Aaron started crying and Jake starting screaming for his sister. All the commotion was too much for Shane. His head ached and his heart started racing.
“Why the hell are you so calm?” he snapped at Rowan. “And how the hell did you even get in here?”
For the first time, Rowan looked up at him. She was so beautiful he stopped breathing. Even with all this chaos, he still couldn’t help but picture her naked. How wrong was that?
“It’s okay, Aaron. Your Uncle just doesn’t know about these things. You’re going to be fine. Besides, the scar will make you look like you just fought in World War One. You’re going to look awesome.”
“Oh, no fair!” Jake whined from the living room. “I want a scar too!”
“Don’t even think about it.” Shane turned to Jake as he was lining up on the couch. “One kid at the ER is enough.”
“Jake, I need you to be my Ice Man.” Rowan stood up. “Go get a bowl and put all the ice in it you can. We need to keep this as cold as possible while we get there. Jennifer, get dressed right now. We need to leave in two minutes. Aaron, hold this while I find the nearest ER.”
Shane watched in awe as Rowan took over. Jake raced to the kitchen and started pulling ice out of the freezer. He could hear Jennifer in the other room racing around, getting dressed, he assumed. Aaron put on a brave face and held the ice pack on his eye.
“You coming?” Rowan asked him, suddenly in front of him.
“Ah. Yeah. I guess I better.” His brain still wasn’t fully engaged yet.
“Do you have their insurance cards and a letter authorizing you to treat?” Rowan asked him.
“What? Oh God. I don’t know.” Shane racked his brain. Did Melanie leave him with that? And then he remembered the envelope. “Oh wait. Yeah, I think so.”
He raced down the hall to his office and pulled out the sealed envelope she had given him. Sure enough, there was the insurance card and a letter signed by both parents. He stuffed the papers in his pocket and grabbed his wallet. By the time he was back in the living room, Rowan had all the kids out the door and was headed to the parking lot.
“Shane, open your car,” she called over her shoulder when he locked the front door.
By the time he got down to the car, they were all in and ready to go. He didn’t even question how she did that; he just leapt in the car and followed her directions to the nearest ER.
Six hours and three stiches later, Shane gathered up the troops and left the hospital. So much for the water park; Aaron’s eye couldn’t be under water, and that meant movies and dry parks for the rest of their stay. To his shock and amazement, Rowan stayed with them the entire time. She seemed to know exactly what to say to Aaron to keep him brave and comforted. Jake and Jennifer roamed the hospital and had to be carted back a few times by the nurses, but for the most part they were well behaved.
All three kids were in the back, quiet and exhausted. Rowan was sitting up front, her tanned thighs calling his name. It took all his will power not to reach over and stroke her skin.
“So, um, thanks for being there. I don’t think I could’ve done that without you.” Shane glanced at her across the car.
“Well, it wasn’t the day I had planned, but it was a day. The kids did great. Aaron is a brave little man. It was my pleasure.” Rowan looked almost pensive as she gazed out the window.
“You seemed to know what you were doing.” Shane wanted to ask her how she knew he needed three stiches, how she knew just what to say to Aaron, and how she knew how to wrangle all three kids. But something told him to wait.
Rowan laughed. “Not my first rodeo. You’d have been fine. I just happened to be walking by when I heard the howl. I knew that sound could only mean blood.” She stopped abruptly and looked out the window again. “Anyway. I’m glad I could help out.”
The mystery of this woman was killing him. There was so much he wanted to know about her. He watched her a second, then went back to watching the road.
“Hey, kids! I think we need to thank Rowan by making her dinner! Whatta ya think?” Shane glanced in the mirror to see the kids.
Jake and Jennifer popped up, “Yeah!! Let’s get pizza and a movie!”
Aaron seemed pretty out of it and Shane didn’t want Rowan to leave just yet; he wanted her around to keep an eye on Aaron. Flashing a grin at her, he realized he just wanted her around period. She was smiling shyly but when she saw him watching her, she laughed out loud.
