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  “Did you …” she asked as she’d never seen him pull the trigger.

  “No. I would’ve to protect you, but I didn’t.”

  They both turned, and Gunner was glaring at Brett’s body, a semi-automatic in his hand. Lying on his stomach, he was propped up on his elbows, blood running down his head.

  “Gunner, you’re alive,” Shar gushed out.

  “Where’s Lily?” he demanded.

  Mike pointed at the woods. “She ran. Two guys went after her.”

  “No.” Gunner pushed himself to his feet, swaying unsteadily as he clutched the gun. Blood covered his forehead, and he had to swipe it out of his eyes. Shar could hardly believe he was alive, but what about Lily?

  “You stay with Gunner,” Mike instructed. “I’ll go after Lily.”

  “Neither of you can even walk,” she protested. “Give me the gun, and I’ll go after Lily.”

  “Shar, no.” Gunner shook his head and started stuttering toward the forest.

  Mike shuffled toward him, dragging his right leg. Shar hurried after both of them. Men! Honestly. Sure, she’d never shot a gun before, but how hard could it be? Aim and shoot, right?

  A small figure darted out of the forest and knocked Gunner off his feet. He slammed back onto the dirt road, and Shar hoped the hit alone wouldn’t finish him off.

  “Get down,” Lily yelled, from where she’d landed on top of Gunner.

  Bullets sprayed the air where Gunner had been. Mike tackled Shar, wrapping her up in his arms to cushion her fall, but it still hurt taking the brunt of both of their weights and having the breath knocked completely out of her.

  A man darted out of the forest toward them, angling for a better shot. Gunner rolled out from under Lily, firing the semi-automatic several times. The man was thrown back against a tree, and lay, unmoving.

  “How many more?” Gunner panted out.

  “That’s all. I took the other one out in the trees.” She grabbed his bloody face between her palms and kissed him fiercely. “Oh, baby, you’re alive!”

  Gunner smiled and then lay back in the dirt and closed his eyes. “Not sure I want to be.”

  Lily knelt next to him and tenderly cradled his head, wiping at the blood with her shirt. “You’d better want to be, or I’ll smack you around after you get patched up.”

  Gunner’s low chuckle came to them, but then he pushed out a heavy grunt as Lily had ripped her shirt off and was using it as a compress on his head.

  “Careful,” Gunner muttered.

  “I’ll give you careful,” Lily shot back. “Stay still.”

  “I could use something to distract me from the pain,” Gunner said.

  Lily giggled.

  Mike sank to the ground and pulled Shar down with him. “Are you okay?” she asked anxiously.

  “Just a flesh wound.” He gave her a brave smile, but then he followed Lily’s example, pulled off his shirt, and pressed it into the wound on his leg. His smile was a little more grim. “But I’m not sure how much more blood I want to lose before help gets here.”

  Shar wasn’t even sure how to help him, or what to do. She wanted to hold him and kiss him, but he’d taken a bullet and had lost a lot of blood. He pressed the wound with his right hand, wincing slightly, and opened his left arm to her. “I could use you close,” he said.

  Shar smiled and cuddled into his side. He wrapped his arm around her waist and stared down at her. Softly kissing her forehead, he let out a shudder. “I can’t put the memory of Brett threatening you out of my mind.”

  Shar put a finger over his glorious lips. “Shh. I’m okay. You were amazing.”

  Mike chuckled. “I don’t know about amazing. Watch me play on Sunday, and then you’ll think amazing. I’ll let Gunner and Lily have the glory on this field.”

  Those two were suspiciously quiet. Shar hoped they were kissing and not both passed out.

  Shar smiled at Mike. “I would love to cheer for you on Sunday, but Mike …” She pointed to his leg. “I don’t know that you’ll be playing for a while.”

  He cursed softly.

  “Do you kiss your mama with that mouth?” she asked.

  Mike gave her a sheepish grin but shot right back. “Yes, and I’m going to kiss you with it too.”

  “Be my guest.”

