When Love Comes Back

by Christi Snow

  “I’m sore, but I think it’s just bruising and sore muscles.”

  “Which is to be expected, but let’s do a thorough examination to make sure. What do you drive?”

  She winced. “Well, I used to drive a 2004 Dodge dually. I don’t think I’ll be driving it anymore after today.”

  The doctor nodded sagely. “Okay, now your condition is making more sense. Those old trucks didn’t have the best safety equipment like side airbags, but they made up for it in all-around durability. You were lucky.”

  As they’d been talking, he’d been slowly working down her body, checking her joints and movement. She winced when he got to her right knee. He gently pulled up her jeans leg to expose a large, black bruise on the inside of her knee.

  He lifted the joint and rotated it a few times. “I think this is probably just a bruise. The odds are good that your other knee has a matching one where your legs banged together. I’m going to order an x-ray just to make sure and a CT scan of your head.” He wrote something down in her file. “I think everything is okay, but I’d rather be safe so that you don’t have to come back in later tonight with an aggravated injury, because we didn’t catch something.”

  Felicia nodded. “Okay, that sounds good.”

  Since she didn’t seem to be too forthcoming with her history and possible complications, Gage said, “You should know, she took a blow to the head recently and was already dealing with a concussion.”

  “That I’m fully recovered from,” Felicia corrected.

  The doctor frowned and glanced back over her chart. “Hmm, no, that’s something I needed to know. When did this happen?”

  “A few weeks ago, and I’m fine now...from both the accident today and from the blow to the head then. Believe me, I’ve gone to medical school—”

  “Veterinary school, which does not qualify you to self-diagnose,” Gage interjected.

  Felicia glared at him.

  He raised his eyebrows in challenge. When it came to her safety, he had no intention of backing down.

  “No, he’s right,” the doctor said. “It’s important that we know that. Repeated concussions can have severe complications, so let’s see how quickly we can get you in for that CT scan.”

  “If you insist,” Felicia said on a sigh, but then she focused on Gage. “There’s no reason for you to stick around for this. Thanks, but I’m fine.”

  “If you think I’m leaving, then you took a harder blow to the head than any of us realize.” He swallowed, not wanting to say the next part, but knew he couldn’t ignore it. “Do you want me to call Steven?”

  Her gaze dropped to her lap, and she paled a bit more.

  Damn. He didn’t want her feeling guilty about what they’d done in Snowcroft.

  “No, we aren’t together anymore. Don’t call him.”

  His heart soared. After the events of this morning in the forest and now this news, he might actually have a chance with her, despite the fact she’d run off this morning. But first, they had to make sure she was okay.

  He nodded and kissed the top of her head. “Whatever you need, Doc.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Gage paced the floor of the ER in frustration and worry.

  Another two hours had passed by the time Felicia had gotten in for her tests and a technician had read the results. In the meantime, they’d both given their statements to the police. Felicia had been shocked to hear that the guy who’d hit her had probably been in the forest with them.

  The more Gage considered it, the more frightened he became for her safety. The guy who’d hit her had driven away, so this was officially a hit and run. Even if he wasn’t ninety-nine percent positive the car had been the same, it all seemed very fishy.

  In their first stroke of luck, all Felicia’s tests came back clear.

  “Okay.” The doctor glanced at Gage before turning to Felicia. He kept Gage in the discussion, which was probably good. Felicia had fallen asleep about thirty minutes ago, and Gage could see how difficult it was for her to awaken.

  “I’m going to let you go home,” the doctor said. “Everything is clear on the scans, but since you’ve had two knocks to the head in a short amount of time, I need your promise that someone will stay with you for the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours.”

  She nodded. “Sure. I’ll call my best friend, and he’ll come stay with me.”

  Gage squeezed her hand. “Doc, Austin said Billy would be up in the mountains this weekend.”

  She frowned and rubbed her temples.