“I guess pizza and movie it is,” Rowan said. “I just want to change first. I was cleaning house, never really expected to be out today.”
Shane laughed. “Is that how you clean house? You can come clean my house any time you want.”
She playfully smacked his arm. When they pulled in and parked, she helped Aaron into Shane’s apartment and excused herself to go change. Promising to return, she disappeared out the door and Shane let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.
“You like her, huh Uncle Shane?” Jake teased when they were alone.
“You. You little-thing, you. You both should be in trouble for causing all this havoc. Go clean up the living room while I order the food. Jennifer, check on Aaron. I think that medicine they gave him is making him sleepy. And no more wrestling or rough housing! Your mother’s going to kill me as it is.” Shane walked into the kitchen to get the pizza shop’s phone number.
Two days. That was all that was left. And now he was the uncle that left them alone and had to take Aaron to the ER. He groaned. Kids. Never ever again. He couldn’t believe he had to call his sister and tell her about this.
After he placed the pizza order he walked into the living room to find all three kids sitting on the couch watching Finding Nemo. They looked like perfect little angels. Ha! He knew better. No wonder his brother in law was bald. He tore out all of his hair because of his kids.
“Pizza is on its way. I’m calling your mom and dad. Let Rowan in when she gets back. Get me if the pizza comes and I’m still on the phone.” Shane talked above their heads, hoping their brains had registered his words. He knew that Aaron was out of it, but he hoped Jennifer and Jake were at least half listening.
With a deep breath, he picked up the phone and dialed the 808 number he had for emergencies.
“Aaron or Jake?” Graham’s voice came on the line.
Much to Shane’s surprise, he didn’t sound angry or worried. “Aaron. Well, it was both of them, but Aaron has a few stiches on the corner of his eye, near the eyebrow. The nurses all told him he’s going to look like Indiana Jones.”
“Jake okay?” Graham asked, his voice still steady.
“Oh, yeah. He’s fine. A little worried about getting in trouble when you get home. But only because Mel is going to have my ass when you guys get back. Look, Graham-”
“Shane. This is normal. These things happen. We know we asked a lot when you took this on. Melanie is fine. Well, she will be. I plan on telling her after drinks. Lucky for both of us, my office has forgotten the definition of emergency and this phone has been ringing constantly. She just assumed it was my office again.”
Shane started laughing. Relief flooded his system. “Thanks, man. I’m really sorry. I was ten steps away. My place is not that big.”
“Yeah, you’d be surprised what can happen in a blink of an eye. Well, we almost made it through unscathed. See you in a couple of days.” Graham hung up before Shane could respond.
Shane laughed again. Graham didn’t even sound surprised, like it was expected. He better get back in there, he didn’t think he would get off that easy again. He was strapping these kids down for the next 48 hours. Nothing was going to happen, even if he had to wrap them all in bubble wrap. Was that considered child abuse? He didn’t know, and he almost didn’t care.
As he came out of his room, he heard Rowan’s laughter floating down the hall. The sound washed over him, doing things to his insides. She blew him away today. Maybe all women just knew things, like how to take care of kids in the
ER? Maybe Rowan was just that wonderful?
“Well well, looks like the pizza got here. I thought I told you to come get me?” Shane surveyed the room. Two pizza boxes were open, plates were strewn across the room, and there was already a mess on the floor. How can they destroy a room so fast?
“Oh. Sorry, Uncle Shane. Rowan showed up with the pizza and we dove in. It’s really good.” Jennifer wiped up whatever that was on the floor and moved back to the couch.
“Rowan got the pizza, huh? What happened to us buying her dinner as a thank you for saving our asses at the ER today?” Shane was now embarrassed, again.
Rowan got up and Shane’s breath got caught in his throat. She was wearing black fleece pants that hung on her every curve and a loose brown top that fell off one of her shoulders. Her hair hit her chin line, accentuating her jaw and long neck. All Shane could think about was running his tongue along that same line. He knew he was in trouble.
She walked across the room and quietly whispered suggestively, “That’s okay, Shane. You can thank me another way.”
