Kisses for the Billionaire: Promised Kiss (David and Carrie Book 1)

by M. G. Morgan

  “Do you want to come?” I said, glancing back over my shoulder at Aaron.

  “You go, I’m going to head back to Heather and let her know that he’s all right,” Aaron answered, lifting himself slowly to his feet.

  I watched him stride away down the hall and although he looked as he always did I could still see the tension in his shoulders. There was something he knew that he wasn’t telling me, and deep down I knew the reason for that was waiting for me in a private hospital room.

  * * *

  “Mr. Ashcroft, please get back into bed, you have to stay in overnight for observation.”

  I stepped into the room and the nurse who had called me was pleading with David.

  He stood on the other side of the bed, his legs beneath him unsteady as he fought to remove the drip from his arm.

  “David, what the hell are you doing?” I said, my voice halting him mid-action.

  He turned to face me, the expression on his face unreadable beneath the bruising.

  “I’m leaving. I don’t need to be here and I’m sure as hell not going to stay the night.”

  “You can’t leave, if they said you need to stay then it’s for a reason.”

  David shook his head and pulled the needle from his arm. He started to move away from the bed but the pain on his face created an ache in my chest.

  I hurried over to him, reaching out to grab his hand as he tried to cross the room to where his clothes sat across the back of a plastic chair.

  “David, please, you’re hurt. I don’t want you to get worse because you were too stubborn to admit to yourself the truth.”

  “The truth is that I need to get out of this place before I go stir crazy,” he said through gritted teeth.

  He grabbed his trousers and started to drag them on over the hospital gown. It parted at the side and I caught sight of some of the mottled bruising that trailed down over his ribcage.

  David heard my gasp and glanced up at me, his expression softening as he saw the tears glistening in my eyes.

  “What happened to you?” I said, my voice choked by the tears I tried to force down inside.

  “Some thugs jumped me, it was nothing.”

  I knew David well enough to know when he was lying to me, and whatever had happened to him wasn’t ‘nothing.’ They might have been thugs but something told me he knew exactly who they were and what they were really after.

  “You need to give a statement to the cops, they could have killed you,” I said, my gaze searching his.

  I wanted to know just how deep the lie went and I watched it flicker behind his eyes as he struggled to come up with something that would appease me.

  “They just wanted my money, nothing else. And I’m not dead; stupid, maybe, for going down there, but I’m fine. Just a little bruised.”

  “The doctors are concerned about concussion, Mr. Ashcroft. I really need to ask you to get back into bed.”

  I jumped at the sound of the nurse’s voice. I’d been so preoccupied by David and his injuries that I’d forgotten we weren’t alone.

  “Tell them I’m going home with my wife, I don’t have a concussion and if I start coughing up blood then I know my lung has been punctured and I’ll be sure to get back in here.”

  David sounded so calm and yet my mind whirled with the words he had just spoken. I knew if I were in his position he wouldn’t let my feet touch the floor, let alone actually get out of the bed.

  “David, your lung is punctured? Have you lost your mind? You can’t come home, what if something happened to you? What would I do, what would Jenson do, or the new baby do?” I said, my voice climbing with the panic I felt.

  He opened his mouth to answer me but I shook my head.

  “Don’t risk everything just to prove you’re tough, I need you in my life, not a memory of the man I love.”

  He stared down into my face, his expression conflicted. He wanted to go home and I couldn’t blame him, the thought of spending the night in hospital wasn’t a pleasant one. But if there was a possibility that he was as hurt as the nurse had suggested, then he needed to stay.

  “Fine, I’ll stay but only because I don’t want you to worry.”

  I smiled up at him but I knew it was a watery one and I simply didn’t have the energy to push any more emotion into it than I managed to muster.

  “Good, now get back into bed,” I urged, indicating for him to climb beneath the covers.

  Using my help he stepped out of his trousers and dropped them back on the chair before once more climbing into the bed. Every little movement caused him pain, and every time he winced I felt his pain as though it were my own.

  The nurse connected him back up to the drip and gave him a stern look before heading for the door.

  “When I come back, I want to find you resting,” she said. I knew from the tone of her voice that she considered me a distraction and part of me even wondered if she would find the nerve to ask me to leave.

  Yet I was the only one capable of convincing David to stay in the hospital. All of her pleading with him would never have worked.

  The door closed quietly behind her and silence crept in around us.

  “David, what happened out there? Who did this to you?”

  He kept his gaze trained on the snow-white bed sheets as he shook his head.

  “I told you, I don’t know. Probably just some gang looking for an easy mark.”

  “Don’t lie to me, I can’t stand it when you lie,” I answered, my voice low and fraught with emotion.

  David finally glanced up at me, the expression in his eyes one of desperation. He wanted to tell me, of that I was certain, but whatever had happened he was spooked and I knew he would do anything to try and protect me, Jenson, and our unborn child.

  If David believed lying to me was the best way to keep us all safe then I knew that was exactly what he would do.

  “I’m not lying, Carrie.”

