Ian looked at Cassie, the words from her email echoing in his head. Her hair was tousled into a loose braid; her ivory face was scarlet with fever, and ugly bruises covered her arms. The smell of Dove soap and antiseptic awakened his senses.
Ian, she’s dying.
Eric Seton, another former PJ and physician assistant from Michigan, and Jack sat at the foot of the bed and discussed the dialysis while Hunter and Jamie O’Reilly—the fourth member of her newly formed treatment team from New York City—went over her chart in the corner.
“I don’t know, but I will find out.” Ian sounded more determined than ever.
Chapter Twenty
Money and manpower were ways to get things done fast. Four hours after he put in his command, Ian received a call from Monique as she stood beside white vans from Hedgecock Construction in front of the pool house at the private McLean home Ian shared with Kieran and herself.
“Darling, Ray and his eighteen-man crew are performing the emergency construction. Kieran’s team is troubleshooting the entire perimeter, upgrading the intruder alert system. And they’re unloading a hospital bed now.”
“Good, what about the physical changes?”
"They’ve torn apart most of the second floor. Starting from the first room at the top of the stairs, they’re creating a patient room with ensuite bathroom, with a wheelchair-accessible shower. The second room will be an operating theater/treatment area, and the third bedroom is subdivided into a second patient room and a lab and pharmacy. The walk-in linen closet is now for supplies. Bunks in the third bedroom for staff and two queen size beds in the fourth. I figure if we need to, family can stay up at the main house.
“Jaime O’Reilly sent a list. In the basement, his people are installing an upgraded electric panel with a backup generator with complete self-contained ventilation. A new second room is being retrofitted for a state-of-the-art CT scanner and X-ray machinery. The fire-suppression system is moving along, but he’ll need another three or four days working around the clock.”
“I don’t like the delay, but it is what it is.”
“Brett Collins wants a heads up when the monitoring system is ready to go online to sync it with the main server.”
“Not a problem. I’ll text Kieran.”
“There is one more issue: it will take too long to run an interior elevator shaft, so Ray is going to do an add-on. I cleared it with Kieran. He said to remind you and Kier they are building to code, but you better get our attorneys to deal with the building department. They’re working under an expedited building plan—as fast as they can.”
“Thank you, Monique.”
* * *
Wednesday morning, Declan and Ian entered the ICU with the hospital CEO and the chief medical officer. Both men wanted to speak to the Paulsens to try to mitigate the financial damages from the sponge and the potassium contamination. The nurse manager shrieked at their surprise arrival.
Tucker removed his isolation gown and exited the room to discuss Cassie’s status with them. Declan had earlier advised the two administrators to avoid suggesting the potassium overdose was accidental. The CMO was apologetic and praised them for catching it in time. Tucker held his tongue.
After double-checking the security precautions, Ian stayed in the periphery while Cassie’s family visited her. He would wait for the appropriate moment to discuss his plans.
As the day progressed, Sean, Noah, and Frank arrived from their various assignments. Each soldier was reduced to tears, taking turns sitting at her side. The hospital provided the family with a private waiting area.
Christian Paulsen kissed her cheek and knelt to pray at her bedside. “Keep fighting, Bunny. I love you.” He turned to Ian. “Chase, we need to speak for a moment.”
Sean, Noah, and Frank looked to Christian for direction. The group walked to the waiting room, and Caleb walked in from the corridor. “Mom and Dad are with her.”
Ian recognized an ambush.
Noah blocked the door and crossed his arms against his chest, while Christian stood to speak. “I don’t understand why you’re doing this for Cassie. I know we should be appreciative, but no one does all this without reason. Our mother told us you took Cassie out on a date the night before this happened. I don’t know how we should feel about that. If she lives through this, Cassie can’t handle a man whore. She deserves a man who will care for her.”
Christian’s amber-colored eyes pinned Ian with laser focus. “Ian, we go back a long time. You were never short of a frog hog. Hell, you could walk into any bar in Coronado, and those women fell at all our feet, but most of us grew up. We can read the damn papers. We know you and my dad have stuff going on. We’d step up to help a teammate too, but we still think we deserve an explanation.”
Ian didn’t expect anything different from Cassie’s five protective brothers. He met Christian’s gaze, knowing he was right. His public reputation with women was not excellent. He adjusted his posture, uncrossing his arms and letting his palms rest open on his knees. “My frog hog days are long gone, and the tabloids are inaccurate. I’m not saying I’m a saint, but most of those women were either dinner company or related to a Chase Security job.”
Ian inhaled. “I want Cassie in my life. She’s a remarkable woman. I feel things in her company I have never felt with anyone. I knew the moment I met her six years ago, she was special. And since then, I’ve developed strong feelings for her.”
“I was told by some of her colleagues she was upset with you.” Christian’s eyes flashed with anger, and then his own practiced mask returned.
Ian didn’t flinch. He knew he was being tested. “Wilds? I wouldn’t put faith in what that man says. Quinn Marcus? Yes, she pulled away from me. A lot was going on at the dinner. She needed to preserve her cover. How about we wait for Cassie to factor in?”
“We don’t have much of a choice at the moment. My folks appreciate what you are doing for Cassie, but if you hurt her, no one will find a piece of you. We don’t care who you are. She’s been hurt too much.”
