by Susan Stoker
A commotion outside the door had Midas standing and spinning, ready to defend Lexie from whatever threat was coming. But it wasn’t a threat. It was Elodie. And Ashlyn. And Slate and Mustang. The rest of the guys were in the waiting room. They’d refused to leave as long as Midas was there.
“Lex!” Elodie exclaimed as she rushed toward the bed.
Midas tried to step out of the way, but Lexie refused to let go of his hand. So he moved to stand by her hip as she greeted her friends.
“I’m okay,” she croaked.
Ashlyn sniffed behind Elodie.
“Don’t cry,” Lexie ordered. “If you do, you’ll get me started.”
“S-sorry,” Ashlyn said—then she burst into tears.
The next thing Midas knew, he was surrounded by three sobbing women. But he didn’t say a word, nor did Mustang or Slate. The best thing they could do was release their fears and stress. He ran his thumb over the back of Lexie’s hand as she attempted to get herself under control.
Finally, Ashlyn turned to him and said, “He’s dead. Right?”
Midas nodded. He wasn’t sorry in the least that Magnus was dead, he was just sorry he hadn’t been the one to end his life. If the jerk to the neck hadn’t stopped his attack, Midas had every intention of bashing his head into the floor, but the knife he’d fallen on had punctured his aorta, making him bleed out in seconds, doing the job for him.
“Good,” Ashlyn said vehemently.
“I can’t believe he planned the entire thing,” Elodie said.
“The cops found the guy who harassed you the other evening,” Slate told them. “He claimed Magnus paid him to do it.”
“Which is good,” Ashlyn said.
“Good?” Elodie asked with a frown.
“Yes, it means that he never would’ve done it if he hadn’t been paid.”
“True,” Elodie agreed. “And Theo was never a threat to you either. Magnus was going to blame him for everything.”
Lexie nodded, and Midas saw the guilt in her eyes return. “We appreciate you coming, but maybe we can all talk about this later?” he suggested.
Elodie and Ashlyn immediately nodded.
“Come by my place tomorrow afternoon. You can stay as long as you want,” Midas told them.
“Okay. Don’t think I won’t take you up on that,” Elodie warned.
“You’ll probably get sick of us hanging around,” Ashlyn added.
“Never,” Midas assured them.
“Thanks for coming, guys. I promise I’m good. I’ll be back at work soon.”
“No, you won’t. Natalie told me to tell you she’s giving you two weeks off. And if she sees your butt back before then, she’s gonna be pissed,” Ashlyn informed her.
“But—”
“No buts,” Ashlyn told her. “And… I didn’t get to tell you before, was planning on breaking the news this afternoon, but we got the green light to set up a Food For All location in Barbers Point.”
Lexie beamed. “We did?”
“Yup.” Ashlyn smiled, then glanced at Elodie. “You still interested?”
“Yes!” the other woman said immediately.
“Awesome. By the time you come back, we’ll have more info,” Ashlyn told Lexie.
“That’s great.”
“Okay, it’s time to go,” Slate said, stepping toward Ashlyn and taking her elbow in his hand.
Midas was somewhat surprised that Ashlyn didn’t immediately yank her arm out of his grip. Instead, she simply nodded. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Lex,” she called as she let Slate usher her toward the door.
“I’m really glad you’re all right,” Elodie said. “I’ll bring by some of the four hundred and twenty-two magazines Scott bought me while I was healing.”
“Thanks,” Lexie said.
Midas gave his friends a chin lift. “Tell the guys they can head home. Lex should be discharged tomorrow morning.”
“Will do,” Mustang said. “Expect to see us all there.”
Midas nodded. He didn’t need his friends to help him get Lexie settled in his home, but he sure did appreciate them being there all the same.
When it was just the two of them alone once more, Midas sat on the edge of the bed and smoothed his hand over her hair. He tried to ignore the ugly marks on her neck. They’d fade, as would hopefully the memory of seeing her lying unconscious on the floor with Magnus hovering over her.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
Midas smiled. He wasn’t surprised she was worried about him. “Yeah. How about you?”
“I’m sad,” she said. “I thought Magnus was my friend.”
“I know,” Midas said. And he did. She’d obsess over what had happened for a long time to come. He knew he would. He’d think about the signs he may have missed. What he could’ve done differently.
“The thing is, I kind of understand why.”
“Why he tried to kill you?” Midas asked in disbelief.
“No, not that. That was fucked up. I mean how he went crazy. He and Dagmar were twins. They were connected in a way that not many people can understand. Did you know that some people can actually feel it when their twin is hurt? Even if they live thousands of miles apart? I imagine that Dagmar’s death probably left a huge hole inside Magnus. I’m not condoning what he did. But the pain he must’ve been in had to have been overwhelming.”
Midas pressed his lips together. He didn’t understand it. Not at all. He’d lost men who were close to him. As close as brothers. No, none had been his twin, but the pain had been intense.
