She shook her head slowly. “Never.”
I made a sound as if I’d just won some tournament and lunged at her. She squealed when I scooped her up around the waist, lifting her off her feet and twirling her in a circle.
She wasn’t married. She was mine.
“Geez, you could show a little disappointment at my state of singlehood,” she muttered when I set her down.
The urge to kiss her was so strong. So strong I grabbed her around the waist again and pulled her to me. She ducked her head, her forehead brushing the front of my shirt.
Taking a deep breath, I let her go, went back, and dropped to the chair. “Come eat.” My voice was strained, but hey, I’d managed not to kiss her.
“I’m not hungry,” she mumbled.
“You just passed out because you haven’t been taking care of yourself,” I intoned.
Bellamy dropped into the chair and picked up her mug. “When did you get hurt?”
“About a year ago,” I said.
She nodded. “That’s right. You already said that.”
I’d repeat myself for you a thousand times.
“What did you hurt?” Her blue eyes were beautiful. Empathetic.
“Tore my ACL.”
She made a sound. “And you can’t snowboard anymore?”
“Not for the pros. I still do it around here. I teach some lessons.” I probably shouldn’t do that at all, but fuck that. This was my life.
“You really loved it.”
“I really did.”
We fell silent. Talking about my bum knee wasn’t fun.
“Liam?”
I made a sound.
“I’m really sorry to hear about this. It must have been hard.”
The knot in my chest didn’t feel good, so I tried to make light of it. “Not as hard as finding out you didn’t know about this, too.”
So much for thinking she’d come back for me.
She ducked her head. “It’s been a rough year.”
“What’s going on, Bellamy? I know there’s something.”
She set aside her mug. “I’m really tired.”
I wanted to push her. But I wouldn’t. The dark circles under eyes and the pallor of her skin warned me off.
Right now, her being here and rocking my shirt was more than enough. I got up and went to the bed, yanking down the blankets in one move.
“What are you doing?” She was cautious.
“In you go.” I pointed.
“I’ll walk you out.” She glanced between me and the door.
I laughed, shaking my head. “Subtle. I’m not leaving.”
“Well, you aren’t sleeping with me!” She planted her fisted hands on her hips.
I tried real hard not to smile. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
A little bit of hurt flashed in her eyes, and I was a bastard because I was glad for it. I wanted her to want me even just a fraction of the way I wanted her. I cleared my throat and added, “At least not tonight.”
Her eyes whipped up to mine.
This time I smiled, letting some of the desire and possessiveness shine through.
She ran for the bed and jumped in, pulling the covers nearly over her head. “You can see yourself out.”
I threw my head back and laughed.
Then I returned to my chair.
Making a noise, Bellamy sat up, pushing down some of the covers to glare. “What are you doing?”
“Staying ‘til you fall asleep.”
Her mouth opened. Closed. Opened again. “But why?”
“Because you want me to.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“You didn’t disagree.”
She fell back on the bed with a groan.
I grinned and settled my hands over my middle. “Go to sleep, Bells. I’ll watch over you.”
She rolled onto her side, gazing out the window above the table. “The snow here is prettier than anywhere I’ve ever seen.”
She was barely visible beneath the blankets. Time and again, my eyes would go back just to make sure she was still there.
The sound of her yawn filled the room.
I reached over and flipped off the light.
It wasn’t long before the her steady, even breathing filled my ears.
I sat in that uncomfortable chair until the sun began to lighten the sky. I’d doze on and off, only to wake to make sure she was still okay.
Eventually, I forced myself up, staring down at her while I stretched.
She looked so innocent. She said I’d hurt her. She’d hurt me.
I probably shouldn’t be here right now. I shouldn’t be thinking all these thoughts I’ve been having all night long.
I always did things I shouldn’t.
After tugging the blankets around her just a little bit farther I turned and left the room, silently shutting the door behind me. Before stepping away, I made sure the lock was definitely engaged.
I wasn’t even partway down the hallway when someone stepped out of one of the rooms in front of me. Instantly, I jerked to a halt, feeling I’d been caught doing something wrong.
It was stupid. I was a grown-ass man. I could do what I wanted.
I answered to no one.
And I didn’t even do nothin’!
Alex glanced over his shoulder. The second his eyes saw me, they widened and a huge grin broke out over his face. He made a show of looking me up and down.
“Same clothes. Rumpled. Bleary-eyed,” Alex listed, then snickered.
I glowered at him. Shoving his shoulder, I said, “Get moving.”
“Mr. No Girls Tonight is doing the walk of shame this morning,” he crooned.
I stopped abruptly.
Alex turned back. The look on my face erased the look on his. “Liam?”
“It’s not like that,” I snarled.
His piercing blue eyes widened. “Then what is it?”
My chest felt tight. Seeing her last night. Seeing her sleeping this morning… I shook my head. “Bellamy is here.”
“Bellamy…” Alex mused. “Why do I know that—” My best friend’s head whipped up. “Bellamy? As in the girl that got away Bellamy?”
My lip curled. “I hate it when you call her that.”
“Oh shit,” he said, part amusement, part shock.
I groaned. “I know.”
