Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
H e barely paid any attention to Vander and his team corralling Reuben and his goons.
Sawyer was focused solely on Hollis.
Worry lined her face, and she kept touching him, her hands shaking. Her gaze was locked on his bloody shoulder and the knife still piercing his skin.
“I’m really going to be okay,” he told her.
“You got stabbed, and it’s all my fault.”
“Don’t say that,” he growled. “It’s Reuben’s fault. And I’d take a hundred knives to protect you.”
Her teeth sank into her bottom lip.
“I’m not leaving you,” he murmured. “If you give me the chance, I’ll never leave you.”
Her beautiful blue eyes widened, and her lips parted.
This felt like the biggest risk he’d ever taken. He’d leaped from planes, been in too many firefights to count, gone on the most dangerous missions, but this moment felt the scariest.
“You…live in Maui,” she said. “I live in LA.”
“Hollis, I don’t care about geography.” He dragged in a deep breath. “I love you.”
The air shuddered out of her. “You do?”
In those quiet words, he heard the little girl who’d just wanted to be loved. Who’d been let down by so many people.
“I do. I don’t care about your movies or Oscars, I love you .”
“Really?” she whispered.
“You ever known me to lie?”
“Never. You’re the best, most honest man I’ve ever met.” She dragged in a deep breath. “I love you too, Sawyer. So much it terrifies me.”
She loved him . Hell. He felt lightheaded. He pulled her closer. “You don’t need to be afraid. I’ll always protect you, care for you, and love and adore you.”
“ Sawyer …”
He kissed her, and he tasted salt. He realized tears were streaming down her face.
Suddenly, she jerked back. “Oh God, your injury.”
“Don’t worry. I’m sure Vander’s got a good first aid kit at the office.”
“What?” Her eyes went wide. “No way, Sawyer Lane. You’re going to the hospital. What if you have internal bleeding? What if you’ve cut a tendon or something? I am not losing you. We’re going to the hospital.”
“Ambulance is on the way,” Vander said from nearby.
“Aw, hell,” Sawyer complained. But he wanted to put Hollis at ease. If going to the hospital did that, he’d go.
“If you love me, you’ll do this,” she said. “Please.”
He twined his fingers with hers. “I’d do anything for you.”
“I know. You’ve shown me that from the moment we first met.” She pressed a kiss to his mouth, then nibbled on his lip. “I love my work, and I know that you love yours and Maui. How will we make this work?”
“We’ll work it out, I promise. Because it’s worth the effort.”
She nodded. “And you always keep your promises.”
He heard sirens, and a few moments later, several black SUVs, police cars, and an ambulance turned into the alley.
Hollis didn’t leave his side as the paramedics checked him over. She didn’t even watch as Reuben and his men got shoved into the FBI vehicles.
He got strapped to a gurney and settled into the ambulance. Hollis sat beside him, holding his hand.
“We’ll meet you at the hospital,” Vander told them. Bedside him, Park gave them a salute.
Sawyer nodded, and watched as Vander closed the ambulance doors.
“It’s really over now,” she murmured.
“This mess is over.” He rubbed the smooth skin on her wrist, right beside her bracelet. “But we’re just getting started.”
She smiled, but then she looked down at his bloody shirt. “After you get to the hospital, and don’t have a knife sticking out of you anymore.”
As the ambulance pulled away, the paramedic in the back with them turned to look at her. “Hey, are you…?”
“I am, but please focus on the love of my life. I don’t want him bleeding to death.”
With a nod, the paramedic set to work checking Sawyer’s vitals. “Not going to let that happen, Ms. Stanton.”
Right then, Sawyer felt a little grateful to Michael Reuben. Not about the knife wound, but for bringing Hollis into his life.
He met her gaze.
She’d woken him up, and now, he was never letting her go.
“Careful.” Hollis held Sawyer’s hand as they headed down the hospital corridor.
“Gorgeous, I’m fine. I’m all bandaged up and the doctor cleared me.”
The knife was gone, and he’d been stitched up. Sawyer had been right, and the knife hadn’t hit anything vital. The sense of relief she felt was immense.
“I also heard him say that you’d lost a lot of blood, and need to hydrate and rest.”
Sawyer stopped and pulled her to his chest. “I’m fine . And I’ll rest, with you.”
She smiled, her heart squeezing. God, she was totally in love with this man.
He dropped a kiss to her nose.
“Come on,” she said. “Vander’s bringing the SUV around the front.”
The hospital doors opened, and as they stepped outside, they were blinded by pops of light.
Then the shouts started.
“Hollis, who’s the man?”
“Hollis, can you confirm that you were involved in an altercation in Rincon Hill?”
“Hollis, over here!”
She turned away from the crowd of people with cameras.
“Vultures,” she muttered.
“It’s okay.” He squeezed her hand.
She lifted her head. “No, it’s not. You’ll be on all the entertainment news programs, magazines, websites. They’ll dig into your life.”
He shrugged. “I don’t care. You’re worth it.”
For a second, her chest was so tight she couldn’t breathe. She’d never been worth it to anyone before. “I love you.”
The corner of his lips lifted. “I know.”
She turned to the crowd and squared her shoulders. “I’ll issue a press release soon through my agent, Tavion Hall. For now, I just want to get home with the man I love, who saved my life, so he can rest.”
There was a wild explosion of more shouts and questions.
Hollis turned away from them. Let them chew on that. She wasn’t giving them anything else.
