Chapter Fourteen
Odd battle noises
and laughter pulled Jess toward the bright light. Sean’s deep chuckle
complimented Mel’s softer, more melodious laugh. She turned her head toward the
sound. A computer balanced on their laps, the two of them sat together in a
wide recliner, fighting over who could use which key. A smile touched her heart
despite the bone-deep ache in her chest. “You two play nice now.”
Sean grinned
as he dumped his laptop on Mel and climbed out of the chair. “You’re awake.” He
sat on the edge of the mattress and brushed her hair back in a gesture she
realized had become his habit. “You had us worried.”
“Sorry.”
His big hand
enveloped hers and he lifted her fingers to his lips with a shrug. “It’s good
to have you back.” Shadows deepened the grey in his eyes and a white bandage
circled his left bicep.
Melanie came
around the other side of the bed. A scowl drew her arched brows together. “Sean’s
obviously taking the high road here, so I’ll say it. Don’t ever do something
that stupid again.”
“I don’t
remember much so that might be a little hard to follow through on.”
“You stood in
front of a cornered gunman, Mom. Where the hell was your head?”
The last
moments before she lost consciousness burned through her brain. Sean in the
line of fire, in danger. Him pushing her to safety. She squeezed his hand tight
and tears seared her eyes. “He could have killed you.”
He leaned
closer. “Better me than you.”
“Don’t say
that.” Anger ripped at her heart, overcoming the searing pain as she tugged her
hand from his and pushed up to lean against the headboard. “It was my job to
keep you alive.”
“Your job?
You almost killed yourself for a damned paycheck?”
No. I love
you. I couldn’t let you die. The words she longed to say wedged
in the back of her throat. “I take my assignments seriously.”
Sean’s
shoulders stiffened. “Good to know. At least Harold wasn’t misguided in
choosing you.”
He rose to
his feet, but Mel grabbed his wrist before he could turn away. “She doesn’t
mean that. Look at her. She’s on the edge of tears. Mom doesn’t cry.”
“She’s in
pain.” Sean tugged his arm from Mel’s fingers and stuck his hands in his back
pockets.
“I’m sure she
is, but she’s also in love with you. Don’t be a pussy and let her get away with
shutting you out.”
Jess glared
at her darling daughter. “I’m right here you know. I can speak for myself.”
Melanie stood
with her hands on her hips, always the warrior princess. “As soon as you two
stop acting like children, I’ll gladly step aside.”
Jess glared
at her pushy daughter. “This is none of your business.”
“The hell it’s
not. I saw you two that day at the gardens. No one except the flamingos missed
the way you looked at one another and even they probably picked up on the
vibes. You aren’t fooling anyone.”
A bit of steel
left Sean’s spine. “Is she right, Jess?”
Jess shook
her head no.
Melanie
sighed. “Of course I’m right. She took a frickin’ bullet for you, you overgrown
idiot. And Mom if you’d quit thinking about what’s wrong with the two of you
being together, you might notice what’s right about it. Sean actually threw
himself in front of you to save you from yourself. When he wasn’t shouting
about how you put yourself in danger, he expounded on your wit and beauty and
how he couldn’t live with himself if you died. It was pretty sickening. I
almost puked.”
“That’s
enough, Mel.” Jess’s head hurt and her heart shredded beneath her daughter’s
tirade. “If Sean has something to say, he can say it himself. I don’t need to
hear it from you.”
Mel snorted. “Like
you’d listen no matter who said it.”
Sean cleared
his throat. “Why don’t you go find us a cup of coffee? From Starbucks. Across
town.”
Melanie
frowned and faced him down. “Are you going to stand up to her?”
Jess gasped. “Melanie
Rea!”
Sean chuckled
and laid a soothing hand on Jess’s shoulder. “I’ll do my best.”
“Fine.”
Melanie let the warrior princess go as she leaned down to whisper in Jess’s
ear. “Be nice to him. He’s sort of adorable and he really was worried.”
After Mel
left, Sean picked his laptop up off the chair and returned to Jess’s side. “Scoot
over.”
“Why?”
“Because I
have something I want you to see. Stop being a pain in the ass.”
“Fine.” She
tried to move but the twisting motion shot blinding pain through her.
“Let me help before
you tear something. Damned stubborn woman.”
She glared at
him for yelling at her. “You’re the one who told me to move.”
“Since when
have you paid attention to me?” Sean set his computer down and slid an arm
beneath her knees and another behind her shoulders. In a simple, painless swing
he eased her to the opposite edge of the bed to make room for his narrow hips. He
settled the laptop on their legs and wrapped an arm around her shoulders to
keep her steady. “Okay now?”
The fire
burned down to an irritating simmer. “Better.”
“Good.”
He studied
her without saying anything more until she looked away, uncomfortable with his
scrutiny. “So what did you want?”
“Besides you
alive and healthy?”
“Barf. Quit
it.” His grin teased her senses. Why hadn’t he kissed her yet? “What were you
going to show me?”
He used his
free hand to manipulate the keyboard until a colorful game page filled the
screen. He clicked on an icon labeled Freya’s War. “This is pretty rough
yet, but there are a couple things I want to show you.” He snuggled her closer
as his fingers flew over the keys typing faster with one hand than she could
with two. “Check this out.”
A female
soldier with a dark ponytail and huge green eyes stared from the screen. “Is
that Mel? You have her eyes wrong.”
He dropped a
kiss on top of her head. “Watch what she can do.”
