She looked down the hallway then back at him, fear shining from her eyes. “Do you think, um…”
Was she still freaked out by the shooting? Too proud to admit she needed him? “Do you want me to hold you while you sleep? Like I do with Jonathan?”
She gave a self-deprecating chuckle. “Like mother, like son, huh?”
Nodding, he moved over to the bed with her. Unzipping her sweatshirt, she draped it on a chair then removed the folded quilt from the end of the bed and spread it out. Jack waited for her to lie down then settled in next to her. She pressed herself close and bumped his wound causing him to wince. Muttering “oops,” she climbed over him to lie on his other side. The action was more than a little intimate and Jack had flashbacks of the two of them rolling all over the bed.
She reached down and adjusted the quilt over them then threw him a shy smile. Good, the quilt would hide the reaction he was having with her this close. Slipping his arm under her, he pulled so her head was tucked into his shoulder, like they used to sleep too long ago.
Snuggling in close, she rested her hand on his chest. His shirt was still off and she began to swirl her fingers in the hair scattered across his torso. Was this a mistake? Her breathing softened and grew rhythmic and he hated to wake her up to put the shirt back on. She’d always loved playing in his chest hair and now in her subconscious, she went right back to her old habits. No complaints though. He might never get to be in this position again.
* * * *
“What was so important I had to cut out of my meeting early?” Scott complained as he leaned into the window of Heather’s car. “I was with the architect who’s drawing up plans for the college dorm renovations I’m proposing.”
“Get in and I’ll tell you.”
He opened the door and lowered himself into Heather’s low-slung black sports car. Must be nice to have the extra money for a vehicle like this. His beat-up pickup truck was all he had to drive around in as his money was all tied into his business. Looking at her tense face, he noted the clipped tone of her voice. As they drove away apprehension filled him.
“What happened? Is everyone all right? Callie? Jonathan?”
She reached over and patted his thigh. The warmth crept along his leg and moved to parts of him that shouldn’t be awake in her presence. Taking a deep breath, he willed them to calm down and waited for her answer.
“Everyone’s fine. We’re going to pick up Callie’s car at the Danbury Park and Ride.”
Pick up a car? Heat of a different kind suffused his body. “You pulled me away from important business to go get a car? Seriously, Heather? You may have nothing better on your agenda than driving around doing errands all day but some of us actually have a living to make. We don’t all have rich families to provide for us.”
“Oh, stow it, will you, Scott,” she snapped back, rolling her eyes at him. Yeah, he’d gotten under her skin. He liked doing that. Liked seeing her with her armor plating and warrior shield extended.
“You know damn well I happen to have an extremely successful real estate business. I pay for everything I have without the help of my family.”
Lifting his eyebrow, he caressed the leather seats. “Like this baby here?”
An exasperated huff escaped her mouth as she scowled. “Fine, this was a gift from my dad but everything else…”
He chuckled and received a smack on the arm for his audacity. She was too fun to rile up. And she always rose to the bait. It never got old.
“Ow, hey, watch the merchandise.” Rubbing the spot she’d hit, he said, “I make a living using these arms. You damage them and I’ll have to sue. You know a good lawyer?”
She laughed softly and sighed. “Callie took the bus into New York to meet Jack in Central Park. He needed her help with some information he had.”
“Information about Victor? He mentioned he was going to start digging again. I didn’t realize he would involve Callie. He’s usually overprotective of her and Jonathan.”
“I think they were only supposed to meet, have her look at a few things, then she’d come back. Something happened. I didn’t wait around for a play by play. All I know is that Jack brought Callie back and she was visibly shaken. And Jack had some sort of bleeding wound on his side.”
“A wound? What kind of wound?” Scott remembered vividly the day he’d found Jack practically bleeding to death from a stab wound, after a run in with Angelo Cabrini. His cousin refused the hospital and it had taken Scott a few hours to get one of Jack’s FBI buddies to round up a doctor to fix him. At times he wasn’t sure his cousin would make it. Scared the hell out of him.
“I don’t know. Callie mentioned something about bullets but Jack shrugged it off.”
“Did he look like it was bad?” He was shaking now. How serious was it? Jack had been through hell the last few years but it hadn’t been easy on Scott either, the constant worry eating a hole inside him.
“He was up and walking around fine. There was a large blood stain on his shirt near his waist but Callie hadn’t even noticed it. She’ll take care of it and if he needs more than she can provide, she’ll let us know. I promised her we’d get her car. Figured that would give them some time together, the two of them.”
“Yeah, they could use some time together, though I’m not sure it’s the best thing in the long run.”
Heather threw him a nasty glance. “Why do you say that? They love each other. It’s obvious whenever they’re in the same room, even if they try and avoid being too close.”
“I know they do. But being together doesn’t result in anything other than realizing what they’re missing. It’s like giving a man who’s dying of thirst a tiny drop of water. It’s simply a tease of what he needs but can’t have.”
