Dear God, the kiss was everything she’d ever dreamed of. It was perfect. It was heaven.
And it was over way too quick.
Charlie had only just started to kiss Bowie back in earnest when he pulled back. Not much, but just enough so that she couldn’t reach his lips. His forehead still rested on hers, his hands still clutched at her like he was afraid to let go.
Charlie’s eyes popped open, and she saw that Bowie’s were still closed. Not just closed, but clenched tight. His lips were slightly parted…and trembling. She would have sworn it was taking every ounce of willpower for him to stop.
Her mind was flooded with questions. She started with the most important.
“What the hell was that?” she asked, her voice a crackly whisper.
“I think we’re all wondering the same thing.”
Charlie froze at the sound of Trevor’s voice. He was close. Right behind her. Cold fear rushed through her veins. But it didn’t last long.
It was quickly replaced by crushing disappointment.
So, that’s what Bowie’s kiss was all about. There was no primal connection between them. No magnetic pull. Well, at least not on Bowie’s side.
He’d simply seen Bishop coming in through the door, and made it look like they were a real couple.
She didn’t know why Bowie bothered. From where she was sitting it seemed that Bishop had already called them on their bluff. But apparently Bowie wasn’t ready to show their hand just yet.
Fine.
She might not like his plan, but she’d go along with it. Even if there was nothing she’d like to do more right now than swing around and clock Trevor in the head with the metal tray.
Charlie let out a long breath at the fantasy. “What are you doing here, Trevor?”
“He was kind enough to give me a ride here after Bowie called,” her mother’s voice joined in.
Her mother? Charlie spun around, and, sure enough, there was her mom standing by Trevor’s side. Charlie’s blood turned to ice.
So, that’s how the bastard had gotten back here. Every part of her wanted to scream a warning to her mother to get away from the murderous son of a bitch. But she couldn’t. She’d only put her mom in more danger by making a scene.
Hell, now that Charlie knew what Trevor was capable of, she might be putting the whole hospital in danger. She didn’t want to guess just how deep his depravity went.
Bowie took a step back as her mother rounded the gurney. Charlie hadn’t seen her looking this upset since the last time she’d come to the hospital to visit her.
“This is the second time that silly job of yours has landed you in the hospital.”
“Mom, this didn’t have anything to do with my job.” She didn’t like telling such a bald-faced lie, but there was no way around it. Charlie could practically feel Trevor’s eyes on the back of her neck. “It could have happened anywhere.”
“But it didn’t happen somewhere else,” her mother countered. “It happened at your office. That can’t be coincidence.”
“Your mother’s right.” Trevor’s cold voice sent shivers up her spine. “When you do dangerous work, there’s always the chance that dangerous men will come after you.”
Charlie’s jaw tightened at his words. Was he threatening her…or gloating? She refused to check his expression.
“Even if this was about my job—which it wasn’t—I’m not about to quit,” Charlie said, forcing herself to square her shoulders and put on a brave mask. “My work is important.”
“More important than your life?” her mother chided. “You could have been killed tonight.”
“But I wasn’t,” she said. “Bowie took care of the guys that attacked us.”
Charlie looked over at Bowie. He was standing a few steps away, his back to the curtain. His big arms were crossed over his chest, making him look like a goddamned immovable wall. But he didn’t seem to be paying any attention to a single word she was saying. His eyes were firmly fixed on the bastard behind her.
“Yes, that was lucky,” Trevor said, coming closer. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe this was a random mugging. After all, anyone who has done their homework would have known that Mr. Tamatoa could easily take out three closely grouped attackers.”
“What are you suggesting?” Bowie asked, his gaze growing colder. “That this attack was a warning?”
“I’m not suggesting anything,” Trevor said, his voice thick with smug laughter. “I’m only guessing. You know, like you are.”
“Of course,” Bowie said. His arms tightened across his chest. His biceps bulged even farther. “Well, then I guess that whoever orchestrated this warning will live to regret it.”
“Is that right?”
Bowie nodded. A dark smile twisted his lips. “Anyone who’s done their homework on me knows that I’m more than capable of ripping them in half with my bare hands once I get them alone.”
A second of silence fell over her little section of the ER. Some of the frat boy swagger drained from Trevor’s face. Charlie couldn’t help but feel a wave of satisfaction.
But it didn’t last long.
“You’re forgetting something,” Trevor said, no longer bothering to hide the malice in his voice. “Let’s say you do get this mastermind alone. Who will be there to protect Charlie from the next wave of gunmen?”
Charlie swallowed hard.
Apparently, she wasn’t the only one that didn’t like the image that popped up in her head. Her mother threw her hands up.
“That’s enough, you two,” she said. “Can’t you see that you’re upsetting Charlene with these wild scenarios. She’s been through enough without all these wild what ifs?”
Bowie tightened his jaw and lifted his chin.
“Mrs. Keswick is right about one thing,” Trevor said. “This talk isn’t helping Charlie.”
“Since when do you call me Charlie?” she asked.
A cold smile twisted his lips. “Isn’t that what your friends call you?”