He retreated to where I was. In front of me, he leaned in, speaking low. “And last night you had a piece of that?”
My growl echoed along the hallway. I grabbed him up by the front of his wrinkled shirt. “What the fuck did you just say to me?”
“Whoa.” He held up his hands. “Too soon?”
I shoved him back, and he stumbled. “Get the fuck outta my face.”
“I’m kidding. You know I’m just kidding.”
“She’s not a joke.” I insisted.
“Yeah.” He nodded, smoothing out his shirt. “Yeah, I can see that.”
I started walking. As I went, I glanced over my shoulder to make sure she hadn’t somehow heard us. The hall was empty, and it kinda pissed me off. I’d been hoping to see her standing there.
“What’s she doing here?” Alex asked, falling into step beside me.
“I’m not sure yet,” I murmured, thinking about the way she looked last night. “But something’s up. She acted like she didn’t want to be here, but…”
“But?” Alex lifted a dark brow when I didn’t finish.
I glanced at my best friend, frowning. “It was sort of like she didn’t have a choice.”
“What’re you gonna do?”
“Something,” I muttered.
“Something,” he echoed.
I gave him a bland look. He shrugged.
When we got downstairs, I slapped him on the back. “You go. I have to make a stop before I head to my place.”
“Hey, L?” he asked.
I turned back.
“You know whatever you need, I’m here, right?”
“Yeah,
Alex. I know. Thanks, man.”
“Anytime,” he replied, then left the lodge.
I went to the front desk, picked up one of the phones, and dialed down to room service. “It’s Liam,” I said when they answered.
“What can I do for you this morning, Mr. Mattison?”
“Just Liam.” I corrected. I always did. Mr. Mattison was my father and it always would be.
The man cleared his throat. “Liam.”
“I need a pot of hot chocolate, some OJ, water, some flapjacks, eggs, and toast all sent up to room 440.”
“Right away, sir.”
“Charge it to me.”
“Liam?” he asked, as if he hadn’t heard.
“To me. Charge it to me.”
I felt his surprise. I’d never done anything like this before. I didn’t explain. I didn’t fucking have to.
“I’ll let the staff know this is priority.”
“Thank you,” I said, then replaced the phone.
On my way to my place, I glanced back at the lodge. Soon as I showered and changed, I’d be back.
Bellamy
The knocking on my door brought me out of a dead sleep.
Horrible memories assaulted me. My pulse sped up so fast I worried it actually might make my heart explode.
For a moment, I was disillusioned and unsure of where I was.
Then it all came back. BearPaw. My room. Liam.
Immediately, my eyes flew to where he’d been when I fell asleep. The chair was empty now, and an ache I didn’t care to acknowledge bloomed in my chest.
Another firm knock sounded on the door. Pressing a hand to my chest, I stumbled out of bed and went on unsteady legs toward it. There was a peephole, but I cowered away from it, afraid of what I might see.
The last time I had an unexpected visitor, he tried to kill me and I ended up a fugitive from my own life.
For the second time.
“Room service!” a woman called from the other side of the door.
I gripped the neck of my shirt. A familiar scent of pine and snow wrapped around me. Instinctively, I inhaled.
“I didn’t order room service,” I called out, suddenly a little braver than before.
There was a slight pause. “Liam Mattison called down and placed the order.”
Liam ordered me food?
Suspicion clouded over the desire to be warmed a little by the gesture.
“Leave it outside the door. Please,” I called out.
“Of course,” the woman replied.
A few moments went by, and I heard nothing. My eyes stayed latched on the door handle, expecting it to turn and open.
After I got tired of standing there, strung out, I crept closer and peeked into the peephole.
No one was there.
My palms were clammy when I undid the lock and cracked the door. There was a room service cart there, and the scent of pancakes floated to my nose. In a burst of movement, I pushed the door wide, grabbed the handle on the cart, and pulled it inside. The second the cart was fully in, I threw myself on the door and locked it up.
Wheeling the trolley over beside the bed, I dove beneath the covers and pulled them around my bare legs. The scent of breakfast made my stomach rumble, and I glanced at the plates dubiously. How did I know Liam was actually the one who sent this?
What if those men had found me? What if everything on that tray was poisoned?
The phone rang, and I nearly fell off the side of the mattress.
Groaning, I snatched the stupid thing up because it was loud and obnoxious. “Hello?”
“Did they deliver breakfast?” His voice was like a warm rush over my senses.
My scalp tingled, and I didn’t stop the smile that formed on my lips.
“Liam?”
“Are any other guys having room service delivered to you?”
“Umm…”
He growled into the line, and the tingles turned into a dull ache.
“You still wearing my shirt?”
I glanced down. I was indeed still wearing it. “Nope,” I said. “Took it off the second I got up. It’s itchy. And it smells.”
His rich chuckle made my eyes slide closed. “Liar.”
“You really sent me breakfast?”
“Pancakes, eggs, toast. OJ, hot chocolate… the works.” As he spoke, I leaned over and lifted a few of the lids. It was everything he said.
“That was…” I murmured, staring at the food, a little misty-eyed.