  Mike bent his head toward hers and tenderly explored her mouth with his. The fire burned behind them, and if Gunner was still conscious, he and Lily were probably having their own kissing session across the way. Shar let herself concentrate on kissing the superstar of her dreams. She also let her fingers and palms explore the glorious contours of his bare chest and back.

  Sirens and flashing lights disturbed their kiss, but she still didn’t pull away. Soon enough, they’d have to face the aftermath of this mess and daylight. For now, she was going to kiss Mike until someone pulled them apart.

  Chapter Twelve

  Shar’s head lolled to the side as she waited in Mike’s hospital room for him to wake up. It was early Monday morning, and he’d lost a lot more blood than the doctor had been comfortable with. Plus, the bullet had torn through his quadriceps and hamstring muscles.

  When the EMTs had finally arrived at the cabin, they rushed Mike and Gunner both into the ambulance. Shar and Lily followed in a police car. The E.R. doc had put Mike out, giving him blood and operating on the torn muscles. Last she’d heard, Gunner had also lost a lot of blood from his head wound and had a concussion, but he was going to recover.

  Too tired to hold her head up, she rested it against the bed railing and studied Mike’s handsome face in the dimly-lit room. She loved his smooth, brown skin and full lips, but she’d love it even more when he opened those deep brown eyes and gave her a meaningful look. When would he wake up? She wanted him to rest and heal, but she also wanted to know he was all right.

  Closing her gritty eyes, she said a prayer for him and a prayer of gratitude. They were safe. The memory of last night was insane and a bit fuzzy with no sleep and so much stress and terror, but somehow they’d all survived. Gunner and Lily had saved them from that crazy Brett White and his hired mercenaries. Shar was also grateful that Gunner had been the one to kill Brett. She didn’t think Mike would’ve dealt well with killing his former friend. Mike was definitely a more sensitive soul than Gunner. She laughed to herself, thinking that was the understatement of the year.

  She lowered the bed railing and rested her head against the tilted mattress and her hand on Mike’s chest. His smooth skin was warm and felt so reassuring. She just wanted to be near him. It was crazy that she hadn’t worried about her restaurant or anything but Mike last night or this morning. She hadn’t known him long, but he was quickly becoming her entire world.

  * * *

  Sunlight peeked through the slanted blinds, and Shar jerked awake. Mike’s eyes were open, and he was studying her. He still looked exhausted, but he was awake.

  “Hey, beautiful,” he murmured.

  “Mike!” She gave him a gentle hug. “How are you feeling?”

  “Drugged.” He rolled his head from side to side then studied her. “How are you?”

  “Tired, but so grateful we’re okay.”

  He nodded. “Gunner and Lily were worth every penny.”

  She smiled. “True. Especially because they were your pennies.”

  He returned her smile, but his eyes were too somber for her liking. Studying her, he murmured, “I can’t believe I endangered you like that. Please forgive me, Shar.”

  Shar pulled back. “It wasn’t you. It was that crazy man, Brett White. You can’t be blamed for that.”

  He shrugged slightly. “I blame myself.”

  “Well I don’t, so stop being a dum-dum sucker.”

  Mike’s full smile came then. He studied her for a few more seconds then his eyes drifted closed. “I hate how tired I am.”

  “It’s okay. Rest. I’ll be here.” She could relate as she felt like she could sleep for days, and she hadn’t had a traumatic bullet wo
und and a dangerous amount of blood loss.

  He covered her hand with his as it rested on his bare chest. “Don’t move.”

  “I wouldn’t dare.”

  He smiled, but then his face relaxed, and she knew he’d drifted off again. His hand slowly slid off of hers and down to his side. Shar didn’t mind not moving, staring at his handsome face and wondering what would happen between them when he got released from the hospital. He was going to need some time for his leg to heal from the gunshot wound. Hilton Head Island was a perfect spot for rest and recuperation. She smiled to herself and trailed her fingers across his strong chest, avoiding any tubes and sticky thingies on him.

  Time ticked by, and whatever amount of sleep she’d had definitely wasn’t enough as her eyes felt bleary and gritty, and she hoped she wasn’t just romanticizing everything with Mike because she was so overwrought and emotional. But he had been so great, and she wanted to see what developed between them, now that the threat was over.

