“What the hell are you doing here?” Aiden couldn’t have stopped the angry retort if he tried.
“Gee, I don’t know. My sister barely escaped a fire and died.”
“You know what I mean.” His eyes narrowed as he stared hard at James. He didn’t flinch or break the stare with him.
“I’m okay.” Theresa’s whispered words broke some of the tension swimming between them.
James walked to the other side of the bed and grabbed his sister’s hand. “Are you? Because I nearly had a heart attack when I heard what was happening. I might have more charges slapped on me, too, because I hit the security guard and left.”
Her brows fell into confusion. “What are you talking about? I tried calling you. Where have you been?”
His eyes connected with James’, but he decided to let her brother handle how he wanted to explain everything.
“You know I’m not a fan of this jackass. He’s an asshole, and you should stay away from him.”
Well, he didn’t like to hear that. Would Theresa listen to him? She loved her brother. Even when he acted like a drunken idiot, she loved him. He professed his love. Repeatedly, in fact. Not once did she repeat the words back. Maybe what he felt for her was all one-sided. Maybe she didn’t love him. Whatever she said to James’ words would tell him how she felt towards him.
“I know that already. What does that have to do with where you were?”
“What, the golden boy didn’t tell you what he did?”
She glanced between him and James, the confusion even brighter. He didn’t say a word. He didn’t do what he did to get into her good graces. Well, maybe a little. He did it because he knew it would make her happy. After the way he made her sad, that’s all he wanted. To make her happy again.
“Just tell me, James.”
“He paid my bail, even though he’s the reason I got locked up to begin with.”
“Sure. I pushed you and caused a scene in the bar while I was drunk off my ass.” Never again would he help this asshole. Then his eyes connected with Theresa and he knew that was a lie. Of course, he’d help James again just to make her smile.
“You paid my brother’s bail? Why?”
“Yeah, Officer Crowl, why?” James asked in a mocking tone.
Sitting on the bed, ignoring the painful fact she pushed him away a few minutes ago, he grabbed her other hand, as her brother still held her hand. “James is forgetting one important fact. There was one condition for me to pay his bail. He had to get help. He agreed to enter a treatment facility. The one near Mason. You know the one I’m talking about.” She nodded. “He isn’t supposed to have contact with anyone for thirty days and he wasn’t supposed to leave.” He turned his head to glare at James.
“Fire. My sister. Do the damn math, Officer Crowl.”
“Quit calling me that, especially in that tone of voice.”
“Please stop arguing.” Her quiet voice was his undoing.
He bent closer, almost touching her lips, regardless that her brother stood in the room. “I love you. I will do everything in my power to always make you happy, even if I don’t like doing it.”
She closed the distance and pressed her lips to his. The kiss was brief but enough to satisfy him. It told him more than any words could express.
He backed away and looked at James. “What did you mean when you walked in? Do you think someone deliberately started the fire?”
James let go of Theresa’s hand and started to pace next to the bed. “Yeah, I do, and I almost didn’t come to the hospital. I want to kill him.”
“Him, who?” He needed James to get to the point. He wasn’t above beating the answer out of him. He didn’t like the thought that someone would deliberately hurt Theresa. It made no sense. She was so damn sweet.
James stopped pacing. The sorrow and regret on his face almost had him bending his feelings to like the guy just a little. Not a lot, because he didn’t think he would ever like James, but just a touch.
“Dusty.”
Theresa gasped. Her hand trembled within his. He squeezed lightly to calm her down and offer some comfort. A little for himself, if he was being honest.
“Did he touch you?” James almost loomed over her. He must’ve seen the warning flash in his eyes because he backed up a step. “He started spouting his mouth off after we got locked up. He’s damn lucky he was in the cell next to mine and not sharing one because I would’ve started beating the living shit out of him. Did he touch you?”
Theresa frowned. “He didn’t hurt me.”
Aiden couldn’t hold in the snort. “You fell and bruised your cheek because of him. He obviously didn’t—”
Well, shit. Did his words to Dusty, his warning, make him retaliate against Theresa?
He looked at James. “What makes you think he started the fire? What did he say to you?”
The fierce look on his face said he wanted to know more about the bruise. “He said Theresa was a tease. When I asked him to clarify, he wouldn’t. Then he said some shit about you and called her a tease again.” He rubbed a hand over his jaw. “I have no proof he started the fire, but when I heard there was a fire in town and the address, I just knew he did it. The dumb nurse didn’t know she was talking about my sister’s house. I had to come and make sure she was alright.”
“Dusty has issues, but I don’t think he’d…I forgot to unplug the tree. I’m sure it was just me being an idiot. I’m sure that’s what caused the fire.”
He squeezed her hand. “Hey, it’s nothing we need to worry about right now. The fire chief will investigate what started the fire and we’ll go from there. Let me talk to Chief Duncan and give him a brief update and he can have a word with Dusty.” He leaned closer. “The one thing I don’t want you to do is worry about anything. You never answered my question. Do you need to stay for observation?”