  “If they were just after your money then why didn’t they take it? Why not take your wallet, and your watch? Hell, David, even your car. Why leave all of that behind but beat you almost half to death?”

  “I don’t know, I don’t have the answers.”

  “Yes you do, you have at least some of the answers and I want you to share them with me.”

  He reached out to me, his hand covering mine. I contemplated pulling away from him but I wanted his touch, craved it. And after watching him come home as hurt as he was, after thinking that I might lose him…

  I wrapped my fingers around his and squeezed his hand tight.

  “You know if I could, I would, but you need to trust me. This is not something I want you involved with.”

  “David, keeping secrets from me in the past has never worked, why do you think it will work now?”

  “I promise that when I can tell you, I will. Until then, please just trust me.”

  There was such pleading in his voice that I found myself nodding in agreement. I wanted to know the truth, I wanted to get to the bottom of what was going on. And I wanted whoever had done this to David to be punished for it.

  But I trusted him, and if he said he would tell me once the time was right then I knew he would.

  “Fine, but I’m not happy about it.”

  He grinned back at me as he drew my hand up to his lips and pressed a soft kiss against my palm.

  “I wouldn’t expect you to be happy about it but I’m glad you trust me.”

  “I’ve always trusted you, with everything,” I said, brushing my thumb against his cheek.

  “I know, and I’m sorry for last night. I shouldn’t have stormed off…”

  With a shake of my head I cut him off. “That’s something to discuss once you’ve recovered. I don’t want there to be any barriers between us but with everything that has happened with Rachel, your father, and Richard, we never really had the time to explore our boundaries. I think we need time to find our own baseline.”

  David nodded and the look in his eyes
darkened in response to my words.

  “What did you have in mind for this exploration?”

  “When you’ve recovered we can make some plans…”

  David’s grip tightened on my hand and he tugged me closer to the bed. He used his free hand to trace his thumb across my bottom lip and I could see the hunger in his eyes.

  “I think I’m plenty recovered now,” he whispered, the intensity in his gaze scorching along my skin, reminding me of the things he could do to me, the things he would do to me.

  I pulled against his grip, I didn’t put much effort into it, just enough to make him work to hold me close. Pain flashed through his eyes and he winced.

  “In your head you might be fit for it but your body says otherwise. And when we do this I don’t want anything to interfere, so until you’re fully recovered you’re just going to have to wait.”

  I smiled down at him and stopped fighting the hold he had on me.

  “What is going on in here? I thought I said I wanted you to rest?” The shrill sound of the nurses voice cut through the moment and David and I sprang apart like naughty schoolchildren.

  She strode into the room and the look she gave me was far from friendly.

  “Mr. Ashcroft needs his rest, he doesn’t need someone bothering him.”

  Anger spread up through my chest and I fought the urge to completely lose my temper. David still held my hand and as though he could feel what I was feeling he squeezed my fingers tight.

  “Don’t blame Carrie for something that was my fault, I thought I could do more than I’m capable at the moment and…”

  “Mr. Ashcroft, I admire your attempt at protecting your wife, but really, it’s getting late and you need your rest. I think things would run much more smoothly if Mrs. Ashcroft would leave you to sleep. She’s welcome to come back in the morning.”

  “This is a private room?” David asked, a thin-lipped smile on his face.

  “Yes, of course…”

  “And I’m not so injured that I couldn’t discharge myself any time I like?” he said.

  “Yes, but…”

  “Then Carrie will leave when she’s ready and not a moment before it.”

  She opened her mouth as though she was going to argue but the look on David’s face changed her mind and she nodded before withdrawing from the room.

  “David, that was rude. She’s right, I’m just distracting you from getting your rest…” I said as I pushed to my feet but David’s grip on my hand tightened and I paused.

  “Don’t go yet, Carrie. Just stay a little longer.”

  The expression on his face reminded me of the vulnerability he had shown me the night before and it wasn’t something I could just ignore.

  “Fine, I’ll stay until you fall asleep,” I said, eliciting a smile from David.

  He settled back against the pillows and I watched him pretend to close his eyes and sleep but I knew from his breathing that he was still awake.

  The more I watched him pretend to sleep the more I felt my own weariness catch up with me.

  Holding his hand, the warmth of the hospital room surrounding me lulled me off and the last thing I heard was the sound of David’s voice as he whispered, “I love you.”

  Chapter 9

  “Carrie.” David’s voice filtered down through the haze of sleep that had invaded my brain.

  “Sweetheart, it’s time to wake up,” he said again.

  “Not yet…” I mumbled, attempting to shift my position, but there was no space to move to.

  Opening my eyes, I stared around at my unfamiliar surroundings, the pristine white walls almost blinding beneath the glare of the overhead lighting.

  Where the hell was I?

  My brain shuffled through the memories of the day before, the panic returning as I remembered how hurt David had been.

  He stepped into view, fully dressed and a bright smile on his bruised face.

  “I fell asleep,” I said, fighting to straighten up in the armchair next to the bed.

