Kitty held up a hand to stop them. “Wait. So you’re telling me that you are arguing with us about something you know nothing about? You shouldn’t even be a part of this discussion.” They hit a pretty deep rut in the road, bouncing them all in their seats and drawing a whimper from Lynn and a curse from Kitty, who clutched her side.
“I’m sorry!” Liam exclaimed. “Are you guys okay?”
“Fine,” Kitty gritted out. “Let’s just get to this clinic of yours.”
When they finally pulled in, Mason came rushing out the double doors, nearly tearing the door from the SUV in his haste to get to Kitty, who batted him away. She was wrapped in a blanket, toga style, and Jag sensed her refusal for assistance was more of a pride thing.
A gurney was brought out, and Jag carefully placed Lynn on her side before raising the rails and allowing the staff to wheel her inside. He followed right behind her and into a large room where Kitty was already on a bed, with both Liam and Mason flanking her.
When Dr. Lewis entered, all eyes landed on him as he looked quickly between the two females whose bandages had been removed. “My assistant can remove the bullet from Ms. Kitty, but I need to tend to Lynn. She’s been tutoring me on the ways to treat humans, and she will require many stitches from the looks of things.”
The next twenty minutes were a blur of nurses and techs swarming around both women, starting IV fluids, cleaning their wounds and forcing all the men from the room. Jag, Mason and Liam wore a path in the hallway as they walked to dispel their nervous energy.
Lynn had been given a dose of pain meds, and a mild sedative to keep her calm and still while her back was tended. Kitty had vehemently refused any drugs, claiming she wanted to remain fully in control of her mind and body at all times. All three of them came to a halt when shouting began inside.
“Just give me the damn instrument if you’re too scared to pull out the bullet yourself. I’m not going to bite or maim you for helping me, but I want this out, like yesterday,” Kitty shouted.
“And I’d feel safer if you would allow us to give you some pain meds or a sedative. After what you’ve been through, a little rest would do you good,” the nurse argued.
“I’ll heal just fine,” Kitty snarled. “Now, pull it out or hand those things over and I’ll do it myself.”
Liam stared at the door, a lethal expression on his face. He was clearly upset at what he was hearing, but which part?
“Just pull the damn thing out already!” he bellowed.
The room beyond went silent until they heard a small ping, signaling the bullet being dropped into the metal bowl. A relieved sigh came next, no doubt from Kitty. Several of the nurses left the room soon after but shook their heads when the men asked it go in.
It was another hour before they were allowed back inside. Lynn was now cleaned up, her blonde hair back to its golden glory, all the dirt and blood gone. Her face was lax and peaceful as she slept, though her back and wrists were adorned with white gauze. Jag pulled up a chair and sank into it before lowering his face to hers and planting a kiss on her forehead. Just the sight of her there was enough to calm and anger his jaguar all at once.
Although the rogues were now gone from their lives, the question was, were there more? Surely those three hadn’t been the only ones left, and the thought had his cat pushing to get out. He ached to annihilate every last one of those bastards, to ensure they could never threaten his mate again.
“Calm down there, killer,” Kitty teased from beside him. “We’re all good, and they’re gone.”
“How did you know that’s what I was thinking about?”
“Because I’m brilliant? Please, you couldn’t have been thinking of much else.”
Of course, she was right. “So what do you plan to do now?”
“Right now? I’m starving. I need food and something to drink, but hospital food is just gross, I don’t care what anyone says.”
Suddenly, Mason and Liam were there and asking what she would like, both determined to be the one to get it for her. Kitty frowned, obviously as confused by their behavior as Jag was, but she replied with her order. Both men took off, leaving them alone in the room with a sleeping Lynn.
“Yeah, that wasn’t weird or anything.”
Jag chuckled. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say they both have the hots for you.”
“Nah, not Mason. He’s just feeling guilty. For some reason, the crazy fool thinks he can protect me from everything. Liam? I can’t even deal with him right now.”
