Chapter 27
“I’m fine,” Ashlyn mumbled against Shayne’s back even as she found herself wondering how much longer it would be before the drugs left her system.
She never saw it coming.
One minute, she was watching Karen beat the shit out of Quinn with her purse, and the next, a rag that smelled like nail polish remover was pressed against her mouth as she felt the telltale pinch of a needle in her neck.
She’d fought him as he dragged her off, tried to scream only to have him keep the rag firmly in place, leaving her struggling not to pass out.
If he hadn’t tripped on that uneven section of walkway...
She didn’t want to think about what could have happened to her.
“Ye great, lass,” Shayne said as he moved to lay her down on his bed only to sigh when she managed to mutter, “Shower,” against his back.
“Ye really are a pain in my ass,” Shayne muttered even as he took pity on her and carried her into the bathroom, where he shrugged her off his shoulder and carefully placed her down on the bathroom counter.
That was followed by reaching over to steady her when she started to fall over. With a muttered curse, Shayne picked her back up, carried her over to the shower and placed her down on the shower floor, where she promptly fell over onto her side and mumbled, “I really hate your brothers.”
“In their defense, lass, they did warn ye that it would make ye sick to flash us back here,” Shayne said as she glared up at him from the comfort of his bathroom floor.
“They lied,” Ashlyn bit out, only to groan, squeeze her eyes shut, and turn her head so that she could press her forehead against the cool tiled floor when the move made everything worse.
“Now, lass, ye were in no position to drive with chemicals in yer system,” Shayne pointed out as he pulled her shoes off.
“That’s why I told you to drive,” Ashlyn reminded him as he made quick work of pulling her socks off before reaching for her pants.
“I don’t think that would have ended well, lass, with me not having a valid driver’s license and all,” Shayne said, sighing heavily as he pulled her pants off.
“You have a driver’s license,” Ashlyn reminded him.
“It’s fake, lass,” Shayne said in a pitying tone. “Try to keep up.”
“I really hate you right now,” Ashlyn said, moving to fist her hands against the tiled floor when she was hit with another bout of nausea only to have the man that hadn’t stopped glaring at her since everything went down, force her to sit up and-
“Oh, God...”
-quickly placed her back down on the floor when it became obvious that she was about to make this night even more special.
“If it makes ye feel better, lass, we can still make it ta the ball tomorrow night,” Shayne said conversationally as he carefully worked her shirt free.
“Are you asking me out?” Ashlyn asked after a slight hesitation.
“Will ye put out if I do?” Shayne countered as he tossed her shirt aside and reached for her bra.
“It depends on whether desert is involved,” Ashlyn said, watching as a muscle in his jaw clenched tightly and-
“I’m sorry that I scared you,” Ashlyn said as she thought about just how badly he’d been shaking when he pulled her off that gurney into his arms.
“Don’t do it again, lass,” Shayne said as he made quick work of pulling her panties off and tossing them aside before he stood up and-
“I really hate you.”
-turned the cold water on.
After a moment, he took pity on her and turned the hot water on, making sure to aim it on her so that it hit her just right before he sat down outside the shower and held her hand.
For several minutes, she was content just to lie there, somewhat curled in the fetal position as Shayne caressed the back of hand with his thumb and-
“Tristan’s earlier suspicions were right,” he said, drawing her attention to find him sitting there, looking lost in thought.
“Who was he?” Ashlyn asked, shifting onto her side.
“Michael Savas, an absolute piece of shit who was convicted when he was seventeen years old for aggravated kidnapping and attempted murder. He did four years in prison before he was released and soon started working in the restaurant industry. He started off working as a dishwasher, where he was fired for assaulting a female coworker, before he somehow landed a job as a delivery driver for several upscale restaurants throughout New England,” Shayne said, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze as she thought that over.
“What else?”
Shaking his head, Shayne said, “That’s all they know about him. The FBI is currently tearing his house apart, hoping to find a clue to the missing girls.”
She thought that over for a minute before she said, “I should tell Julia’s family before they hear it on the news.”
“I asked Tristan ta do it,” Shayne said, taking her by surprise.
“Thank you,” Ashlyn mumbled sleepily as she closed her eyes and-
“Shhhh, it’s okay, lass,” Shayne said as she felt herself being placed down on his bed sometime later. “I’m here.”
“Don’t go,” Ashlyn said, grabbing hold of his arm as he moved to step away.
“I’m not going anywhere, lass,” Shayne whispered as she felt his lips press against her forehead.
“Promise?” she mumbled sleepily.
“I promise,” Shayne whispered against her forehead as she felt herself start to drift off again.
“I love you,” Ashlyn mumbled sleepily, wondering why three little words felt like the end of the world.