He was rooted to the spot. Did she just say that to him? Did that mean what he thought it meant? He turned his head and watched her ass disappear into the kitchen.
“Uncle Shane, come sit with us. I don’t like the sharks,” Jake called to him from the other room.
Shane wanted to follow Rowan into the kitchen and clarify what just happened. With a reluctant sigh, he walked into the living room and pushed his way between Jennifer and Jake. Aaron had moved to the overstuffed chair, half watching, half dozing. Poor kid.
Rowan walked back in and settled herself on the floor near Aaron. He reached out and touched her hair. Shane watched her lean into his touch and pat his hand. They seem to have really bonded throughout the day.
“Man. Nemo’s dad should’ve just hired Uncle Shane to find Nemo. Then he wouldn’t have gotten lost,” Jake piped up, frustrated at the character’s ineptitude.
“Really?” Rowan asked. “Is Uncle Shane good at finding lost fish?”
“No. Uncle Shane is a Private Eye. He finds missing people all the time. He carries a badge and a gun, even,” Jake answered with reverence.
Shane was pleased that his nephew was so proud of his job.
“No, silly. Then Nemo’s dad would’ve never met Dory and then we wouldn’t get to watch their adventures,” Jennifer schooled Jake.
“Yeah,” Aaron joined in, “We would never get to meet the turtle dudes. I love the turtles.”
“Wait.” Rowan’s voice was not at all amused or impressed. If anything, she sounded alarmed. “You’re a PI? And you work missing persons cases?”
“Why yes, that is in fact what I do when I’m not babysitting these three hooligans.” Shane tried to keep the humor in his voice, but he could tell something was up with her.
“Huh,” she said, settling back down. “I never met a real life PI before.”
With that, they all focused on the movie again. Shane glanced over at Rowan on more than one occasion, hoping to catch her eye. But she never looked away from the movie, never moved from her spot on the floor, and never even laughed at the movie with the kids.
Aaron was asleep when the credits starting rolling, so Shane picked him up and carried him to what was once his office. By the time he came back out to check on the other two, they were brushing their teeth. Rowan was nowhere to be found.
“Hey, did Rowan leave?” Shane asked them.
“Yeah, she said she needed to go. She said to tell you to make sure Aaron had medicine nearby, ‘cause he might need some in the night,” Jennifer answered after she finished.
“Oh, okay.” his head was spinning. How did it go from her suggestive invite to her bolting while he was out of the room?
He wondered what he did wrong. Maybe he misread her tone? Maybe she was mad that he didn’t follow her to the kitchen? Women? This was why he was still single at 32. But she was a mystery, that was for sure, and mysteries he could handle. Hell, he did that for a living.
Chapter Five
Rowan peeled back the postcard, her heart hammering in her chest. She knew the exact number of hours she had been waiting to hear from Justin. 51. That’s how long she felt like she had been holding her breath. She hated that she was more and more nervous with each passing hour.
‘Sorry we missed you. See you soon. JR’ was scrawled across the back of the card in Justin’s handwriting. Rowan blew out a breath. See you soon? And only signed by Justin. What about Talia? Staying put, I would imagine. She didn’t enjoy moving around as much as Rowan did. Never did, really. They were truly cut from different cloth. Must be their different mothers.
Why was Justin coming here? Why now? Rowan thought a different plan was in play. Something must have happened. She wished she knew more-like when he was going to show up.
And to top it all off, Rowan now knew that Mister Heart Stopping Sexy was a freaking PI. Of all guys to take notice to her, of all the men out there, why was she always attracted to the most dangerous of them? Dangerous for her heart, dangerous for her soul, and now dangerous for her safety.
Men. What a waste. Rowan rubbed her hands in her hair, trying to break her train of thought. Wishing for a different life was never going to solve the problem at hand. Sometimes late at night she allowed herself to wish. She wished so hard at times tears formed and wouldn’t stop. If only Colt had bigger balls. If only she had been born in Wisconsin, a normal girl with a normal, boring life.