Interesting, Jag thought. “Well, if you ever want get away and stay off the grid for a bit, you’re welcome to use my home. I plan to move in with Lynn, so I won’t be there anymore.”
Her eyes widened, her face registering her surprise at his offer. “Uh, thank you. Shouldn’t you sell it though? If you’re moving in with Lynn, you don’t need two homes.”
“Who wants to live in a cave? I made it myself, furnished it too, but there’s no power. I have plenty of crank lanterns and solar powered lamps though. Oh, and there’s a hot spring in a cavern towards the back. It’s huge in case you ever felt like…letting go.” He knew she understood what he was saying when she grinned. Now that he was paying closer attention, he noticed the black-and-white streaks in her hair had some gold and red with them too, though they were subtle, as if maybe she’d tried to color over it.
“I appreciate you not saying anything.”
“Not a problem. I owe you that and much more for saving Lynn.”
“She’s my friend. I don’t have many, and I wasn’t about to let them hurt her again. I just wish I could have gotten to her before they used that fucked-up whip.”
“Lynn’s alive because of you. That’s enough.” Jag sighed. “As much as I hate that they got hold of her in the first place, I’m just happy she didn’t suffer worse.” He paused for a moment, unsure whether Kitty would know the answer to the question that had plagued him since she’d been taken. “Kitty, do you know… I mean, they had you both stripped down. Did they at any point…you know…”
“Not even close. They seemed to get their jollies from causing pain, so rest easy. Lynn was never violated in that way. I think her being human saved her from that too, since they are so anti-human.” Kitty shifted in her seat grumbling, “And they called me a freak.”
“Thank God. She already suffered nightmares from the attack here at the clinic. I can only imagine what it will be like for her now. It’s killing me there are demons haunting her that I can’t fight off. All I can do is hold her and coax her out of that dark place, but I can’t prevent it from sucking her back down as soon as her eyes close.”
“She’s lucky to have someone like you. I’m not really at a point in my life where I can afford to have a mate, maybe, I never will be, but the two of you are good together. Just keep loving her, and eventually, it will drown out everything else.”
Jag watched as Kitty crossed the room to rummage through a cabinet before pulling out a set of scrubs much like the ones he wore. “Going somewhere? You should rest up while you’re healing. You lost quite a bit of blood.”
“I know my limitations. With my animal comes some pretty sweet perks. One day, I’ll tell you about them. Lynn knows some of it, but I barely scratched the surface. She doesn’t know about my animal though. It’s just you and me.”
Cocking his head, Jag asked, “Will you ever tell Lynn? I think it might help to alleviate some of her nightmares. After all, you did throw a severed leg at her just before she passed out.”
Kitty winced and hunched her shoulders. “I didn’t mean to. How did you know that anyway?”
“They had propped up her phone, hoping to make me watch you eat her while they escaped.”
“Well, shit.” Kitty plopped down on the gurney she’d originally been placed on.
“I think it would help to know you were on her side the whole time. Might prevent any nightmares about that part of the ordeal.”
Nodding, Kitty stood again. “I’ll stop by
in a few days, once she’s home and settled. If you need me before then, just call me at the bar. Mason will make sure I get your calls.”
“I’ll have the key ready for you when you come.”
“Oh, and please tell Liam to stay away from me.”
The request had Jag frowning. “Do you two know each other?”
“Nope, just met him at the warehouse, but I don’t want him near me.”
Clearly, she wasn’t in the mood to offer up any more of an explanation, so Jag agreed. He wasn’t looking forward to the conversation, but he’d do it. “And who will keep him from approaching you once you leave here?”
“Oh, I’m leaving right now. Mason will keep him away from the bar, after I tell him I don’t want Liam around. There aren’t many shifters foolish enough to cross Mason.” Pulling the privacy curtain between them, Jag heard the rustling of fabric as she quickly donned her borrowed clothes. “I’ll wash these and send them back.”
“Don’t worry about it. They have plenty.”
She stepped back into the room, gazing down at Lynn for a few seconds before looking to Jag again. “I better scoot out of here before they get back with the food.”
