Chapter 17 #2
“You shouldn’t have,” she whispered, but her eyes said the opposite.
And that smile in the dim light inside her vehicle made it worth it.
She bent her finger and motioned for him to come closer.
He swallowed hard. The look in her eyes, the invitation of her lips, crumbled his resolve.
He took a step closer, his heart lodged against his ribs.
Each inch that narrowed the distance between them sent a jolt of electricity through him.
This wasn’t part of the plan. But her eyelashes fluttered.
Her lips parted slightly. As if drawn by an invisible force, Sebastian’s lips brushed hers in a tentative kiss, a whisper-soft exploration that sent a wave of forgotten tenderness crashing inside him.
A soft sigh escaped Caitlyn as she leaned to embrace him.
His fingers found purchase on her jaw, tracing the curve with a newfound reverence.
A deep sense of finding a missing piece he hadn’t even known he lost, like coming home, resonated on a level far deeper than he thought possible.
When their kiss deepened, a key turned in a long-locked door.
He wanted to lose himself in this moment, forget the shadows looming over their lives and soak in the warmth of her presence.
When their breathing became ragged, a nagging voice in the back of his mind whispered a warning that had him break away from her.
Their breaths mingled in the cool night air. Caitlyn’s eyes glazed and her lips parted, taking in shallow breaths. Sebastian leaned his forehead against hers.
“Goodnight, Caitlyn,” he whispered, pulling back. His voice was thick and ragged.
“You should be careful going out in the dark by yourself,” she replied, her voice a mere whisper.
“I’ll keep that in mind.” He leaned in again, this time for a quick, chaste kiss on her forehead.
“You can’t follow me,” she said, getting into her Jeep as he held the door and shut it once she got settled inside.
Caitlyn rolled down the window. Worry etched across those amber eyes. “Promise me.“
His emotions and his mind went to war with each other. He wanted to protect her and her son, but a cold sweat broke out against his skin. “I want to see you again before Saturday.”
“You can always bring me an iced coffee.” Caitlyn glanced inside her Jeep and frowned at the time on the dashboard. “I need to go.”
Reluctantly, Sebastian backed up and watched her drive away. Shaking his head, Sebastian reminded himself that she had a son to care for, and he needed to take this new relationship slow. Kissing her this soon might have been a bad move. Would she regret it tomorrow?
He watched her Jeep disappear down the road. He would give her a few minutes of a head start before following up to make sure she got home safe.
In the distance, he heard a car door shut; a set of headlights turned on, shining in his face. Sebastian held up his arm to block the light. A second later, the sound of a gun firing broke through the night.
Caitlyn drove down the street, reaching for the radio to chase away the lingering silence, and a wave of guilt washed over her.
Sam. The two pizzas and order of wings she promised her for keeping Owen still sat on the diner counter.
Silas’ unexpected visit threw her off completely, and Sebastian’s surprise iced coffee and that kiss. Oh, that kiss had derailed her.
Turning back around, she returned before the guilt morphed into a low-grade worry.
This might also be a good way to test if Sebastian followed her.
A black SUV sped past her in the opposite lane.
She wrestled with the steering wheel, narrowly avoiding a collision with a car that drifted across the center line.
Shaken, Caitlyn muttered, “Someone needs to retake their driver’s test.”
She took a deep breath, thinking it was a bunch of teens hurrying to get home before curfew, and pulled into the parking lot and spotted the motorcycle parked at the end. Why hadn’t Daniel left yet? She half expected him to follow her home.
A knot of unease tightened in her stomach. Leaving the car door hanging open, she rushed toward the bike. A dark stain spread like a malevolent shadow, its edges catching the harsh glare of the streetlamp. She rounded the corner of the bike. There, sprawled on his back, lay Daniel.
“Daniel?“
There was a shallow moan, a ragged gasp that sent relief, sharp and unexpected, battling with an icy wave of fear. Caitlyn’s knees buckled beneath her, the gravel biting into her exposed skin as she collapsed beside him.
“No... No...” she choked out, the terror taking over. This wasn’t supposed to be happening. Not like this. Not Daniel. Reaching out, her hand hovered above him, trembling. She found his pulse. He was warm and groaned at her touch. But a dark stain bloomed on his shirt, centered on his chest.
This was her fault. This was her fault. Grabbing her phone, she turned on the light. She found the hole where the bullet went in. Pressing down on it with one hand, she heard him grunt and try to twist away.
“Lie still. I’m calling 911.”
“No... ambulance...” His words came out in ragged gasps, barely audible.
All the air sucked into Caitlyn’s lungs wouldn’t release. “You’re shot.”
Despite the pain etched on his face, a flicker of recognition ignited in his eyes. “Caitlyn...” His lips moved slightly, forming a single word.
Her name, uttered with a rasp, stopped the universe around her. “You need an ambulance, or you’re going to die.”
“Not bad.” He coughed and rasped. “Give me a minute. Okay?”
A minute? Caitlyn rocked back on her heels. She kept her phone tilted, using it as a flashlight. “I need to call 911.”
“No. Don’t.” He coughed, then groaned.
“I’m so sorry,” she said, fear sliding down her spine. “I should have known this would happen. I was careless, and I didn’t think...” A sob caught in her throat.
“Not. Your. Fault. Drive by. Shot.” Daniels groaned. He rolled to his side.