  Her rear started hurting from sitting there, and she really needed to use the restroom. Mike was snoring loudly. It made her smile. She couldn’t wait to tease him about it. Would he snore without all the drugs in his system and not sleeping on his back? She really wanted to find out, but they were nowhere close to a marriage proposal. They weren’t even officially dating. She shoved away her fantasies of him begging her to date him and tried to focus on staying awake so she could be here for him when he awakened.

  Finally, she could stand it no more, and she stood and stretched, rolling her neck around and then stretching her back and chest. Mike didn’t stir. She hurried from his room and down the white, sterile hallway. Finding a women’s restroom, she used it and washed her hands, peering at herself in the mirror. She examined herself through blurry eyes. Splashing some water on her face, she looked again, but nothing had changed. She still looked and felt horrible. The hospital staff had checked her out and cleared her, and then had given her some clean scrubs to put on. Her hair still smelled like smoke, though, and it was a rat’s nest. Her eyes were puffy and swollen from stress and no sleep. Her lips were dry, and she missed the humidity of home.

  Home. Hopefully, she and Mike would be able to fly there soon. She’d have to check in with Lily after Mike awakened and the doctor told her the plan for his release. She loved that she felt responsible for Mike. She’d heard his family had been informed last night about all the events involving Mike, but they weren’t here yet, so she got to watch over him.

  Exiting the bathroom, she took a long drink from the water fountain and then hurried back toward Mike’s room. The elevator dinged open in front of her, and a bunch of beautiful people walked out: five women and one man. They were chattering, and only one of the younger women noticed her, giving her a friendly smile. With the scrubs on, Shar probably looked like a nurse.

  Turning, they walked in front of Shar toward Mike’s room. His family? They were all tall, dark, and beautiful like him, with the exception of one lady in the group who was a gorgeous blonde. So gorgeous, she should’ve been on magazine covers. The blonde and one of the young women walked arm in arm at the front of the group.

  A nurse stopped them, and the man, a slightly balding older version of Mike, though not as thick or tall, said, “We’re Mike Kohler’s family.”

  “Oh, yes. I can definitely see the resemblance. Right this way. He’s doing fabulous.” The nurse led them into the room, chattering about Mike’s injury and recovery.

  Shar crept behind the group, suddenly feeling awkward and displaced. What was her role now? Did she introduce herself to his family as his … girlfriend? No, she was only the crazy fangirl who he’d kissed several times, and who’d gone through something traumatic with him. They had no relationship, yet. Shar fought to keep her confidence up. Mike had shown every indication that he wanted to be with her. How to tell his family that? Hopefully, he’d wake up again and insist Shar stayed by his side, introduce her as … she didn’t know what, but she felt excitement and nervousness swell in her.

  She stayed back from the room but could see through the open door and could hear their voices clearly.

  “He’s snoring,” one of the younger girls giggled.

  His mom stood on the left side of his bed with his dad right next to her. She brushed her fingers across his cheek. “Oh, my handsome boy. I hate what he’s been through.”

  Mike’s dad cuddled her close. “He’s okay, love. He’s okay.”

  She leaned against her husband’s shoulder, tears trickling down her pretty face.

  “Meredith,” one of the girls said. “Wake him up for us.”

  “Okay.” The blonde’s voice was full of excitement, but Shar couldn’t see her face.

  Meredith? Could it be? His college girlfriend who had been framed as the stalker? Shar felt bad that the girl had been wrongly accused, but she still didn’t want to leave Mike alone with the woman.

  Shar started forward just as the blonde leaned down and kissed Mike full on the mouth. Shar gasped, but nobody in the room heard her. They were all tittering about Meredith kissing their brother or son.

  Mike’s arms came up around the woman, and it was obvious from this angle that he was kissing her back.

  Shar’s mouth and eyes widened, and her stomach plunged. No, no, no, no! She scrambled away, but not before she heard Mike murmur, “Now, that’s a way to wake a man up.”