Her belly grumbled, and Jag laughed. “You do need to eat.”
“I did, but scumbag doesn’t really agree with my delicate system,” she smirked before sauntering out of the room and right up to the enforcer in the hall. “I need a ride back to Mason’s Jar Bar. I want to go home and rest in my own bed. Jag is calling Mason to let him know I’ll be there.”
Without hesitation, the man replied, “Absolutely, right this way.”
Lord, that woman would be a handful for whoever she ended up mating with, that was for sure, and if his hunch was correct, Liam would be that man.
Making himself comfortable, Jag settled in next to Lynn, resting his head beside hers on the pillow. She gave a little sigh in her sleep, and Jag wondered if she felt him there with her.
It wasn’t long before the stress of the day caught up to him, and he dozed right along with her.
* * * *
Lynn woke to the sound of a baby babbling happily. Cracking her eyes, she saw Samantha and little Eli sitting next to her hospital bed. “Hi, guys.”
“Hey, yourself. How are you feeling?” Samantha asked, settling Eli in his stroller and handing him a small toy, which went right in his mouth.
“I need to pee pretty bad,” she admitted, feeling her cheeks flush.
Samantha laughed. “With as much fluids as they’ve pumped into you, I’m not surprised. Come on, I’ll help you into the bathroom.”
Knowing her back was likely full of stitches, Lynn braced herself for the pain the movement would bring, but found herself shocked when it was merely a twinge—more of a pulling sensation really and probably from the stitches. How was that possible? “Why don’t I hurt? My back should be killing me, but it’s not bad at all.” Accepting Samantha’s outstretched hand, she rose, expecting to be a bit wobbly, but found herself pretty steady considering.
“Oh, I almost forgot. Kitty smeared some of her blood onto your cuts just before you were rescued. She told them it would help you heal and prevent your back from getting infected.” Lynn gave her a startled look, prompting her to explain, “She was shot. When they got in there she was next to you and didn’t open her eyes until Jag approached. She’d used her blood to slow your bleeding. The rogues used silver bullets, and one was still in her, so she was bleeding when you guys got to the clinic, but your cuts had nearly stopped.” Samantha pointed to the corner near the door, and Lynn spotted a sleek, black jaguar curled up, asleep. “He’s been here the whole time. Refuses to leave for anything. We’ve been bringing him food and clothes, but Dylan told me when a shifter’s stress gets to a certain level, it’s just easier to be in animal form.”
“How long have I been out?”
“About eighteen hours, off and on. A couple times, you woke for a few minutes and talked to Jag then fell right back asleep. I think the doc was a little too generous with your pain meds.”
“I don’t remember talking to anyone at all,” Lynn replied.
“Well, that’s a shame, because you promised Jag all kinds of kinky rewards for saving you.”
Lynn’s mouth fell open in shock. She sincerely hoped they’d been alone if she had said anything like that, but if Sam knew, apparently she hadn’t been too concerned with modesty at the time.
“You dork!” Sam shook her head, grinning like a jackass. “I’m just messing with you.”
“If my bladder wasn’t about to burst, I’d throttle you,” Lynn laughed, rushing into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her.
Once she’d relieved her most pressing issue, she washed her hands then paused when she glimpsed her reflection. Her hair was clean and had been brushed. Her face still sported a bruise along her jaw, but it was fading. Untying her gown, she let it float to the floor as she turned to peer at her back.
Bandages covered much of what she could see in the small mirror, but she managed to grab hold of the tape. After a few yanks, the biggest bandage fell away, revealing a crisscross design of cuts now stitched shut along with wide bruised stripes from the belt. From behind, she now resembled Frankenstein’s monster.
All the times Jag looked at her with awe in his eyes, calling her beautiful as if it were her name, and now she looked like this? Lynn had grown to resent her looks over the years due to all the unwanted male attention they came with, but now that she’d seen what was left, she wondered if she’d ever see him gazing at her like that again.