  Gage looked worriedly at the doctor, who nodded. “She’s okay, but she’s still had a blow to the head and the headache to go with it. Between that and the excitement, she’s fine.” The doctor lowered his voice. “The confusion is to be expected, but that’s why I don’t want her alone.”

  Gage nodded. “Yeah, okay. She’ll come home with me. I can guarantee I’ll watch over her.”

  Felicia’s lips thinned. It was probably too much to hope that she was confused about what they’d been discussing, but he wasn’t that lucky.

  “Gage,” she said, “it’s been really sweet for you to sit with me, but I’m fine.”

  “No, no arguments. I want to. Let me help.”

  She started to shake her head, and he could guess part of her argument. She didn’t want to be alone with him, but that wouldn’t be an issue.

  He added, “It won’t just be you and me. Austin and London will be there, too.”

  As much as he wanted to be alone with her as much as possible, he could see the signs. He needed to handle her with a very careful touch or she’d run so far, he’d never have a chance. While he didn’t regret their actions in the forest this morning, it had probably been the wrong thing to do with her. He had to gain her trust first, and he was nowhere close to that. Yet.

  She closed her eyes. He wasn’t sure if she was that tired or just frustrated with him and what the day had brought. He’d guess she simply wanted some peace and quiet at this point, and he could understand that.

  “Think about it,” he urged. “You can come home with me. I’ll set you up in a big bed where you can rest your aching head. In between naps, I’m sure London can find you some of those cheesy rom-coms that you always loved so much. We can feed you, tuck you in, and keep the world quiet around you. Let us take care of you, just until you feel better.”

  Or longer if he had his way, but he’d fight that battle later. Until they figured out who had targeted her, Gage wasn’t letting her go anywhere by herself.

  “Okay,” Felicia relented, sounding more and more exhausted by the minute.

  “Good.” The doctor nodded, happy with what they’d decided. “Let me get the last of your paperwork filled out, and I’ll write you a scrip to help with the soreness. Tomorrow’s liable to be rough, but if any of your pain grows beyond just soreness, I want you right back in here so we can check to make sure we didn’t overlook something.”

  “I will,” Felicia said. “Thank you.”

  After they left the hospital, Gage drove them to the pharmacy around the corner. Felicia roused from where she’d been drowsing in the passenger seat and looked around confused.

  Gage said, “I’m just going to go fill your prescription real quick. The doctor said he called it in here. You want to stay in the car?”

  “No, I’ll come in.” She tried to sit up straight and winced in pain.

  “Felicia, just relax, honey. Let me do this for you. I can’t do much to help right now, so let me do this.”

  For a moment she met his gaze. Her eyes filled with tears, and she looked away with a slight nod. “Thanks.” Her voice cracked on the word, and it just about broke his heart.

  Damn, he wished he’d done...something. He should have seen the accident coming earlier, so he could have prevented it. Now, she was hurt...again. He hated this helpless feeling.

  He brushed a kiss across her cheek. She drew in a shaky breath.

  “I’ll be right back. Try to relax.�
�

  Inside, he gave Felicia’s name to the clerk and she said the pharmacist was working on it and that it would be another five to ten minutes. Gage took the time to call and take care of things on base.

  First on the agenda, he called the Security Forces commander. “Major Varnegus, this is Colonel Winston.”

  “Yes, sir. What can I do for you?”

  “I have a guest coming on base. She was in a car accident this morning, so I was wondering if you could arrange it so we could bypass the guest ID process. It’s Dr. Felicia Parks, the veterinarian who was part of the downtown investigation with AMXS.”

  “Yes, I remember, and that should be no problem. I’ll let my troops at the gate know, but...” The major hesitated.

  “Is there a problem?” Gage asked.

  “Um, no, sir, but I was under the impression she was Major Hardesty’s girlfriend, and I just saw him out on the running track. Is he aware that she’s been hurt?”

  It was too easy to forget what a small community an Air Force base was. “No, I don’t think so. From what I understand, they’ve broken up.”

