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Hardin’s eyes closed, and his shoulders dropped. “Holy fuck,” he whispered to himself.
I climbed out of Mac’s hold and scurried across the bed to kneel on the mattress in front of Hardin, who opened his eyes. “I’m so sorry,” I said, a sob escaping.
“You’re sorry?” he asked, his head popping back as if I’d punched him.
I nodded, crying hard now. “He’s your brother.”
“Fuck, Sam.” He dropped to his knees on the floor so we were eye level. His hands gently cupped my cheeks, the pads of his thumbs brushing away the tears. His eyes were so distraught. Devastated. Pained. “Baby, you have nothing to apologize for. Mark… he… Christ, what he’s done.”
“I can see how upset you are about him.”
His eyes narrowed, and he studied me, shook his head. “No. You’ve got it wrong. I’m upset about you. About what he did to you. What he was going to do.”
“He’s your brother,” I repeated.
He shook his head. “Haven’t you figured out by now you’re the most important thing in my life? That we’d do anything for you?”
I remained quiet, too overwhelmed.
“I’m in love with you, Sam,” Hardin said, his voice rough with emotion.
“We’re both in love with you,” Mac added. He sat beside me on the bed and rubbed his hand up and down my back as if he couldn’t keep himself from touching me. “Christ, we’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
I gave them a small smile, the adrenaline starting to bleed away. “You found me. I’m… so glad you found me. I… want out of here. Please, can we leave this place? I don’t know where he took me, but I don’t want to be here any longer.”
As Hardin stood, he scooped me up in his arms. “This is my parents’ house,” he said grimly. “They’re in Arizona for the winter.”
His parents’ house. Oh God, this awful mess happened where he’d grown up? Was this his childhood bedroom, or Mark’s?
He carried me out of the room, and it felt so good to be held, to know he was taking me somewhere safe. Mac followed us down a flight of stairs and into a great room. There were several police officers roaming around, and I recognized the two detectives from earlier.
“Mark’s on the way to the station,” Nix said to all three of us. Then he looked to me. “Your men did a good job finding you.”
I looked up at Hardin. “Put me down, please. I can stand.”
“She was hit on the head,” Mac told them.
Hardin held me even tighter. “You need to go to the hospital.”
I shook my head and it throbbed. “I’m a doctor. I have a hematoma on the back of my cranium. No concussion. My wrists are sore. I need some ointment, over-the-counter pain meds and bed rest.”
“Time in bed is a given,” Hardin stated.
My body heated at his words, hoping what he inferred was what I was thinking. Time in bed with Hardin and Mac. I didn’t want to be alone. God, my apartment had been broken into, and Mark had assaulted me. I wasn’t sure if I could do alone ever again.
“You’ve been through a lot. We can question you tomorrow when you’re feeling better,” Miranski said.
“Good, she’ll be at my house,” Hardin said.
He must have felt me relax at those words because he looked down at me. The rage was gone, but he wasn’t the least bit calm. His life had been turned upside down in the matter of a few hours. The family he’d known had been destroyed.
“Please, let me stand,” I all but begged.
Grudgingly he put me down but kept an arm about my waist, either afraid I might fall over or disappear.
“I’ll an
swer your questions. I want to get it over with,” I said and Miranski nodded.
