Lauren tossed and turned. She could move her head, but the rest of her body was ignoring her. She shifted a hand, and pins and needles ran up her arm. She frowned, trying again to open her eyes. Just how long had she been asleep? She was surprised Brayden hadn’t woken her up yet. It had been a long drive yesterday, but still, she couldn’t understand how she’d managed to sleep so long her arm had gone numb. Usually the crazy TV shows ten-year-olds like to watch in the morning would have woken her by now, even if Brayden himself was managing to stay quiet.

Unease ran through her, and she managed to crack her eyelids open. What the hell was that beeping noise? Had she forgotten to replace the battery in the smoke alarm again? The damn thing had beeped on and off for a week before she’d remembered last time . . .

Smoke!

Lauren’s eyes flew open. She pushed herself up, swinging a leg over the bed. What the hell was she doing in bed?! She had to find Brayden. He’d been trapped in the smoke and . . . 

“Now, now, Mrs. Mancini. It’s all right.”

What? She looked quickly around the room, rubbing her eyes when her vision blurred. Her hand caught on something: tubing, running along her face. She frowned again, tugging at whatever was holding her back from getting up. The woman—nurse?—fussed around her, straightening the tubes. Lauren felt a cool whoosh of air as she inhaled. “That’s it,” the nurse said. “You’ll feel better if you leave that in place.” She pushed gently at Lauren’s thigh, trying to maneuver her back into bed, but Lauren ignored her. She moved again and was stopped by a tugging on her hand. She looked down, blinking to clear the final remnants of whatever was making her sight unclear. Why the hell was there an IV in her hand? Her gaze flew over to the stand by her bed. The beeping noise she’d heard was a heart monitor. She’d been asleep? No, unconscious! In a rush, it all came back—the hall, fighting for her breath, falling over before she found . . . “Brayden!”

“It’s okay,” the nurse soothed. “He’s right over there. See?” She touched Lauren’s shoulder and guided her to look over to the other side of her bed. There was Brayden, curled up on a small two-seater couch, his long legs hanging over the arm. Lauren’s heart swelled, and she relaxed for what felt like the first time in days. He was safe.

Wait . . . if she’d been unconscious, who’d brought him to the hospital? Had Victor found them already? Her heart rate accelerated, the machine behind her kicking up its infernal beeping. The nurse just smiled at her and plumped up her pillows. “They’re both safe, Dear. If you climb back into bed, I’m sure your husband will be back any minute. He went to get coffee.” She clucked her tongue. “Poor thing’s been up all night, keeping your boy calm while they waited for you to wake up.”

Huh? For a moment, confusion overran Lauren’s panic. She didn’t have a husband, not anymore. She’d loved James, but he was gone, had been for years, and she’d accepted that. A little more of the panic faded as she realized the nurse probably also wasn’t talking about Victor. He was an imposing man, but at thirty years Lauren’s senior, wouldn’t usually be mistaken for her husband. Yet she couldn’t let her guard down. If not Victor, who the hell had been sitting with Brayden all night? One of Victor’s goon squad?

Over the years since James’ death, she and Brayden had been assigned various “bodyguards.” Victor claimed that he only wanted to keep them safe, that he felt responsible to pick up the mantle of their protection since his beloved son was no longer of this world. Lauren hadn’t believed a word he’d said. More likely, he’d wanted to keep watch on them when he wasn’t around. She was of no doubt that the men who were supposed to be keeping her and Brayden safe were instead reporting every step she took directly back to Victor himself. He’d controlled their finances, where she and Brayden had lived, even telling Lauren she didn’t need to work, or have any outside contacts in the end. Victor positioned himself to be the provider of their every need and desire, making himself both indispensable and scary as hell all at once. If he gave her everything she needed, then she wouldn’t need anyone else in her life. A job, any friends, anyone else that wasn’t part of his network.

Lauren was sure that was Victor’s ultimate goal: to cut her and Brayden off altogether from anyone who wasn’t part of the family. When she’d finally emerged from the fog of grief from James’ death, she’d started squirreling away small amounts of money—five dollars here from change from the dry cleaners, twenty dollars cash from an overpayment on a bill. Only some places would give her money back in cash that was spent on one of Victor’s credit cards, and it had taken a long time for her to pull together enough. Finally, the previous week, she’d had enough to pay for gas and a decent enough hotel that she’d feel safe. True, the money would have gone further if she’d stayed in a more run-down place, but she had Brayden to consider, too. Plus, that’s where Victor would start looking for them first. Lauren had no doubt that despite all the “threats” he claimed she and Brayden needed protecting from, that he was the biggest one of all. She could only hope that the money she’d squirreled away lasted long enough for her to find a job, something that would pay cash in hand while they got back on their feet. Then she could work out a way she and Brayden could change their identities and run for real. Baby steps, but she’d get there.

Yeah, right.

She’d lasted exactly three days before landing in the hospital and apparently attracting Victor’s attention all over again. She looked over at Brayden. The nurse had moved on. She was still in the room, checking Lauren’s chart, but she’d stopped paying so much attention to Lauren herself. If she just sat quietly for a few more minutes, the nurse would leave, and then Lauren could grab Brayden and run again. She flexed her leg muscles beneath the sheet, not daring to try to get out of bed again while the nurse was still in the room. One cramped and shuddered, but Lauren gritted her teeth and ignored it. She wasn’t waiting around to find out who had been sitting by her bedside while she’d been out cold.

But why hadn’t they taken Brayden while she’d been helpless? Victor originally had wanted them both under his thumb, but that would probably change with her attempt to run. Lauren had guessed that the only reason she’d been around still was that Brayden was young enough to want his mom around. What would have happened when he was a teenager? Victor had a reputation for bringing promising young men into the fold while they were still young enough to accept orders without question, well before they grew into men. Since she’d proven herself to be unfaithful, why hadn’t he taken Brayden and vanished him before she’d even regained consciousness?

She flopped back on the pillow, all the fight going out of her. She had to figure out what was going on before she took another step. She’d already messed things up royally in just a couple of days. If she jumped the gun again without all the information, she could screw things up entirely, and that was something she and Brayden couldn’t afford. If only she could . . . 

“Ahh, there he is now,” the nurse said. She leaned over and patted Lauren on the leg. “See, I told you. Everyone you love is safe and sound. No need for panic.” She smiled at Lauren once more and then walked out of the room.

Lauren didn’t move. All thoughts of grabbing Brayden and running again had left her mind. She couldn’t think of anything. There was no room in her mind as long as she was staring at the large man currently blocking off most of the doorway of her hospital room. He stood there, coffee in one hand and a juice, presumably for Brayden, in the other. Such a simple, everyday occurrence. So normal that the nurse couldn’t possibly have had any idea what she’d said. She’d been right, though, on the first part at least. Everyone Lauren loved was indeed safe and sound. Panic, though? That was entirely warranted. Standing in front of her, as if he’d been there all along, was Matt Damico. Her first real friend, the man she’d loved, the man who had taken her virginity, and the man Victor claimed had died along with his father over a decade ago.