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In a flash, Caleb is down by my side.
“Jesus Christ, Gwen. What the hell happened?” I look up at his concerned expression. He sees my befuddled gaze and helps me to my feet.
“Karen,” I manage to get out.
“What the fuck happened?” says another male voice. A very tall, and very muscular man is standing next to Caleb, his gaze moving around the perimeter. Whoever this is, he’s extremely handsome in a rugged, prizefighter way. He’s huge. His broad shoulders block out the dimming sun. His dark hair is cropped short, and his dark eyes are angry, but that doesn’t take away from his good looks. He’s almost as hot as Caleb. But then again, no one compares to my Caleb. He looks angrily at Caleb. “I thought you had her. If I thought she’d been left alone, I would have stuck around.”
“Shit,” Caleb swears under his breath. “I took a call.” Caleb turns back to me. “Are you hurt, baby?”
“I just knocked my head. I have a thick skull, I’ll be fine,” I joke.
He slides his hand to the back of my head and feels the bump forming, then pulls his hand away. His fingers are bright red. Blood.
“We’ve got to get you checked out.” Caleb sets a firm arm around my waist and leads me back to the car.
As we’re leaving, the man says to Caleb, “I’m going to scout around. I’ll come by your place later.”
“Thanks, Mason.”
Once we’re in the car, I ask, “Who’s Mason?”
“A guardian angel, babe. He’s here to keep an eye on you while we figure out what’s going on. I’ll explain it all later.” He takes hold of my hand, his eyes never leaving the road.
FIFTEEN
It Doesn’t Add Up
CALEB
One minute, she was standing right in front of the building, then she was gone. I tossed the phone aside, not bothering to hang up, and bolted. I’m the one who gave Mason the sign that he could go. Then I turned my attention away, and she went missing.
Those five to ten minutes seemed like a fucking lifetime. And then to find her on her ass at the side of the building holding her head nearly gave me a heart attack.
The doctor at the clinic took a look at the gash on the back of her head and decided stitches weren’t necessary, and he didn’t think she had a concussion either, but advised me to keep an eye on her throughout the evening.
“If anything changes, get her to the hospital pronto,” the doctor said.
The phone has been ringing since the moment we got back to my place. I was speaking with Alex when I threw the phone aside, and he’s been trying to get hold of me ever since.
“Christ, man. You had us all scared shitless,” he says when I finally answer.
I rake a hand through my hair as I shift Gwen’s head off my lap and onto the soft sofa cushion. She stirs, but doesn’t wake up. She laid her head down when we got home and has been drifting in and out of sleep for the last hour.
“Sorry, brother. Gwen—”
“Yeah, we already know. Zeke’s holding the girls back from coming to check on her. He has them painting his and Jaz’s new place. Mason called Damian. He wants a meeting. We told him you wouldn’t be leaving Gwen tonight, so we’re on our way over,” Alex says, then asks, “How’s she doing?”
“She’s better than I thought, but I fucked up.” This could have been much worse. Karen is crazy on a good day. There’s no telling what she’s capable of.
“She’s safe. You gotta move past this,” he says calmly.
“Right,” I breathe, but it still burns that I let this happen.
“See you soon.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Gwen move. “Rest, baby.” She rubs her eyes, and I hear her stomach growl.
“I think I need to appease my belly,” she says with a grin, and starts to get up. I push her shoulders down.