  His family’s excited voices drowned out everything else as Shar spun and rushed for the elevator. She didn’t know where she was going, but she knew she was going away from here. Hot tears stung her eyes as she pushed the elevator button and waited. A distinguished man who reminded her of James Bond, and a beautiful, refined blonde woman, walked out. She was barely able to squeak out a nod as she rushed in. They both whirled and came back in with her.

  “Shar Heathrow?” the man asked.

  “Yes?” she said cautiously, brushing the tears away and wishing she wasn’t such a mess.

  “Sutton Smith.” He stuck his hand out, and she shook it. Then, he wrapped his arm around the woman. “My wife, Liz,” he said with obvious pride in his voice.

  Liz gave her hand a squeeze. “Are you okay, sweetheart?”

  “I …” She shook her head. The elevator went down to the first floor, and they all exited. She should’ve recognized the well-known couple. They’d been at Colt and Kim’s wedding, but she hadn’t officially met them. She was such a mess that she could barely see the entryway of the hospital in front of her. She was exhausted, emotional, and far too invested in what was happening with Mike and Meredith. The only answer that came was to get far away, so she didn’t go start a catfight with some woman she didn’t even know, and offend and upset Mike’s family.

  Sutton turned toward her. “What can we do for you?”

  “Is Gunner okay?” she asked, wrapping her arms around herself to buy some time.

  “Yes.” Sutton nodded reassuringly. “Sadly, not his first or last hit to that hard head.” He smiled. “Lily’s giving him plenty of love and care.”

  Shar smiled. She really liked those two and was so glad they were both okay. She’d never forget watching Lily’s heartache as she focused on rescuing Shar and Mike, and leaving her husband.

  Mike. Shar’s heart wrenched again. Maybe there was a logical reason he’d kissed that Meredith chick back, but Shar didn’t think it was her spot to push in with his family and try to prove she was the one who should be waking him up. It hurt like a root canal throughout her entire body that he would kiss someone else and say it was the way to wake up. Shar was the way for him to wake up, not that blonde model.

  “We were just on our way to see you and Mike,” Liz said, in a smooth, beautiful English accent. “How’s he faring?”

  “His family is with him now,” Shar managed to get out, but her voice bounced with emotion and probably betrayed her.

  “That’s brilliant.”

  Shar nodded tightly.

  “And you’re okay?” Liz’s
kind blue eyes swept over her face. She obviously knew Shar was a mess.

  Shar was so exhausted and bleary that she could hardly see, let alone make any decisions. Some sappy part of her didn’t want to leave Mike, but the small part of her that was rational quickly remembered he was upstairs kissing that blonde with his family surrounding him. “I just need to get back home, but I don’t have my wallet or ID or anything to get on an airplane.” Yes, that was the ticket, focus on getting back home, getting back to real life. The past few days with Mike were a crazy, unrealistic dream. She’d compartmentalize it and move on, back to her busy, fulfilling life running her restaurant. Mike Kohler was just a memory. A beautiful memory full of longing on her part, but it was done.

  Sutton nodded. “We can get you home.” He looked down at his wife. “You all right staying in Colorado for a day or so, love? I’ve got a few things to clean up with this case.” He smiled wryly at Shar. “Someone burned one of my safe houses to the ground.”

  “Blimey, yes. Any chance I have to be close to you, I’ll take it.” She smiled sweetly up at him.

  Sutton wrapped his arm around her and kissed her forehead. “Thanks, love.” He focused back on Shar. “You wait right here, and I’ll have a driver take you to my plane and fly you home to … Hilton Head, correct?”

  “Yes.” Shar’s lower lip trembled. They were so kind and so beautiful together. How would it be like to have a lasting kind of love like this? She’d probably never know. Her love and her life was her restaurant. That had been okay … until she’d met Mike Kohler. “Thank you so much.”

  “It’s my pleasure.” Sutton pulled out his phone and murmured, “Excuse me for a moment.” He walked away to make the arrangements, and Shar was left facing his beautiful wife. She had to be in her early fifties, but she still looked like a supermodel. Shar remembered when she was a duchess and named the most beautiful woman in the world.