Her lips tightened. Trevor wasn’t her friend…and he knew it. He was taunting her. Pushing her buttons. Seeing how she’d react.
Before, back at the office, she hadn’t been surprised to hear that Trevor was a killer. Not really. She’d just figured that it had been his love of power that had turned him into one, but now she wasn’t so sure there wasn’t more to it. His smile had an undeniably sharp edge.
He liked doing this.
He liked it a lot.
This was a game to him, Charlie realized. His position with Darktide just gave him the ability to play it in the big leagues.
He was still that little boy who would lie in wait inside her brother’s room and throw things at her when she passed by. Only now it was bullets instead of books and shoes. He was like a cat batting its prey, amusing himself…but eventually he would sink his teeth in.
A shiver ran up Charlie’s spine.
“So when are they going to let you go home?” her mother asked.
Charlie gripped her mother’s hand a little tighter, glad to turn her attention to another topic, even if only for a moment. “The doctor should be back any moment with my discharge papers.”
“Well, then it seems that I got here too late,” her mother said, with an exaggerated sigh. “Again.”
Charlie did her best not to roll her eyes. “I’m telling you Mom this was nothing like last time.”
“Of course not. That was a totally unrelated group of masked men shooting at you,” her mother said in that tone of voice. “You know none of this would have ever happened if you hadn’t refused your father’s invitation to work for the company.”
Charlie let out a long sigh. She was sick of this fight. Hell, she was sick of fighting in general. “Mom, do we really have to do this right now?”
“Honestly, I’m not sure I’ll get another chance,” her mother said.
“Mom, I’ve explained this before,” she said. “I’m not Henry or dad.”
“You’re right,” her
mother said. “No one keeps shooting at them.”
“What I do is important.”
“More important than your life?”
Yes.
Not that she could tell her mom that. Instead, she looked down at the floor and drew in a deep breath.
She knew her mother meant well. She was just worried, and Charlie couldn’t blame her. But she couldn’t explain either. Not that her mother would believe her even if she did. Neither would anyone else for that matter…not until she had proof.
Proof that was now in the hands of a thief. A man that was little more than a ghost. Charlie couldn’t say a word until he came through. Anything she said, anything she did, would only put the people she loved in danger.
Charlie’s mom patted her hand after another couple of seconds of silence had passed. “Mr. Bishop, it looks like I’m all done here. Would you mind taking me home?”
“No,” Charlie said, snapping her head up. She grabbed on tight to her mother’s hand.
“Excuse me,” her mother said.
“Don’t go home with him,” she blurted out before she could stop herself.
Her mother’s brows pulled together. “Why not?”
“Yes,” Trevor lifted his chin inquisitively, “why not?”
Damn it.
“I-I just meant, don’t go home with him yet,” she said.
“Don’t be silly, dear.” Her mother pulled her hand out of Charlie’s grasp. “You said the doctor is on his way to discharge you.”
“But God knows how long that will take,” she said, grasping at straws. “You know how these things go. They say ten minutes, and it turns into an hour and a half. I’d appreciate the company. Bowie and I will be happy to give you a ride home when we leave.”
Her mother hesitated. For a moment it looked like she might actually sit down next to Charlie on the hospital bed. But the moment she made a move toward it, Trevor opened his big mouth.
“I don’t know,” he said. “It didn’t seem like you and Mr. Tamatoa were interested in company a moment ago. We’d hate to intrude on your private moment any longer.”
Her mother nodded, and took another step back. “Trevor is right.”
Damn it.
“Mom—” Charlie started, desperate for any other excuse to keep her mom from leaving with that psycho.
She wasn’t fast enough.
“I’ll see you at home, dear,” her mother said, already walking away from her bed.
Unfortunately, Trevor wasn’t in such a hurry. He cupped a hand over her shoulder and squeezed it just a little too hard. Bowie closed the empty space between them in a heartbeat, but the move didn’t frighten Trevor away. After all, what could Bowie do in the open that wouldn’t make their precarious situation even worse.
“See, I am your friend, Charlie,” he said, close to her ear. “The city might be filled with danger, but I’ll make sure your mom gets home safe and sound.”
A second later, he let go of her shoulder. Charlie didn’t turn around to watch him walk away. Bowie seemed to have that covered. His eyes were tightly focused on a spot behind her. Besides, she could hear the long, confident stride of Trevor’s footsteps retreating on the hospital floor.
Charlie did her best to hold it together as the bastard walked away. She counted to ten. She sucked in a couple of shaky breaths. But she waited until Bowie’s eyes shifted back to hers before she dared say a word.
“He just threatened my mother,” she said.
The muscles lining his jaw tensed as he nodded. “I know.”
“He threatened her, and now he’s driving her home,” she went on, her voice rising higher with every word.
“You couldn’t have stopped them,” Bowie said.
“Like hell.” Charlie balled her hands into fists. “We’re in a hospital. I could have grabbed a scalpel and jammed it into his thigh.”
“That would have only made things worse.”
“I know,” she said, hanging her head. Still, the fantasy felt good.