A car horn honked. Then someone laid on the horn and the crowd shifted. An X6 pulled to a stop in front of them.
Vander got out, circled around, and opened the back door for them.
“That’s Vander Norcross,” someone in the crowd said.
There were more excited whispers. Vander ignored them all.
Hollis climbed in, and Sawyer sat beside her. A heartbeat later, Vander slid into the driver’s seat, and they were off.
“How many stitches?” Vander asked.
“Only seven,” Sawyer replied.
Vander made a sound. “I got twenty once.”
Sawyer snorted. “That’s nothing. I got thirty-three.”
Vander nodded. “I remember that. You didn’t move fast enough.”
Hollis rolled her eyes. “This is not a competition.”
Sawyer grinned, and he looked younger and more relaxed than he had in a long time.
This amazing man loved her. That left her feeling giddy.
“I found out how Reuben found you guys. A damn baggage handler at the private terminal at the airport spotted Hollis when you guys landed. He posted a pic on social media.”
She grimaced. “Welcome to my life.”
Sawyer eyed Vander. “Something tells me that baggage handler doesn’t have a job anymore.”
“No, he does not,” Vander said.
Vander drove them to the Norcross Security office. The lights on the main level were off, but on the top floor, she saw that some lights were on.
“I live above the office,” Vander told her. “You’ll stay with us for the night, or what’s left of it.”
They parked in the garage and Hollis leaned into Sawyer’s side as they headed upstairs. Vander didn’t stop on the main level. He led them to a private elevator.
When they reached the top, a woman stood on the landing, waiting for them.
She was a few inches shorter than Hollis, with a fit body, and brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. Sharp, pale-blue eyes took them in.
“Hi, Hollis, I’m Brynn Norcross. I’m a huge fan.”
Hollis got the impression of intelligence and confidence. A woman who could handle herself.
“Sorry to disrupt your night.”
Brynn smiled and threw her husband an amused smile. “Don’t worry, we’re used to that around here.”
She held out a hand and Hollis shook it.
The woman’s blue gaze switched to Sawyer. “How many stitches?”
“Seven.”
Brynn gave him a quick hug. “Pfft, that’s nothing. I had fifteen once.”
Hollis blinked.
“I’m a police detective. Come in.” Brynn stepped back and waved them inside.
Their place had the same industrial vibe as the office below. There were wooden floors and touches of black iron. A wall of accordion doors, currently closed, led onto a roof terrace. Beyond it, the buildings of the city speared up, offering a fabulous view.
Dragging her gaze off the terrace, Hollis noticed Parker sitting at the kitchen island, cradling a steaming mug.
“Hey,” Park said. “Only seven stitches, huh? That’s barely a scratch.”
Hollis glared at him. “I don’t want to know how many stitches you’ve had in the past. He took a knife for me.”
Sawyer ran a hand over her back. “She’s still a bit tense.”
“I’ll make you some herbal tea, Hollis,” Brynn said. “It sounds gross, but we have some good ones.”
“I’ll help you.” She shot Sawyer a look. “Sit.”
She waited until he sank onto the black leather couch before she followed Brynn to the kitchen.
There was a loud woof . A dog appeared. It was a Belgian Malinois, with a black face and ears, and a tan-colored body.
It raced to Brynn for a pat, then the dog made a beeline for Vander. The man ran his hand along the dog’s back.
“This is Shadow.”
“Hi, Shadow,” Hollis said. She’d always wanted a dog growing up.
The dog, who didn’t look much past the pup stage, headed toward her and nudged her with his nose, his tail wagging.
Then, he headed for the couch.
“Good looking dog,” Sawyer said.
Brynn smiled. “We sort of accidentally adopted him.”
Soon, Shadow was snuggled into Sawyer’s uninjured side on the couch.
While Brynn and Hollis made tea, Vander poured bourbon for the men. “Eagle Rare,” Vander said. “The 17-year-old.”
“His favorite,” Brynn added.
“I’m in,” Park said.
“Me too,” Sawyer said.
“Hey, you’re on painkillers,” Hollis reminded him.
“I think I’ve earned a bourbon.”
After the drinks were poured, Vander sat in an armchair, with Brynn resting on the arm. Parker sat on the other end of the couch. Hollis sat beside Sawyer, Shadow lying between them.
“Well done on a successful mission.” Vander lifted his glass.
Parker and Sawyer held their glasses up as well.
“It was the most important one I’ve ever been on.” Sawyer met her gaze, and she felt a flush of warmth.
Then Sawyer looked over at Vander. “I get it now.”
Vander smiled and tugged his wife closer. “Good.”
“I’ve got a flight back to Alaska tomorrow morning,” Parker announced.
“Already?” Hollis said.
He nodded.
She realized that she’d miss him. “Thank you, Park. For everything.”
He gave her a faint smile. “Thanks for not caving my head in with a frying pan.”
She smiled. From the look on Sawyer’s face, she realized that he’d miss his friend, too.
“You don’t need to leave so soon, Park,” Vander said. “Why don’t you stay a few days.”
“I…need to get back.”
Vander eyed him for a second, then nodded. “You need anything from me, I’m here for you.”
“Me too,” Sawyer said.
Park looked at his boots for a second, then lifted his gaze. “I know.”
The men continued talking, and soon, Hollis could barely keep her eyes open.
“Time for bed, sleeping beauty,” Sawyer murmured.
“Is that an order, Deputy Lane?”
His eyes fired. “It is. I’ll always look after you. No matter what.”