Several
villains looking suspiciously like the men from the boat and her ex appeared in
a circle around the warrior. Their height made her short stature apparent.
“Is that me?”
“Her name’s
Freya.”
“As in the
Norse goddess of love and war? She’s supposed to be blond.”
“Hush up and
watch.”
The men
attacked all at once and Seth’s fingers flew over the keys. Within moments, her
assailants lay on the ground groaning or unconscious. She recognized one of the
moves as the same one she’d used on Kurt in the park. Seth claimed the game was
rough, but the graphics and details amazed her. “You created this?”
He played
with the keyboard without looking at her. “Yeah. I designed most of it the week
you refused to talk to me. I played with a few details while you were out. What
do you think?”
“I think you’re
incredible.”
“Good to
know, but what about the game?” His cocky grin, full of cool assurance and
bravado, clarified why she loved him.
She laid her
head back against his arm so she could look up at him without wrenching her
shoulder. “Seriously, brat, this is remarkable.”
His cheeks
darkened beneath his tan as he smiled. “Then I’ll admit she’s patterned after
you.”
Her stomach
clenched. She didn’t deserve his respect. “I almost got you killed.”
“You saved my
life.” He set the computer on the bedside table and sat so she faced his steady
gaze.
Jess looked
down at the IV in her elbow and listened to the beep of the monitors. Why doesn’t
he hate me? Why isn’t he telling me what a screw up I am? “If I’d been on
my game, you would never have been in that position. Those men would never have
boarded the yacht.”
“Stop it.”
Sean brushed her hair off her forehead and feathered a kiss against the exposed
skin. “I hope Mel’s right about what’s going on here because you never tell me
anything straight.”
She studied
his face searching for some sign of where he was going. “I don’t need misplaced
hero worship, Sean. I messed up. I put you and Dale in danger. Stop acting like
everything’s fine because it’s not.”
“You’re
right. It’s not.”
Here comes
the truth.
“The woman I
love is sitting in a hospital room with tubes coming out of her body and a hole
in her chest because of me. I didn’t listen when you warned me. All I thought
about was getting you alone on that island. If anyone’s responsible, it’s me.”
Jess’s heart
swelled in her chest. Does he mean it? Could she trust that he felt the
way she did? “Say that again.”
“I persuaded
you to leave the yacht. I caused the problems not you.”
“Not that.
The first part.”
Confusion
swept across his expressive face, but his natural confidence quickly returned. “You
first.”
“Not a
chance.”
“Chicken.”
“To the core.
I’m nothing like your Freya.”
Sean took her
hands in his. His thumbs rubbed her knuckles in an absentminded caress. “Yeah,
you are. She’s the goddess of love, beauty, fertility, war, wealth, divination
and magic.” He chuckled. “I’m not that smart. I looked it up for the game, but
she’s the only goddess who embodies everything you represent to me.”
The mushy
situation warmed her cheeks, and she could not meet his gaze though she longed
to hear his thoughts. She shrugged with one shoulder. “Whatever.”
“I mean it.”
His hands tightened on hers to keep her from pulling away.
He didn’t say
anything more, merely waited until she looked up. “What?”
“It took me a
while to recognize it, but I love you. I’ve loved you since you promised you’d
lay down for me.”
He would have
to recall that embarrassing moment. “That’s lust not love.”
His grin
returned. “That, too, but it’s more. You make me laugh at myself. I love
looking at you—”
“Beauty
fades. I’m forty years old.”
Sean leaned in
and closed her mouth with a too fleeting kiss. “Shut up and listen for once.”
He brushed another kiss over her lips before sitting up again. “I love watching
you experience things for the first time. You may be older, but you’ve lived a
sheltered life. You’re gorgeous because you’re you. That won’t change with
time. Right now you’re hot as hell, but in thirty years, when I help you cross the
street so you don’t break a hip, you’ll still take my breath away.”
She punched
him in the arm then winced as she twisted her shoulder. “You’ll be almost
sixty. Not so young yourself.”
“Exactly. The
age difference will keep getting smaller and less important. Don’t you get it?
What we have is not about age or money or any other superficial thing. It’s
about you and me and the fact that I never want to lose you.”
“For now.”
His brows
drew together over his storm tossed eyes. “Forever. Now quit being a coward.
Mel claims you have a hard time saying the words to anyone but her, but I need
them at least once.”
How did she
answer that? Panic squeezed her chest. He could easily crush her. He was so
young, the future so open and uncertain for him.
“Come on,
love.” He chuckled but anxiety hung in the air. “Don’t make me beg.”
“I wouldn’t
do that.” Sean’s presence improved her life, destroyed loneliness and created
purpose. How could she not love him? She sucked oxygen in praying she was doing
the right thing. “I love you, too. Though God knows I shouldn’t.”
“Yes, you
should.” His gorgeous grin lit his face. “In fact, while we’re on the topic,
you should marry me.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because it’s
a ludicrous proposition.”
Sean shifted
to sit beside her and took her in his arms, settling her gently against his
solid chest. “I’ll keep asking, you know.”
She laughed.
Her resolve melted to marshmallow fluff when he smiled. “My answer won’t change.”
“Don’t say
things you don’t mean. I will persuade you to marry me, Jess, even if I have to
knock you up to do it. Mel would love a baby sister or brother.”
“I’ll kick
you on your ass if you try it, brat.”
He laughed
and cuddled her close. “Bring it on, Grandma.”