“Why do you protect her? Why do you never protect me?” she all but screamed.
I moved forward, my hands extending for the gun. White noise filled my ears, my heartbeat in my throat, as I inched towards her.
“I came to talk to you, but she’s here. Maybe that’s a sign . . .”
The gun suddenly changed direction and pointed to my side. I half-turned on my heel to see Kari coming out of the door.
“Kari!” I yelled, watching her eyes grow wide at the sight of Sam. I heard the hammer of the gun cocking and whipped back to Sam, a sinister smile gracing her lips.
“No!” I shouted, jumping in front of Kari as movement from behind Samantha caught my eye.
I looked over her left shoulder as someone came up behind her. Sam noticed my eyes and glanced over her shoulder just as someone reached for her from behind.
She pulled the trigger.
The gun went off.
Sam was thrown to the ground, the gun skidding across the tile.
“Max!” Kari screamed as the glass behind me shattered, my blood splattering the wall behind me.
KARI
“Fancy seeing you here,” Dr. Manning said as he came in the hospital room to check on Max.
“Shut it,” I replied, holding Max’s hand.
He laughed. “The bullet went in your left shoulder and out the other side pretty cleanly. At least she was a bad shot, buddy. If that thing would’ve gone towards your neck or heart another inch, this would have had a much different outcome.” He glanced at me and smiled. “And this girl here saved your life with her nursing skills. I’m going to suggest you use them to your full advantage while you can.”
Max smiled sleepily, the meds making him tired. “I plan on it.”
Connor winked at me. “Seriously, Kari, good work.”
“He saved my life,” I said, choking up. I looked at the man I loved laying on the white sheets.
He tried to smile but winced instead.
“I asked the police to come back in a little bit. They said it wasn’t urgent because Sam was already in custody and they have the other guy’s statement.”
“Blaine,” I said, heaving out a breath. “I talked to him a little bit ago. He said that Sam’s mother found his number somewhere and she called him. Thank God he came to find us . . .” My voice trailed off, my mind starting to dance into dangerous territory.
“I’m just glad it ended like it did, even though your boy here got a hole.” Connor nodded towards Max.
“Thanks a lot,” Max muttered, drifting off.
“Hey, better you than her.”
Max tried to nod but fell asleep first. I squeezed his hand, tracing the lines in his palm with my fingers.
I watched him sleep, the pain that was written across his face earlier now gone. His lips were full and pressed together, begging for a kiss. His eyelashes, long and dark, laying gently on his cheeks. A lock of hair was pressed against his forehead and I reached out and brushed it away.
I owed him my life in every sense of the expression; he’d saved me in so many ways. He had saved my life by jumping in front of me, by literally taking a bullet just like my dad said he would. But with his belief in me, his loyalty, his unconditional love, Max Quinn had saved my heart . . . and probably my soul.
I brought his knuckle to my lips and pressed a kiss against it, fighting back tears.
A knock sounded at the door and Connor opened it, letting Jada in.
“How is he?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
“He’s going to be alright,” I said softly. “He’s going to be sore for a while, but we can deal with that.”
“Fern sent us back here. She said she saw Max already and he’s alive and you probably needed me.” She smiled at Connor as he got a chair from the corner and brought it to her so she could sit down. “Thank you,” she said to him.
“Where’s Cane?” I asked.
She smiled sadly. “Talking to his mother, believe it or not.”
“Really?” I asked in disbelief. “How’d that happen?”
“She called while we were in the waiting room. He didn’t know her number and thought it might be about work, so he answered it.” She blew out a breath. “He went outside to talk. The look on his face when he realized it was Kellie . . . I hope this works out for him, Kari. It’s been weighing on him so heavily.”
“I don’t mean to eavesdrop, but your husband’s name is Cane?” Connor had a perplexed look on his face, like he was figuring out a difficult patient.
Jada nodded. “Cane Alexander. Why? Do you know him?”
Connor’s face paled.
“You okay, Connor?” I asked.
“Again, not to pry, but what’s going on with his mother?” he asked Jada.
“Well, she left him as a child and now she wants to get to know him again, I guess. He hadn’t decided one way or the other, but she just called and he answered by accident.”