Everything from the past few days crashed back down on her like a giant tidal wave. The trashing of her car and assault on Kitty, the attempted poisoning at her office, the attack at her home that had left Jag paralyzed on the ground as the rogue had kicked him before taking her and Kitty away. Waking up chained, being beaten with a belt, their narrow escape only to be caught again…and that damn whip. All of the emotions from these situations built up inside her. After all of it, the rogues had succeeded in ruining one aspect of her life. Jag would surely never look at her the same way now.
Perhaps, that was the real reason he was in his animal form, so she wouldn’t register the disgust on his face when he saw her. The thought caused a sob to bubble up, followed by another then another, leaving her curled up and crying on the bathroom floor. What did she care what others thought of her anymore? After everything she’d been through, she was entitled to a breakdown.
The door eased open, but Lynn refused to remove her hands from her face. There was no use in trying to stop. Her mental state needed this, needed to expel all of her hurts, frustrations, stresses, pains and fears.
She fully expected Sam to sit there and offer her silent support, as she did any other time Lynn broke down. When a large, warm body spooned up behind her, muscular arms wrapping around her, the floodgates broke.
He was there, his naked body pressed against hers. “Please don’t go,” she whispered, unable to bear the thought.
Placing an open-mouthed kiss on her neck, Jag moved up, his breath tickling her ear. “The only way I’d leave you is if I die. You’re stuck with me, beautiful.”
Another gut-wrenching sob exploded from her. “Don’t call me that anymore.”
Suddenly, he stilled behind her. “Why?” One word, though the way he said it made her shiver. He sounded angry.
“I’ve seen myself, Jag. I’m going to be scarred now. I’ll never look like I used too. I look like a monster now.”
“So are you saying my scars make me look like a monster in your eyes?”
His question startled her. Yes, he had some scars as well, but she never really noticed them. He was just, Jag. “Of course not!”
“Then why would you say that about yourself? I’m not so shallow that I’m attracted to your looks alone. You are beautiful, but more importantly, you possess an inner beauty that shines through in everything you do.” Snuggling closer, he brushed his knuckles along the
side of her neck. “I love you. You are my heart, Lynn. Without a doubt, you are the other half of my soul, my true mate, and I will cherish you—every part of you—until my dying day. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
She understood perfectly. What she didn’t get was how she could be so blind. They were meant for each other. Of course, the depth of his feelings would match her own. “I love you so much,” she sobbed. “I’m so sorry I doubted you. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“Hey, hush now. You’ve been through so much. Don’t think about it another minute.”
Lynn lay there on the cold linoleum floor, with Jag’s arms around her, and finally relaxed. However, with the calm came the exhaustion. As a medical professional she understood her current state was a combination of the aftereffects of her ordeal and the medications she’d been given afterwards. Right now though, she was feeling a little chilled.
“Jag?”
“Yes?”
“Will you take me to bed? I don’t want to be alone, but I’m afraid I’ll fall asleep in no time. I’d rather not do it on the bathroom floor.”
Chuckling, Jag slowly pulled away and rose. “I didn’t hurt your back did I?”
“Not at all. It’s not very painful, actually.” A fact that still amazed her.
“It must have something to do with Kitty’s blood. Dr. Lewis was even surprised at how the bleeding had almost stopped by the time we arrived. He said you would have been in a much worse state if she hadn’t thought to do that.” Jag reached down and gently pulled Lynn to her feet. Cracking the bathroom door, he peered out then signaled to her they were alone. “Let’s get you warm and properly cuddled.”
That adorable lopsided grin of his nearly did her in. “You climb in first. I want to rest my head over your heart. The sound has the power to lull me to sleep like nothing else.”
His eyes softened, and there was the look she’d foolishly thought to never see again. Climbing in beside him, Lynn tucked herself into the crook of his arm, her cheek to his chest and pulled the blanket over them both.
Here in his arms, the world just melted away, leaving the two of them in their own little bubble, a place Lynn was content to stay in forever.
Guarding His Heart Page 17