Magnus should’ve embraced Lexie’s friendship. He would’ve gotten so much out of it. But instead, he was full of hate and misplaced anger toward her. She didn’t kill Dagmar. She didn’t ask the kidnappers to raise the ransom amount. From what she’d told him, she’d begged them to let Dagmar go. But of course that hadn’t happened. And Dagmar had died. It was a tragedy all around. He was just so damn glad things hadn’t ended differently today.
“You don’t agree,” Lexie said after a minute.
“No,” Midas said with a shake of his head. “But I love your tender heart. I love your kindness and ability to forgive.”
“I don’t forgive him,” Lexie told him. “I’ll never forget how he crouched over me and spewed hatred while his hands tightened on my throat. But he’s gone. And I’m still here. He failed. Fuck him. I have you. And Elodie and Ashlyn. And your team. Even Baker. And Theo.”
Midas sighed. “He’s gonna be your new project, isn’t he?”
She gave him a small smile. “Yup. He needs someone to look out for him, like he tried to do for me.”
“And that’s us, huh?”
“Yup.”
“I can live with that,” Midas said. And he could. The man had desperately tried to get to Lexie when she’d needed him the most. He had a feeling those times he’d been seen watching Lex, he’d actually been watching over her, not stalking her with the intent to do her harm. Time would tell, but for now, he’d do what he could to help the man.
“Do you think he’ll be out of recovery and awake enough to have visitors before we leave?” Lexie asked.
Midas couldn’t help but smile.
“What?”
“You. I don’t know. But we’ll find out.”
“Thanks. Midas?”
“Yeah, love?”
“I never did get my coffee this morning,” she said with a pout.
With that, Midas burst out laughing. “I love you,” he told her.
“And I love you,” she returned.
Her eyes drooped, and Midas knew she had to be exhausted.
“Sleep.”
“You won’t leave?”
“Nothing could tear me from your side.” He picked up her hand and kissed the back.
“Okay, maybe for an hour or so. But then I want you to check on Theo.”
“I will.”
Midas sat at her side as she slipped off into sleep. He couldn’t take his eyes from her.
He didn’t know how he’d gotten lucky enough to have caught her eye, but he’d do whatever it took to make sure she never regretted choosing him.
Epilogue
Dear Lexie,
Thank you seems light compared to what you have done for me and my family. I did not assist you for money. You saved my family when we needed it, and I never forgot. The scholarship to the university will allow me to get an education so I can get a job and help my family. And my brother and sister will also be able to go. My mom cry when she found out. It is like I told you, I want to learn how to do for myself so I can help my country. I am sorry my English is not so good, but I will be better.
Sincerely,
Shermake
* * *
Lexie wiped a tear off her cheek and put down the letter she’d received in the mail. She went looking for Midas and knew exactly where to find him. He was in the backyard, picking some mangos for dessert.
She walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist, laying her cheek on his back.
“You okay?” Midas asked.
“Perfect,” she said with a sigh.
Midas turned in her grasp and put his finger under her chin, tilting her face up so he could see her eyes. Ever since he’d walked in on Magnus trying to kill her, he’d been overprotective. But Lexie couldn’t blame him.
“You’ve been crying,” he said.
“Shermake sent me a letter,” she told him.
“He all right?”
“He’s great. He was just thanking me. Although he really should be thanking you and Baker,” Lexie said.
Midas shrugged.
It had been a month since the incident at Food For All. Sometimes it was hard to believe so much time had passed, and in other ways it felt like yesterday. Plans were progressing for the new location, and hopefully within another month or two, it would be open. Ashlyn and Lexie had been working nonstop to meet the local business owners in Barbers Point and to let them know the plans for the organization. So far, they’d had nothing but positive reactions.
Elodie was also getting excited about helping out, and had started gathering recipes for the lunch boxes she’d be in charge of putting together. The new location wouldn’t have hot meals, but it would provide nutritious take-away meals for those who needed them.
Midas reached for Lexie’s hand and pulled her toward the chairs on the deck. He put down the mango he’d picked and sat, bringing Lexie with him. She sat without complaint, settling into Midas. He’d been more touchy-feely recently, which was perfectly all right with her.
“So, you gonna officially move in or what?” he asked.
Lexie blinked in surprise, though, she really shouldn’t have been. She’d gotten used to Midas’s abrupt topic changes.
And she’d been practically living with Midas ever since she’d come home from the hospital. He’d taken some time off work to stay with her and make sure she really was all right, and then he took her to work every day and picked her up as well. She was looking forward to the satellite branch opening so Midas didn’t have to drive so much every day.
“I want to,” she said, then hesitated.
“But?” Midas asked gently.
“I don’t want to overstep. And I’m not ready to get married.” The latter was something she’d been thinking about a lot. Elodie and Mustang had tied the knot fairly quickly after they’d met, but that was a big step for Lexie, and she wasn’t sure she was ready yet.
“First, you aren’t overstepping. I love you, and I love having you here. I never really thought much about living with a woman before, but now that you’ve been here, I can’t imagine not waking up with you by my side every day or falling asleep with you in my arms. Second, I’m not ready for marriage either. I love you, and that’s not going to change, but I like how things are going right now.”
“Me too,” Lexie said with a relieved sigh.