  “Oh...okay. Well...” The major cleared his throat. “Okay then.”

  Over the phone line, Gage could hear the extremely intelligent security forces commander’s brain turning, wondering how Felicia had ended up with Gage after a car accident.

  He’d have to figure all that out later, though, because the pharmacist called Felicia’s name.

  “Thanks, Kurt. I have to go now. We’ll be coming through the gate in about ten minutes.”

  “I’ll let them know.”

  Getting Felicia back to his house was easy. She’d settled into a quiet, contemplative mood that he couldn’t read. She wasn’t sleeping, but she wasn’t talking, either.

  As they approached the gate, she asked, “Oh, god. I didn’t even think about this. What do I need?” She started grappling for her purse that the paramedics had grabbed from her truck.

  “It’s fine, Doc. I already called and let them know you’d be with me.” Gage rolled down his window to greet the gate guard.

  “Sir.” The guard glanced inside the car and nodded to Felicia. “Ma’am. Have a good day.”

  Gage returned the salute from the airman and pulled on through.

  “It’s weird to think of you like this,” Felicia said.

  He glanced over her in question. “Like what?”

  She waved her hand to encompass the base they drove through. “You’re in charge of all this. It’s pretty impressive, Gage.”

  “Impressive enough to get you to go out on a date with me?”

  She hissed in a surprised gasp.

  He internally winced. Too fast, idiot.

  But she totally shocked him when she glanced at him through her lashes. “Um, yeah, I think we could do that.”

  Everything lit up inside him like he’d just won the lottery. “Seriously? You’re saying yes?”

  She laughed tiredly. “Wasn’t that what you wanted me to say?”

  “Yes, but I didn’t think I had a chance in hell of that happening.” He really didn’t. He’d hoped, but...wow...

  She made a quiet humming sound in the back of her throat.

  FELICIA TRIED TO CALM the nerves jangling through her stomach as they passed through the guard gate on base. Just because she agreed to a date with Gage didn’t mean she’d made a lifetime commitment to him. But she couldn’t ignore that having him with her in the ER this morning had been a huge relief.

  Even more surprising, she hadn’t even thought about Steven until they’d just driven through the gate. She’d come on base with him many times before, so the gate wasn’t anything new, but the act just drove home how much her life had changed in the last twenty-four hours. No more Steven and now she was headed to his boss’s house. It felt too fast and like such a betrayal to him even if they were broken up now.

  But this morning had been scary. First the frightening wreck, and now she had to deal with the knowledge that someone had probably done it on purpose. Even if she were feeling one hundred percent, she wouldn’t want to go home alone. She was terrified.

  Someone out there wanted to hurt her.

  That was scary, but having Gage by her side somehow made it a little less so. The memories of the explosive sex still had her core clenching even through all the aches and pains of the wreck. The combination of the emotions of the morning meant she was willing to give him—them—a second chance.

  She could have died this morning, and she would have missed out on this. So many people didn’t get second chances. She couldn’t throw hers away.

  He pulled his Jeep into the circle drive in front of the biggest house in the neighborhood.

  She peered up at it. “I guess it pays to be the big boss, doesn’t it?”

  Gage laughed. “There are a few perks. One of the downsides, though, is that all your neighbors know you and aren’t shy about their interest.” He waved at a woman standing in her front yard across the street, talking to another man.

  “Ugh, I hadn’t even thought of that. They all work for you. Does that get awkward?”

  Shrugging, Gage opened his door. “I guess we’re about to see, aren’t we?”

  Felicia held in the groan as she opened her door, and it seemed like every portion of her body screamed in pain. She’d sat in the car maybe twenty, twenty-five minutes, and that had been long enough for her muscles to lock up. But the knowledge that Gage’s curious neighbors and coworkers were watching kept her spine straight and something resembling a smile on her face. Her head ached as well as everything else. It seemed like her body throbbed in time to her heartbeat, and she was more than ready for a real nap. Exhaustion pulled at her with every slow blink of her eyes.

