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Malcolm sat in the chair across from her again. He took the glass from her, setting it on the side table before his hands settled over hers, still so warm. “Look, this will probably make our talk more awkward, but it doesn’t have to. I have no expectations here.”
Of course he didn’t. Jami was no longer that vibrant and sexy girl. Her bony fingers flexed in his grip. She’d become a skeleton of what she’d been. “What did you want to talk about?” she asked, pulling away from his touch.
His hands closed into fists, but he pulled them back to rest on the chair’s arms. “I met Raneer tonight.”
“What?” Jami’s mind tried to wrap around the concept.
“He came to my tavern. I think he was sizing me up.”
She started to push up from the couch, but her leg reminded her that was a bad idea. Her fingers dug into the couch as her breath hissed through her teeth.
“Damn it, Jami.” He squeezed her shoulders, his warmth seeping through as his head dipped to try to read her expression. “Have you been taking the pain medication?”
“Yes,” Jami muttered, unwilling to admit she’d only taken one more pill, and that had been hours ago.
He sighed, standing and heading to her bedroom. He returned with one of the pills.
Jami took it with her fingers this time, her mouth tingling at the reminder that she’d used her lips once before. She swallowed the pill with a gulp from the glass he handed her.
Malcolm sat beside her. “Did you tell Andrew Raneer my name?”
She shook her head. She’d been too worried that he’d find her somehow once he knew. “How?” she asked.
Malcolm handed her cell phone to her. “Unlock it for me?”
She stared at it, but did as he asked. Of course Andrew would track her using it. He was an electronics man. Hell, that was his business. Her father had even written code for him back when his mind had been fully functional.
“Here it is.” Malcolm turned the phone, showing her the app he’d found. “He’s likely been tracking you for a while.”
Not that she’d ever gone anywhere before. No, she’d been in the same house taking care of her father ninety-nine percent of the time.
“Who is Andrew Raneer to you, Jami?”
She didn’t want to tell Malcolm how pathetic she’d become. Her breath shook. “My father worked for him. After the accident, he helped as much as he could.”
“Did he have expectations for this help he offered?” Malcolm asked.
He already saw too much. “It wasn’t like that. He never asked for anything.” Not in words. Her guilt had been all her own. And then he’d told her he admired her, loved her even. Andrew would gush about her generosity, her intelligence, her maturity. And then his hands would find her.
“The man obviously has designs on you.” Malcolm’s tone had an undercurrent to it, one that made her feel like the pill was still in her throat. “You’re telling me he’s done nothing?”
“I’ve been sleeping with him. Is that what you want to hear?” Jami’s eyes heated as she raised them to meet his. “It was my choice, okay?”
Malcolm didn’t say anything.
“He’s a sweet man. He just wants to take care of me.” She was the one to look away. “Yeah, he’s done a lot for me and my father over the years, but there were never conditions attached. He simply wanted to. If he’d gotten his way, I wouldn’t have needed to take care of my father at all.” Andrew had told her more than once over the years that he’d pay for a home for her father. That Kevin Reece would have been better off for it.
It was the truth. Her guilt had kept her imprisoned with someone who didn’t even know who she was. And then her care had killed that shell of a man.
“Why aren’t you with Raneer now, then, Jami?” Malcolm asked.
Her fingers shook against the glass. “I’ve become so pathetic, haven’t I?” She forced herself to look up again. “You must be so disappointed to meet me again.”
In the dim light, it was difficult to read the truth in his eyes. Malcolm sighed, one of his hands moving to rub her back. “You won’t find any judgment here. It sounds like your life fell apart the same as Celia’s.” The rubbing changed to a squeeze on her shoulder. “And you dealt with it how you could.”
Her breath was stuck in her throat.
“I’m worried about Raneer. I hear you trust him, but the vibes he gave me weren’t good.” The heat from his hand continued to warm her shoulder. “And he knows exactly where you are. That’s why I’m going to be staying here for now.”