“Ahhh!” Rowan jumped up. “Enough! This never helps. Move. Move. Get up. Do something. Focus. Find a new job and quit moping. Don’t go negative.” Rowan spoke the words to herself as if she was chastising a teenager.
She needed to go for a run. It was hot, but the heat would be good for her. She changed into running gear, grabbed her safety bag-you never know. Never let your guard down. Never quit watching the streets. That’s what she knew. That’s what pulled her through her panic attacks and her night terrors. Justin was safe. And even if he wasn’t, there was nothing she could do about it right now.
She glanced around her apartment. It was a mess; proof that she was getting sloppy. No way she could move fast enough with this mess, she was going to need to up her game. Damn Shane Adams and those distracting kids. No more. She couldn’t risk having an affair with him. He knew how to track people, he knew how to spot a liar. He knew too much about hiding things.
She might need to move just to get away from him. But right now she needed to go for a run. After filling her water bottle she locked the door and headed out and down the stairs, forcing herself not to look at Shane’s door. She didn’t want to know if they were there or not. She didn’t know when their parents were coming, but she knew it would be soon. She knew Shane would only be preoccupied for a few more days, and then he would come find her. She needed to be ready.
Stretching out her legs around the corner from the apartment building, her thoughts drifted back and forth between Shane and Colt. Why she felt the need to compare them, she didn’t know. Frustrated at her lack of control over her mind, she headed off. Holding back for the first few minutes, she didn’t want to start too hard and blow out her legs again. That took weeks to recover from last time.
Slipping into her mantra: Breathe. Run. Breathe. Run, she hit her stride about a half a mile in. Soon though, her thoughts went back to Colt. She could admit it now, if only just, he broke her heart. She bared her soul, shared her forbidden desires and her deepest fears and when the moment came, he failed her.
She never expected him to falter like that. His words still rang in her head. “I’m not like you. I need this too much. I can’t go with you.”
Rowan’s heart squeezed at the memory and she stumbled. Snapping back to the present, she looked around, taking inventory. No one following, no one approaching her. Back to the mantra. Breathe. Run. Breathe. Run.
Breathe and Run. That was what her life had become. Colt may have broken her heart, but she didn’t let it break her. She saved
Justin. She saved herself. Jolly would never get her now. Breathe. Run. That’s what she did; she took the time to breathe, and she ran.
Justin’s letter said she would see him soon. That meant they would be leaving again. She noticed she was almost at three and a half miles. Her legs were nice and warm and sweat covered her body; the wind she created cooled her as it brushed across her wet skin. Her shirt was sticking to her back and her hair was soaked at her neck.
This was bliss. Her bliss. No one could take this from her. No matter what, she would always be able to find this state. She remembered when she couldn’t run. Confined to such a small space, but still she managed to get here. Yoga saved her then, and running freed her now. She smiled at the memory of being able to outsmart Jolly with her yoga and meditations. Wasn’t it Gandhi who said, ‘You can control my body, but not my mind?’
Four and a half miles; one more to go. She was pushing now and went into a full sprint for the last half-mile. Breathing hard, her legs felt like jello. Her muscles were starting to scream and her lungs burned. All sensations she lived for. Reminders that she was alive. She was everything he didn’t want her to be.
At the five-mile mark, she slowed down and turned toward the apartment. She jogged another five minutes and ended right back where she started. Without thinking, she glanced over at Shane’s door. He was watching her from the window.
Rowan’s heart nearly stopped. She could see him from the street. Wearing nothing but shorts, she felt his body call to her even from here. Stopping to stretch, she tried to gain back some control over her breathing-not from the run, of course, but from the man behind the glass.
Would spending one night with him be so bad? Two nights? She didn’t have much time anyway, he wouldn’t have time to get attached. What did the teenagers call it, A Hook Up? Isn’t that why she escaped-to live? To not be afraid anymore? Why would she deny herself this? She knew how to run and hide. If she could run from Jolly, she could run from anyone.
Passionate Kisses 2 Boxed Set: Love in Bloom Page 113