  But luckily, Gage didn’t engage with his neighbors. He just waved and hollered across the driveway, “Thanks for the help, Kurt.”

  “No problem,” the man called back. “I hope you’re okay, Dr. Parks.”

  “Thank you.”

  Gage’s hand at the small of her back silently urged her toward the front door and saved her from having to say anything else. But before he even had a chance to reach for the knob, the door burst open.

  London gently pulled Felicia into the house. “Dad texted me from the hospital that you were in a car accident. Are you okay? Your head looks like it hurts.”

  Ralph came and greeted her with a wagging tail, too. Obviously, he recognized her, although Gage shooed him away.

  Felicia gave London a weak smile. The truth was her head—and every other part of her body—hurt so much right now, it felt like her eyeballs were about to start bleeding. But instead of voicing any of that, she said, “I’m fine. A bit sore, but they tell me I’ll survive.”

  Gage gave a sound of pain from behind her, his hand soothingly settled at the base of her spine, offering support if she needed it.

  She reached back for his hand. If she’d had to watch him crash in a vehicle, she didn’t think she could have handled it nearly as well as he had. She was so glad he’d been with her today. She squeezed his hand.

  London frowned and glanced at their entwined hands.

  Felicia would have yanked her hand out of Gage’s grasp, but he didn’t seem willing to let go of her.

  “What have you been cooking?” he asked London. “It smells amazing.”

  “I have Mom’s cheesy potato soup simmering on the stove. I didn’t know when you would want to eat...” She glanced questioningly at her dad.

  “Why don’t we ask Felicia?” His voice softened. “What are you feeling up for, Doc? Are you hungry? We could set up a tray so you could eat in bed.”

  “Yes. That. Honestly, I just want a bed.” Mild tremors had begun to flow down her spine and to her legs. If she wasn’t reclining soon, her fatigued muscles might just force the issue when they gave out on her.

  London seemed to drift away as Gage steered Felicia down a hallway to a small bedroom. The room was dark, but she couldn’t focus on anyt
hing but her destination—the bed. She sank to the mattress, all consciousness disappearing before her head hit the pillow.

  GAGE’S DICK HARDENED at the sight of Felicia in his bed. The fact made him feel like a creeper when she was so obviously in pain and exhausted. She hadn’t even managed to get her feet off the floor or her shoes removed before she’d fallen asleep. He just wanted to keep her safe and protected.

  He leaned over to unlace her hiking boots. It shouldn’t have been erotic, but he could smell her, she was in his bed, and those boots reminded him that a few hours ago, he had made love to her...a miracle he thought he’d never get to experience again.

  In the span of the last twenty-four hours, he’d begun to hope again, and believe that he could fix things between them. But someone had tried to kill her...again. He shuddered at memory of her truck rolling.

  He shouldn’t do it, but he couldn’t help himself. He just wanted to hold her for a moment. He slid into bed behind Felicia and gingerly wrapped his arms around her, inhaling her distinctive honeysuckle and mint scent lingering beneath the rubbing alcohol and antiseptic from the hospital.

  “I wouldn’t have been able to survive it if you’d been more seriously hurt today,” he whispered into her hair, the stress releasing a little from his shoulders just by saying the words. “I love you, Doc. No one is allowed to take you away from me.”

  He’d just gotten her back in his life again. He wouldn’t allow anyone to steal her from him. Not now. Not ever.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Gage startled awake and found himself staring into Felicia’s gorgeous, turquoise eyes. She’d been watching him while he slept, and he had no clue how much time had passed. He wished he could read her mind to know where her thoughts were pertaining to the two of them.

  This close, he could see the cute sprinkling of freckles across her nose that defied her forty-plus years. She was still so beautiful.

  “Hi,” he whispered.

  She gave him a small smile. “Morning, Sleeping Beauty.”