  “I know I should have woken you, told you to go home but you honestly looked so peaceful. I didn’t want to disturb you,” he said, leaning down to plant a kiss on my forehead.

  He pressed a hot cup of coffee into my hand, the smell wafting up to make my mouth water.

  “You’re dressed and you got coffee?” I said, eyeing him as I lifted the cup to my lips and took a small sip of the scalding liquid.

  It trickled down the back of my throat and my stomach rumbled in response. It had been far too long since I’d eaten and I knew if I didn’t get something soon I would pay the price.

  “I want to get home. You know how I feel about hospitals.” As though to emphasise his point he wrinkled his nose in distaste.

  I nodded and took another mouthful of the foamy coffee.

  “What has the doctor said?”

  “I can go, but if I start to feel unwell I need to come straight back in.”

  “I can’t believe you let me sleep through all of that,” I said, setting the coffee down so I could push up from the armchair.

  “You looked…,” David started to say but I couldn’t really hear him and the words I could make out didn’t make any sense.

  The world rushed around me, the sound growing louder in my ears as the darkness crowded into my vision. Everything closed down to a small tunnel of vision and I fought to hold onto it.

  I’d been pregnant before and the blood sugar rushes were nothing new. Whilst carrying Jenson I’d done my share of passing out, but this was the first real turn with this baby and I was determined not to let it become anything more than just a severe head rush.

  The feel of David’s body against mine helped to ground me. I clung to him, his solid mass the only thing I could be sure of in a world of streaming colour.

  “Carrie, what’s wrong?” he asked, his voice growing stronger as the darkness started to recede.

  “I’m fine, I just need to eat something…” I said, my own voice sounding weak and pathetic to my ears.

  “I should have brought you something, I can have Marcus run and get you a muffin or…” He trailed off and shot me a hard look. “When did you last eat?”

  I shrugged and dropped back into the armchair, my legs were like jelly and having something solid beneath my body was a relief. At least if I was in the armchair and I passed out properly I wouldn’t fall and hurt the baby.

  “Carrie, for God’s sake you’re pregnant, you need to eat. You remember what it was like when you were carrying Jenson.”

  He crouched down in front of me, his stern and unyielding expression sending my anger soaring.

  “You think I don’t know that? I also know that you disappeared for a whole night and I couldn’t get in contact with you. Forgive me for forgetting a meal or two because I was worried.”

  David’s expression instantly softened and he took my hand in his.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to sound so harsh, it’s just watching you almost pass out on me and after what happened the other night… I panicked.”

  “The other night wasn’t anything like this. I just need to eat something and I’ll be fine.” I smiled at him despite the fact that my head was beginning to pound.

  “Wait here,” he said and disappeared from the room. He returned a moment later carrying a banana and what looked to be a blueberry muffin.

  “Where did you get them?” I asked as he handed the muffin over and began peeling the banana.

  “One of the nurses brought it in for break, I told her what had happened and she agreed to share.” He grinned before pushing the piece of fruit into my hands. “Now eat so we can get out of here.”

  I didn’t argue with him.

  “So what is she going to do at break time?” I said, taking a bite of the soft sweet fruit.

  David’s grin widened. “One good deed deserves another. I’ve sent Marcus to sort it out, but suffice to say she won’t go hungry.”

  The more I ate the more the pounding h
eadache started to abate and as I finished up the last of the muffin it was almost completely gone.

  David sat on the side of the bed, his intelligent gaze watching me like a hawk.

  “How are you feeling?”

  “Better, we should probably go.”

  He nodded and held his hand out towards me. I took it gratefully, the feel of his strong grip around my fingers bringing me the security that only David could.

  Climbing to my feet I waited for the dizzy feeling to wash over me but it was gone.

  David’s arms slid around my waist, drawing me in against his body, and I went to him willingly.

  “I’m supposed to be the one looking after you,” I said, wrapping my arms up around his neck.

  “As long as I’m around it will always be my job to mind and protect you,” he answered, lowering his face to mine and pressing a soft kiss against my lips.

  I melted into him, the kiss slowly growing like the first tentative flickers of a flame. David’s hand slid up around my neck, his fingers tangling into my hair as he deepened the kiss.

  A groan escaped his lips, the sound reverberating against my body as he slowly released me.

  “The things I want to do to you…” he said, his voice hoarse.

  “We’ll have time when you’ve recovered.” I grinned, and gently brushed my fingers up over the side of his face.

  “I’m not sure I want to wait that long,” he grumbled and I couldn’t stop the laughter that escaped me.

  It was so typical of David, always so impatient. It was one of the many things I loved about him and it was one of the reasons we were together.

  It had been his impatience to claim me that had saved me from my ex, Richard, along with his inability to take no for an answer.

  “Let’s go home,” I said, taking his hand and starting towards the door.

  Chapter 10

  The drive back to the house was uneventful but as the car pulled into the drive I spotted the police car parked out front.

  “They’re going to want a statement,” I said, turning to David.

  His expression hardened and the same flicker of deceit that I had seen in his eyes the night before was back.