“I don’t think so.” Her grip tightened. “You’re not leaving, are you?”
He smiled, so thankful to hear she didn’t want him to leave. He actually wanted to leave. He wanted to find Dusty. But he didn’t trust himself. He’d hurt him if he was responsible for the fire. “I’m only going to step into the hallway to go find Chief Duncan. That’s as far as I’m going.”
❄
“Thank you, James.”
He sighed. “For what?”
She looked at the doorway where Aiden had just walked out. She had to thank him as well. “For getting help finally. I miss my brother.”
He sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at his lap. “It’s hard to stop when I feel like my life is spinning out of control. When I heard there was a fire…” He turned his gaze to her. “I can be a jackass sometimes, but you know I love you, right?”
“I know. I love you, too.”
“So…you and Officer Crowl, huh? Finally snagged the man you always wanted.”
She shrugged. Did she? He said he loved her. He said he wouldn’t leave her side. But she knew they had things they needed to work through.
“I still can’t stand him. I didn’t agree to the treatment center for him…or even you. I realized, after the shit with Dusty…I realized I needed to change for myself. I guess this is goodbye for a while, well, if they let me back in. I kinda acted like a maniac when I left.”
“I’ll be there for you every step of the way.”
“I know.” He leaned forward to kiss her forehead, then stood up. “I’m glad you’re okay.”
He left without another word. She figured she should be thankful for the few words they exchanged. They didn’t have many brotherly sisterly moments as they just did. And I love yous? They rarely said that as well. But in that brief time, she saw the brother she remembered from childhood, before the alcohol started to take over. She couldn’t wait to see that brother all the time.
Dr. Pearson walked in to check on her and let her know she’d be discharged soon. Erin came in with a scrub shirt to change into since her shirt had been dirty and full of blood from her wound. Erin also let her borrow an extra pair of tennis shoes she had in her locker. She was so grateful for her thoughtfulness, and that she happened to have an extra pair on hand that fit her. She had nothing. No shoes, since she escaped out of the house in her bare feet. No clothes. None of her jewelry supplies. Nothing. Everything she owned was burnt to a crisp.
Aiden found her sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting patiently. She had nowhere to go. She had no one else to call. She didn’t even have a phone anymore. When she saw the fire and all the smoke, she didn’t stop to grab anything.
He gently sat down next to her on the bed, pulling one of her hands into his.
“Sorry it took me so long.”
“It’s okay.” She met his gaze. “What did Chief Duncan have to say?”
“He made a few phone calls. The fire chief is aware of our suspicions. Chief Duncan left to track down Dusty and ask him a few questions.”
She couldn’t seem to move her eyes away from his. They just stared at each other for the longest time.
“I have no home. I have nowhere to go. I lost everything.”
A tiny breath left his mouth as he pulled her hand to his lap. “You have a home with me. You might have lost all your possessions, but you didn’t lose everything.” His breath hitched. “I didn’t lose everything. Because when I saw those flames…I thought I lost everything in my life in that moment. Come home with me.”
“Okay.”
What else could she say? His words took her breath away. Honestly, her mind was too frazzled to have a serious conversation.
They left a few minutes later with instructions for the stitches on her arm and a bottle of painkillers. She didn’t think she’d be taking any of it, but Aiden insisted just in case. She sliced her arm pretty good. It hurt like hell when she cut herself, but it didn’t fully register she cut herself until her neighbor, Chris, who found her as she ran from the side of her house, pointed it out to her. He had already called the fire department before he saw her, the sirens echoing in the distance. By the time they arrived, the fire had touched almost every part of her house. She couldn’t believe she made it out alive.
“Hey, are you okay? We’re home.”
She looked out the window, surprised to see he was correct. They were sitting in front of his house. Aiden helped her out of Chief Duncan’s vehicle they had borrowed, since Aiden had left the house with Bentley when he heard the news. She felt sorry, a strong need to apologize for scaring him the way she did.
Or did she? They all believed Dusty started the fire. Would someone really be that cruel to her? Was Dusty that mean and vindictive?
Aiden held her hand as they walked to his front door, both of them shivering from the cold since neither had a jacket. He obviously left in such a rush he didn’t even grab a jacket. She noticed in the hospital his shirt was dirty and torn in one spot. She didn’t ask what happened, almost afraid to hear the answer. And she couldn’t say why that scared her.
He opened the door without unlocking it, another thing he probably didn’t do before he left, and let her walk in first. She froze in place, her eyes gazing at the mistletoes hanging in the hallway.
The door softly clicked shut behind her. A strong pair of arms wrapped around her as his chin rested on her shoulder.
“What’s this?” she whispered.
“A trail of mistletoes. Would you like to see where it ends? Will you forgive me for my asinine behavior last weekend? Will you let me love you like you deserved to be loved?”
How could she resist those words? She didn’t even want to try.
“Yes.”