“Bishop’s not going to hurt your mother,” Bowie said firmly.
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because he’ll lose his leverage over you if he does,” he said. “The point of a threat is to intimidate.”
“Well, it worked,” she said, her voice shaking.
Bowie reached out like he was going to cup a reassuring hand over her knee, but stopped just inches away. He quickly snatched his hand back.
Charlie snapped her head up, but Bowie wasn’t even looking at her anymore. His eyes were focused on the hospital staff passing by her bed. His lips were tight. Every muscle in his body on edge.
He was all business. A soldier on a mission. Focused. Determined.
So different from the warm, passionate man who had kissed her senseless minutes ago.
Because it had all been an act. A show to prove to Trevor that they really were a couple…and not a pair of liars trying to tear him and the company he worked for to the ground.
Except it hadn’t felt like an act. That kiss had seemed honest…painfully so.
She hadn’t misread the urgent desire rushing through his body, had she?
There was only one way to find out.
“Bowie?” she said to his back. “About what happened before my mom and Trevor arrived—”
“We’ve been waiting too long,” he cut her off, already taking a step away. “I’m going to go find that doctor.”
All right, then. Maybe she had misread it after all.
Chapter Eleven
Charlie didn’t say a single word on the ride back from the hospital.
She was completely silent.
And it wasn’t just her voice that was quiet. It was her whole body. She didn’t move, didn’t fidget in her seat. She just sat stock-still, her hands folded neatly in her lap, and stare unblinkingly out the window at the city streets.
Bowie had never seen her act so out of character before…and the change unsettled him. He was used to her saying every little thing that was on her mind, expressing every emotion. He hadn’t realized before how comforting that had been. How it had let him keep tabs on her well-being. Gave him a heads-up on what to expect next.
But this silence…it had him flying blind. He could only guess at what was going on in that whirling mind of hers.
He knew she was worried about her mother. That much was obvious.
But there was more.
The kiss.
That damned kiss.
A total breakdown of every wall and defense that he’d built up over the years. It had all come crumbling down in one weak moment.
One heartbreaking moment of seeing her hurt and afraid. Of feeling utterly alone.
God, he knew that feeling. He knew it and he hated it, and in one breath, he’d forgotten everything except his overwhelming desire to never let Charlie feel another second of that darkness.
So he’d grabbed her. He’d grabbed her, and he’d kissed her…and his damned world had exploded around him.
She was even sweeter than he’d imagined. Sweeter and softer and hotter.
Dear God, she was everything.
Everything that he had ever wanted. Everything that he needed.
And now the damned genie was out of the bottle.
He could never un-feel what he’d felt tonight. Now that he’d kissed her, he’d never forget the taste of her lips, the soft caress of her breath, the hammer of her pulse under his touch. He’d know what he was missing if something ever happened between them.
Which was why he knew now that Jake’s advice was total shit.
Telling Charlie his feelings was nothing like firing a weapon. There was nothing practiced or efficient about it. It had nothing to do with tactics or strategy.
It felt like something else entirely. Something he had no experience with.
It felt like standing in the open, and exposing his only vulnerability to clear view. It went against every bit of his training, every ounce of his logic…and y
et, deep down in the core of his soul, he couldn’t deny the urge.
The urge to open himself up to her. Only to her.
And maybe he would someday. But not tonight. Not while the threat of Bishop and Darktide still loomed over their heads. Later. When life was back to normal. When things were safe.
Which meant, tonight was going to be another long night.
Bowie ground his back teeth together, steeling himself for the sleepless hours ahead next to Charlie’s side. He pulled the car past the Keswick’s security gate and up the short drive that led to the house. He’d barely thrown the SUV into park when Charlie swung her door open, and jumped out. The second her shoes hit the pavement she rushed up to the house.
Bowie didn’t try to stop her. He understood. She wasn’t going to relax until she saw that her mother was fine. He would have felt the same way.
He hurried and caught up to her just as she burst through the front door. Her shoes slapped against the hardwood entryway until they heard a familiar voice drifting in from a nearby room. Only then did Charlie slow down.
He let her lead the way, staying close behind as she followed her mother’s voice to the dining room. She stopped and Bowie peered over her shoulder.
Sure enough, her mother was there, talking to her brother. Bishop was nowhere in sight.
“Where’s Trevor?” Charlie asked, her gaze sweeping back and forth across the room.
“At his hotel I imagine,” her mother said. “He left as soon as he dropped me off.”
Charlie’s shoulders visibly relaxed.
“Are you okay?” Henry asked. “Mom said you were mugged.”
Bowie raised his brows, surprised that Mrs. Keswick was telling her family a story she obviously didn’t believe. Then again, she probably didn’t want to worry anyone so close to the wedding.
“I’m fine,” Charlie said. “Just tired.”
“You should go up to bed,” her mother suggested. “You’ve had a long day.”
“I think we will,” Charlie said with a nod. “I just wanted to make sure that you made it home okay.”
“Of course, I did.” Her mother tilted her head to the side. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“No reason,” Charlie said. “I just…I just care about you is all.”
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