The two had reached the door. The guy was going to try to escape with Nicole, but he wasn’t going to get far, dragging a woman kicking and screaming. Sam would catch up with him soon enough, it would be…
Sam was mentally reviewing his options, none of them good, when the man loosened his arm from around Nicole’s throat, picked her up bodily and hurled her across the room, straight at the big plate-glass windows of her office on the ninth floor.
“Honey,honey, stay awake. Don’t go away again, that’s a good girl. Look at me now. That’s right, open those beautiful blue eyes.”
Strong fingers, tapping at her cheek. Annoying. It was really annoying, when all she wanted to do was sleep. Some small memory in the back of her head told her she’d been drifting in and out of consciousness.
She was on her back, head in someone’s lap. Someone she knew…
Another tap and her eyes opened. Strong features, face drawn, deep brackets around his mouth.
“Sam?” Her voice came out a raw whisper. It hurt to talk. Hurt to swallow, she discovered.
“Yeah.” Sam’s own voice was harsh, hoarse. “Yeah, it’s Sam.”
“What—” Nicole brought a hand to her throat. God, ithurt. “What happened?”
Sam’s face above her was grim, nostrils pinched with stress. He looked pale, stressed. Ten years older.
“Someone was waiting for you in your office, honey. He was hurting you. When I came in he was holding a gun to your head. He tossed you across the room.” His jaw muscles worked. “You nearly went out the window. Of the ninth floor.” His eyes closed. “Just about gave me a fucking heart attack.”
Flashes of memory blossomed in her mind, like scenes under strobe lights. A gun muzzle, tightly held against her temple. A strong, unyielding arm around her throat, cruelly tight, cutting off air. Sam, still and dangerous-looking, ignoring her, carefully watching the man holding her like a cat watches a mouse.
Being picked up, flying through the air, limbs flailing, caught at the last minute by Sam…
“Where—” Nicole raised a hand to her head. The blood at her temple had dried. “Where did the man go? Did you catch him?”
“No.” Sam ground his teeth, hard. She could actually hear the enamel grating. “I was too busy catching you. Your windows aren’t bulletproof. They’re just simple glass. Nine stories is a hell of a long way to fall. Luckily, we didn’t find out what a nine-story fall looks like.”
Nicole stirred in his arms, groaning. She seemed to be one big sore muscle. She might not have fallen out of the window, but she’d definitely banged against some furniture.
“Shhh.” Sam held her more tightly. “Don’t move. The EMTs are on their way and so are the police. They should be here any minute.”
Nicole’s hand sought, and found, Sam’s. “That’s nice,” she said drowsily, eyelids drooping. She ached all over and was so tired. “I think I’ll just rest my eyes for a moment.”
The next time Nicole felt that annoying tapping against her cheek, her office was filled with light and people and noise. She sat up, Sam’s hand to her back helping her up. It took her a second to realize her head wasn’t swimming.
“Ma’am?” A young face thrust itself in front of hers. Thin, short hair, clever eyes. He shot a glance at Sam. “Sir, you’re going to have to give me some space here or I can’t do my job.”
With visible reluctance, Sam let her go.
The medic shined a light in her eyes, took her pulse.
“Shouldn’t she be strapped to a stretcher?” Sam asked. He hadn’t gone far, crouched on his haunches next to her.
The medic shot him an ironical glance. “She was sitting upright when I got to her. If she has a spinal injury, it’s too late.”
Sam closed his eyes and winced. “Jesus, I didn’t think of that.”
Nicole reached out and closed her hand around his. “That’s okay, Sam. I don’t have any serious injuries, I promise.”
Sam’s eyes met the medic’s. “She was tossed across a room. Didn’t go out the window by a miracle, but she hit the bookcase. God knows what kind of internal injuries she has.”
The miracle was Sam. He’d caught her just before she’d have gone crashing through the window to her death nine stories below. She shuddered at the thought.
Nicole took a quick internal check, as the medic took her pulse and shined a light in her eyes. Did she have internal injuries?
Most of the momentum of her flight toward the windows had been blocked by Sam’s body. Her shoulder and back had slammed into the bookcase and she’d had the wind knocked out of her, like the time she’d fallen out of the swings when she was ten. She still remembered that horrible feeling as she lay on her back, staring at the bright blue Greek sky, unable to move and unable to draw a breath.