“I want you to meet my parents. And my brother and sister. I want to marry you on the beach in a laid-back, simple ceremony.”
She grinned. “And if I want a huge formal shindig?”
Midas stared at her, as if trying to figure out if she was serious or not. She held the serious look as long as possible before grinning.
“That was mean,” he said with a pout.
“I know, sorry. I don’t want something huge,” she reassured him. “The beach thing sounds amazing. If your folks don’t like me, is that a deal breaker?” she asked nervously.
“You have nothing to worry about. They’re gonna like you,” Midas told her. “They already do. You know my mom’s been bugging me to give her a time when she can come out and visit.”
Lexie snuggled into his chest and sighed. “I’ll move in,” she told him. “I mean, the view is much better here than in my apartment.”
Midas snorted. “I’m being used for my view,” he said under his breath.
“Well, that, and I love you to distraction,” Lexie told him. “You think Theo’s gonna like living in Barbers Point?” Shit, now she was doing it, changing subjects on a whim. Midas was rubbing off on her.
He chuckled as if he knew what she was thinking. “I think he’s gonna love it.”
Midas had worked with Baker to find a tiny one-room apartment for Theo to live in He’d always have a roof over his head and wouldn’t have to worry about rent. Lexie wasn’t a millionaire, but she’d saved up a nice nest egg after years of free lodgings, thanks to Food For All. She wouldn’t have a problem paying the rent for the small space for Theo. After learning he’d dragged himself across the floor to try to help her, even while the knife was still sticking out of his back, she’d do anything for the man.
She wished she could get him psychological help, but Theo had lived on his own on the streets for too long to be cooped up in a hospital. So she’d done what she could by providing him a safe place to sleep at night. The room wasn’t far from where Food For All’s new building was located, and Lexie would be able to see him every day.
“Love you, Lex.”
“Love you back, Midas.”
His hand shifted under her shirt and began to rub her bare back, and just like that, thoughts of Theo, Midas’s parents, and even what she’d been planning to make for dinner flew out of her head.
She wanted Midas. Bad.
After she’d gotten out of the hospital, he’d been reluctant to initiate any sexy times, but Lexie hadn’t had any problem convincing him that she was completely healed.
Sitting up and straddling his waist, Lexie scooted forward until she could feel his hard cock between his legs. Without a word, she reached for the hem of her shirt and pulled it over her head.
Midas smiled, palmed her ass, and leaned forward to nuzzle her breasts.
Yeah, it was safe to say she was one hundred percent happy.
Kenna Madigan did her best not to sound like an out-of-shape hippo as she ran near the Ala Moana Park, toward the Magic Island Lagoon. It was at the end of a piece of land across from the Ala Wai Boat Harbor. It was early, but there were other people out exercising like she was. Kenna didn’t love running, but it was the best way to keep in shape, and to keep the Malasadas she loved so much from adding forty pounds to her average-sized frame.
This was a rare morning off for her, and she’d decided to get out into the Hawaiian sunshine and enjoy the day.
She was thinking about the errands she needed to get to before her waitressing shift at Duke’s, not paying much attention to what was going on around her, when something to her right caught her eye. It was hard to figure out what she was looking at, but as she got closer, her eyes widened in horror.
A body was floating in the ocean, just on the other side of the lagoon!
It was a man. She knew that much from the size. He was wearing some sort of black wet suit and was face down, bobbing up and down.
/> Looking around, Kenna didn’t see anyone else nearby. Certainly no one seemed concerned that someone was drowning.
Without thinking twice, Kenna sprinted around the edge of the lagoon. She peered down into the dark water and saw that the man hadn’t moved. Immediately, she toed off her tennis shoes and whipped her tank top over her head. Wearing nothing but her socks, shorts, and sports bra, Kenna jumped into the ocean.
Unfortunately, but probably not surprisingly, she misjudged her leap into the water and instead of landing near the drowning man, she jumped right on top of him. Kenna wasn’t known for being the most graceful person. Most of her coworkers teased her for being clumsy.
Thankful that she’d hit his legs and not his back, Kenna used her arms to bring herself back up to the surface before reaching for the drowning man.
But when her head broke the surface of the water, she found herself staring right into the confused and concerned eyes of the man she’d jumped in to save. He was very much neither dead nor drowning, and instead was looking at her as if she had a few screws loose.
He wore a black face mask, and she could now see the snorkel attached. As she treaded water and stared at him in shock, he pushed the mask onto the top of his head.
“Are you all right? Did you fall in?” he asked.
To complete her embarrassment, five more heads popped up in the water around them. Each had on the same black mask, but were also wearing scuba tanks on their backs.
“Oh shit,” she said, knowing her cheeks were probably bright red. She had no idea why this group of men were scuba diving where they were, but she’d obviously screwed up. Bad.
“Ma’am?” the man she’d jumped on top of asked again.
“I’m fine,” she said. “Um… I just…” Kenna looked around, trying to find the fastest way to climb up the rocks surrounding the lagoon so she could go home and die of mortification.
The man gripped her arm and easily held her above water. She was a good swimmer, but his grip definitely made it easier to float.