“Selfish,” he proclaimed.
“What?” I squeaked.
“Eat up, Bells. I’ll be back in a little while, and you’re coming with me.”
I made a sound of alarm. “I can’t go anywhere with you!”
“Why the hell not?”
I stuttered, unable to form one coherent argument.
He laughed low. “I’ll see you in a few.”
I sat there with the dial tone in my ear for a few moments before hanging it up. Now that I knew the food wasn’t sent here to kill me, I grabbed a fork, poured too much syrup on the pancakes, and pulled the plate into bed.
The remote was on the bedside table, so I switched on the flat-screen and found a news station. I wondered if perhaps any kind of reporting was being done about what happened at my apartment.
I ate almost all the pancakes, half the eggs, and drank some cocoa, and in that entire time, nothing was reported about me or anything going on in Chicago. I knew I was a long way from home, but this wasn’t local news. Hell, there was even a story from a small town past Chicago about a seeing eye dog!
I could view the lack of news coverage in two ways:
1. No one knew anything about my “disappearance.” Therefore, no one was looking for me, and my location here was unknown.
Or
2. No one cared enough to realize I was even missing.
I was going to go with number one. Hopefully, my quick escape and then no-hesitation to hop a train to the next town and then a bus here left a cold trail to follow.
Having enough of the news, I switched it to the cooking channel and watched it for a short while before dragging myself into the bathroom. Thank goodness there was a complimentary toothbrush with paste because my getaway bag of essentials was seriously lacking in dental hygiene.
I washed my face, put on some more lotion and lip balm, then pulled my hair out of the bun I’d tied it in before falling asleep. It was still damp in some places where it had been tucked under, so I pulled out the hairdryer and blasted the long, dark-blond strands for a few minutes while using the brush to smooth some of it out.
When I was done, I ran my fingers through it and felt satisfied it wasn’t a tangled mess, and it fell over my shoulders and down my back, slightly tousled.
I didn’t really want to take off Liam’s shirt. It wasn’t itchy. Or smelly. In fact, the fabric was that just-right, worn-in softness, and his scent was something I wished I could bottle. I tugged it off anyway, folded it neatly, and laid it on the end of the bed so I could return it.
The entire time I dressed, I thought about what had happened and what I was going to do.
The only thing I knew for sure was witness protection promised me safety and they failed. I thought maybe after a full night’s sleep, some food, and a hot shower, things would look a little clearer. Or at the very least, some inkling of a plan would be brewing in my mind.
I had nothing. Nothing but fear.
Another thought assailed me, one so formidable I sank down on the bed, my knuckles white from the way I squeezed my hands. What if the men who found me also found my mother?
What if, when they couldn’t find me, they went after her instead?
Tears came fast and slid over my cheeks silently. My crying had no sound. I barely even felt the wetness. I was too numb with terror.
I shouldn’t have run. I should have let that man shoot me in my kitchen. I’d be dead, and this whole thing would be over. My mother would be safe.
It was my fa
ult she was in this mess to begin with. If only I had listened to her…
A knock on my door made me shriek. Gah, I seriously needed to work on my jumpiness.
Pressing a hand to my chest, I yelled, “Who is it?”
“Liam.”
I scrubbed at my face, trying to get rid of the evidence of my tears. Blowing out a shaky breath, I glanced through the peephole. He smiled into it as if he knew I would look.
A little giggle escaped me, and I slapped my hand over my lips. This was no time to laugh! My life was in shambles, and my mother could be in danger.
I had no way of knowing… What have I done?
Unlatching the door, I began to pull it open. Liam surprised me by grabbing the edge and keeping it partly closed.
“What are you doing?” I worried.
“Warning you.”
The bottom fell out of my stomach. “Did they find me?” I worried. “Oh God, I should go.”
I started backing away from the door.
Liam cursed low and pushed it open all the way.
All at once, a flurry of movement and a burst of activity barged into my room. Liam moved fast, grabbing me around the waist, steadying me.
Seconds later, I understood why.
Deep barking filled the space. Automatically, I grabbed at Liam. His hands curled a little tighter around me, drawing me closer. “It’s just Charlie.”
Taking that as his introduction, a giant, hairy dog leapt on me. The sound of his nose sniffing away as though he were patting me down was so loud it was all I heard. My eyes widened as I took in the ginormous St. Bernard with brown ears and a black-and-white face. He looked just like that dog from the movie Beethoven.
“Use your manners, Charlie,” Liam told him.
The dog dropped down, but his body wiggled and his huge tail beat the air.
I laughed and let go of Liam instantly. “Look at you!” I said, kneeling to pet him.
“Watch it. He’s a walking slobber machine.” Liam chuckled and shut the door. The sound of the lock being thrown knocked my tension down a notch.
Charlie licked my chin with his giant, sloppy tongue, and I laughed. He had a huge, furry head, and my hands buried behind his ears to scratch. He made a loud groaning sound and sat down.
“Is this your dog?” I asked, glancing at Liam.
He was watching us with a soft expression, his lips tilted up just slightly.
“Yep. Charlie. Got him right after I moved home. He loves the snow as much as I do.”
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