Chapter Eight

It was midnight by the time Riser unlocked the door to his cabin and ushered Laney inside. He flicked on the lights and gestured for her to follow him through the small, sparse living room into the kitchen.

Riser scrubbed a hand over the back of his neck and looked at her with an unreadable expression. “You think you could be comfortable here for the night?”

She eyed the black leather couch; it was big enough for both of them to lie on it together. “Yeah, it’s perfect.”

“You’re not sleeping on the couch. You’ll take my bed.” Riser’s commanding tone made her mouth go dry. Suddenly, the open living room seemed small, like he was sucking up all the empty space. What would it be like to share Riser’s bed? For some reason, she seriously doubted he’d be selfish or quick, like Mark had always been at the end… Her breasts tingled; her womb clenched.

Riser continued, “I’ll take the couch. There’s a shower in there—” he pointed to the bedroom, “—if you want to freshen up some. I don’t have any women’s clothes here though, so you’ll probably have to put yours back on.” He swallowed, and he looked almost nervous when he added, “Or you could borrow one of my T-shirts.”

“Oh, a shower would be nice. Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“Positive. Come on. You clean up, and I’ll see if I’ve got some noodles or chips hidden in the kitchen.”

She nodded her thanks, because, well, her mind was too frazzled for her to think of anything to say. She followed him into the bedroom, which was just as sparsely furnished as the living room. It wasn’t that big, but there was a king-size bed in it. She shot him a questioning look.

He shrugged. “You sleep in enough sleeping bags, you learn to cherish a big mattress.” His reply made total sense. He’d probably slept on much worse than sleeping bags. It had taken her weeks to get used to the twin mattress she’d managed to trade for after she and Lily first went on the run.

Riser went to a four-drawer chest, the only other piece of furniture in the room, and pulled out a soft, light-blue T-shirt. He handed it over and flipped the lights on in the en-suite bathroom. “Towels are under the sink. I’m going to call Bo while you take a shower, holler if you need me.”

He was gone before she could say thank you, and for that, she was grateful. If she’d spent even one more minute standing in his bedroom with him, she probably would have jumped his bones. Things had been tense enough in the car, what with her focusing so much on how drop-dead gorgeous he was up close, so the moment he’d mentioned the word ‘bed,’ she’d immediately thought of him in it. With her.

And the whole time, he’d planned on sleeping on the couch. Stupid woman, why would a guy like Riser want a girl like you? The fluorescent light overhead did nothing to hide the shadows under her eyes or the tired tilt to her lips. She’d been wearing the same shirt and shorts since Lily had started puking—a good twenty-four hours. Dear God, she’d completely forgotten about the stains on her shorts from the times she hadn’t been quick enough with the trash can. She gingerly lifted her T-shirt to her nose. Oh, dear Lord. He’d been forced to smell this the whole time? No wonder he didn’t want to share a bed with her—she smelled worse than the garbage disposal. And to think she’d started daydreaming about how good his hand felt around hers. He must’ve only touched her out of pity.

She didn’t deserve a man like Riser. Maybe she was never meant to have another relationship. How could she be so stupid as to want one again after what Mark had put her through?

But there was something about Riser that made her want. Her skin prickled and strained in his direction. Hadn’t she learned wanting was dangerous?

Laney stepped into the shower, cranked the dial until the water was punishingly hot, and let it pour over her head. The tears started immediately, falling as hard as the water from overhead. She silently sobbed as she scrubbed her skin with shower gel from a travel-sized bottle. Anger welled inside her, aimed this time at herself.

How could she even be thinking about Riser …like that when her daughter lay in a hospital. Laney didn’t even know how the surgery went… She didn’t even know if Lily… Laney threw the washrag on the shower floor and angrily jerked the lever to the left, cutting the water off. She fumbled blindly to wipe away her tears. How could she have left her daughter in that hospital, knowing Mark would show up? What kind of mother was she? Dear Lord, would she ever see her daughter again?

There was a knock on the door. “Laney?” Laney quickly wrapped a towel around her, but she had no control over the sobs. They ripped free from her chest, ragged and out of control.

“Laney, I’m coming in there.”

What had she done? How could she have—

“Oh, Christ.” Riser took her in his arms, and she collapsed against his chest, unable to stand up on her own two feet for a moment longer. Today’s events flashed through her mind like a bad movie reel on repeat—Lily getting sick. Staying up all night. Making the decision to take her to the hospital, knowing it was a risk, and then having her worst fears confirmed. Mark had found them.

And everyone thought she was the bad guy. The police were out to get her.

“Laney, you’ve got to stop. Take a deep breath, before you make yourself sick.” She was barely aware of Riser rubbing small circles on her back.

“I—I just left her. I don’t even know how the surgery went. What if—” A fractured sob broke her voice in half and she couldn’t continue.

“No. Lily is fine. You did the right thing. If you had stayed there, Mark would’ve taken you away. You’d have never seen her again.”

“But—”

“No buts. Trust me, I talked to Bo. He sent Cheri to sit with Lilly. He’s working on a warrant for Mark and he’s cleared the BOLO on my truck, no more cops hunting us down. It’s all working out just like I promised. You did the right thing.”

He was right—logically, she knew it—but her heart felt like it was being ripped in two. Normally, she didn’t let Lily out of her sight when she wasn’t at work. She’d found a tiny daycare in their new town that took cash and didn’t require records. No one there knew her identity. No one knew Lily.

Laney had done everything right—she kept to herself, stayed away from credit cards and electronic records. She’d dropped off the map.

Until Lily got sick.

Trusting someone else with Lily’s life, when Laney had been her sole provider for so long, was like swallowing rusty nails. Riser made it a little bit easier. When everyone else in the hospital had looked the other way, not wanting to get sucked into her problems, he’d stepped forward and took charge. He’d made sure her baby was taken care of. And he hadn’t hesitated to help Laney escape the hospital—even though he might well pay a price for the help he’d offered.

Every action he had taken and every word he had said had indicated he was trustworthy. She knew that in her head.

She just couldn’t get her heart to catch up.

“That’s better. Deep breaths,” Riser said.

She rested her cheek on his chest and concentrated on the way it rose and fell with her. He wasn’t a soft pillow, he was hard-packed steel—steel she could count on standing strong beside her. At her back.

Laney knew that no matter what she did or how hard she tried, she wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight. The worry for Lily would drive her mad. She shuddered, her emotions too raw to contain.

Somehow, she got her sobbing under control, ratcheting it down to slow, shuddering breaths. She didn’t know what to do with herself. She didn’t know anything.

The only solid thing in her life right now was the man holding her in his strong arms.