“They saw us,” she muttered, followed by a few choice words in Spanish. She should have warned him. Her eyes filled with tears. Keep it together. You can’t help him if you’re falling apart.
“Don’t get up. I’m calling for help.” If anything happened to him... She bit her lip to distract from the tremble in her chin. Silas. Of course, someone saw them together. The guy who came after hours? Or earlier today?
“No cops. No hospital.” Daniel groaned again, trying to sit up straight.
“You’re bleeding!” Caitlyn helped him, spewing out more of her native tongue, expressing her exasperation with the man. Fear gripped her as she pressed on his wound. “You need an ambulance. I have to call the cops. I have to call someone.”
“No cops,” Daniel said firmly, though weakly.
“Why not?” Caitlyn demanded, her question hinged with desperation. An ambulance and a hospital would save him quickly, but the pleading in his eyes wounded her. The raw fear flickered within their depths and held her back.
A horrible suspicion formed in the pit of her stomach.
The thought of cops arriving, of prying questions and unwanted scrutiny, sent an icy shiver down her spine.
But what other options were there? Was Daniel loco?
She couldn’t leave him here to bleed to death.
And that’s what would happen if she didn’t get him medical attention soon.
“No cops,” he whispered, grimacing.
Already, someone could have heard the shot and reported it. She listened for sirens. Hoping someone else would take this decision out of her hands.
Blood seeped from his wound between her fingers. Since the cops or a hospital was out of the question, he left her with only one other option.
“Fine. No cops. But I’m not letting you lie here and die, sí?” Oh Lord, what had she done? The black SUV barreling down the street couldn’t have been a conscience. Did Silas do this, or had he sent someone else? Daniel just had to come to La Rosa’s. An iced coffee was not worth his life.
She maneuvered her phone with one hand, not letting go of him.
Ignoring the grunts, she kept pressure on his wound.
The phone rang and went to voicemail. Tonight, he made her break all protocol and revert to Spanish.
Better, for he wouldn’t understand her prayers and her venting at herself.
What was she thinking, giving Daniel hope of something more when she’d put a target on his back for Silas’s wrath?
She kept a blanket in the back of her Jeep.
She grabbed his hand and placed it on his wound.
“Press and don’t move.” Caitlyn sprinted for her vehicle.
The sounds of sirens came from the distance.
Took them long enough. Thankfully, the bulb in her Jeep needed to be replaced for weeks and didn’t light up inside when she popped the back hatch.
Searching in the darkness, her hand landed on the blanket she kept there.
Snatching it, she slammed the hatch, startled herself, and ran back to him.
She pressed the blanket to his chest. “Hug this. Press it against the wound.”
He moaned, falling back, and she caught him. “Eres un hombre tonto,” she hissed.
“I like it. When you. Talk. To me, that. Way.” He’d tried to make a joke or perhaps was using sarcasm because he couldn’t be flirting with her at a time like this.
Daniel gestured with a thumb toward the motorbike parked nearby, its chrome gleaming in the moonlight. “Call Yeats. He’ll know. What to do—.”
“You have a bullet in your chest. You need more than that,” Caitlyn said, thinking about the best course of action given the situation at hand.
The sirens grew louder. If she didn’t act soon, he would lie there and bleed to death.
But if she called an ambulance, there could be more trouble than necessary… And the police…
Making an exasperated sound in her throat, she grabbed him by the arm on his good side. “Come on. Can you walk? We need to get you in my car. I’ll call Thomas on the way.”
“Yeah. Might need a pull off this pavement.” Daniel said with a rasp in his voice.
She bit her lip harder, knowing this would hurt him more than her as she took that good arm and yanked.
He got his feet under him, and she caught and supported his weight as he stood.
Daniel swayed and her knees almost buckled.
This wasn’t a good idea. What if he died in her car?
“You better not die on me,” she grunted, adrenaline giving her strength.
Lights appeared in the distance. Seconds felt like minutes, and they had to go. Not if he didn’t want the cops involved. “Let’s go.”
She opened the passenger side of her Jeep, helped him inside, and slammed the door.
Racing to the driver’s side, she got in.
She must have left it running the whole time.
Not bothering with his seat belt, she put it in reverse and got them out of the parking lot just as the lights of a police car crested the high slope of the road coming toward them.
Her breath held in her lungs as she put her foot on the gas.
“Hey,” Daniel laid his hand on her arm. “You don’t want to give them a reason to chase you for speeding.”
Swallowing down the hysteria, she nodded. She’d dropped her phone on her lap, and he scooted back as he grabbed the device that slid between her legs. “Phone,” he said, as if to reassure her he wasn’t after something else.
“Take me to the monument on the battlefield south of here. I’ll have Yeats meet us there in case someone is still watching. I don’t want anyone else following us.”
“You’ll be dead,” she said, feeling another fit of wetness as more tears flowed. “You worry about staying alive. I’ll worry about telling Thomas where you are later.”
His head rolled to the side. His fingers moved in the darkness. The front of her phone lit up. “What’s your password?” His voice sounded slurred. The phone slipped from his hand, falling with a thud onto the floorboard. “Daniel.” She looked over at him. His other hand slipped from the blanket.
“Daniel!” she shouted, watching the road in front of her, looking back behind her. “Don’t die. Please. Please. I will get you help. We are almost there. Don’t die,” she repeated over and over until it became a whispered mantra the entire way.