for him to get kidnapped again right when he’s about to fly out of here. So until the doctors, Dagmar’s brother, and the Danish government figure out their next steps, we’re in a holding pattern. And you know how much I love that. How’s Lexie?”
Midas wasn’t thrilled about w
aiting around any longer than they had to, but he couldn’t deny he was relieved Lexie was getting some much needed medical attention. “Good. Dehydrated, but overall she was lucky. She’s sleeping upstairs while we’re waiting on our next move.”
“You okay?” Slate asked.
“Yeah, why?”
“You just seemed…extraordinarily concerned about Lexie.”
“I know her,” he admitted.
“What?”
“I know her. We went to high school together.”
“Why didn’t you say anything before?” Slate asked, flabbergasted.
“It wouldn’t have changed anything. I mean, I haven’t seen her since graduation. It’s not like we were friends or anything.” Midas did his best to keep his words nonchalant. But he should’ve known his teammate would pick up on his conflicted feelings.
“But there’s something there, isn’t there? It’s why you insisted on being the one to watch over her while we’re here,” Slate pressed.
“I just… She’s gotten under my skin,” Midas finally said. “I don’t know why.”
“I’m probably not the person to be having this conversation with, as the last serious relationship I had was…oh, that’s right…never. But after watching Mustang and Elodie dance around each other, and how stressed out he was when he didn’t hear from her after we left that cargo ship, all I can say is, make sure you get her contact info. And give her yours.”
“I’m not Mustang,” Midas insisted.
“You aren’t. And Lexie isn’t Elodie. But I know you, Midas. If she’s gotten to you, you’ll need to figure out why. And you can’t do that if you don’t communicate with her.”
“I’m sure it’s just the situation. And the fact that I know her,” Midas argued, not believing his own words. “And as soon as we land on that Navy ship, we’ll be separated and that will be that. This isn’t exactly the time or place to try to get to know each other. A few hours, tops, and she’ll be just another mission.”
“I don’t know why you’re trying so hard to dismiss her, but no one can force you to get to know her if you’re determined not to. Though, you know as well as I do that things happen for a reason. We’ve been through too much shit and seen too many damn miracles for this to be a coincidence.”