Kiss Me Forever (Bachelors & Bridesmaids #1) (15 page)

"And then you met someone you liked, who was willing to take you in, but she wasn't your aunt, was she?"

He gave Andrea a quick glance. "You have been digging, haven't you?"

She didn't answer, just gave him an expectant look.

"She wasn't my aunt. She was someone who had a big heart and was willing to take in a kid that no one else wanted."

"Thanks for finally telling me something that's true. That's a start."

"And that's all we're going to do for now," he said, as he neared their destination. "Before we pick up, Tyler, we need to get something straight. You cannot write about him. His name—this event—cannot be in your story. You have to promise me that. If you can't, I'm going to drop you off and get you a cab home."

She stared back at him. "I will keep Tyler out of the article. That's a promise."

"Okay, good."

"But you and I still have a lot more to talk about."

Chapter Eleven

Andrea settled back in her seat as Alex drove slowly through another run-down neighborhood. A couple of homeless people were camped in a doorway, and the shops all had bars over the windows. It was eight o'clock at night and everything but a nearby liquor store was closed.

"There he is," Alex said, relief in his voice.

She saw a lone figure standing in the shadow of a building.

"Stay here, Andrea. And keep the doors locked."

"Okay." Andrea watched as Alex walked over to the boy. The kid was wearing a baseball cap, a T-shirt and jeans, and he had a backpack over his shoulders.

Alex put a hand on the boy's arm. Whatever he was saying was making Tyler very uncomfortable. He kept looking at the ground and shuffling his feet. Once in a while he tried to make his own argument, but whatever he was saying appeared to be quickly taken apart by Alex.

As her gaze moved down the street, she noticed two older boys walking toward Alex and Tyler. She tensed, suddenly seeing Alex in the glare of the streetlight as they did—a prime, juicy target. His car and his suit cried money, a beacon calling out to the youths. It didn't take long before they moved.

Andrea's only thought was to warn Alex. She forgot about his admonition to stay in the car with the doors locked. She had never been a passive bystander, and she wouldn't be one now.

She jumped out of the car and yelled, "Alex."

Her voice brought everyone's attention to her.

Alex turned toward her, but he was further away than the two guys, one of whom grabbed her, wrapping his arm around her neck.

A surge of panic ran through her as she struggled in his hold.

"Stay back," the other guy warned Alex as he took a step forward.

"Tyler, get in the car," Alex said sharply.

Tyler took a wide berth around the group as he ran toward the car.

"Let go of her," Alex demanded.

"Give me your wallet," the other man said to Alex. "Toss it over here."

Alex hesitated and then took out his wallet and tossed it to the guy.

"Not bad," the kid said, whistling under his breath as he opened the billfold. "Jackpot." As he held up the wad of cash to show his friend, the grip on her neck loosened.

She knew she had one second to use it to her advantage. Remembering what Mick had just taught her, she kicked hard at the guy's shin and managed to throw him off balance. She gave him a shove backward, and he tumbled to the ground, hitting his head on the pavement and knocking himself out.

At her move, Alex had jumped the other guy, and they were now fighting. Alex dodged one punch, but the second one connected with face.

Alex threw a hard fist, and the kid staggered, but came back swinging. She looked around for some kind of weapon, some way to help. But there was nothing and no one in sight.

Finally, Alex shoved the kid against the wall as sirens lit up the air.

Within minutes, two police cars had pulled up, four officers jumping out to take charge of the situation. Alex released the kid and walked over to her.

He gave her a quick hug and a worried, searching look. "Are you okay?"

"I'm good," she said, her voice more shaky than she would have liked.

"You're more than good, you're amazing. You would have made Mick proud at that move you made."

"I guess I'm lucky I just came from class. It was fresh in my mind."

They broke apart as the police came to take their statements. An ambulance arrived to deliver one of the assailants to the hospital while the other one was handcuffed and put into the back of a police car. Then they were told they were free to leave.

"I'm sorry," Tyler said as they approached the car. He was standing by the door, a guilty look on his face. "This is my fault."

"Not at all," Alex said with a firm shake of his head. "We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Because I called you," Tyler said. "I mess everything up."

"This isn't on you. The rest of it—maybe—but not this. You take responsibility for what you do, not what others do. Now get in the car." As Alex reached for the door handle, he winced. He raised his left hand and gave it a bemused look. "Andrea, I think you're going to have to drive."

She stared at his swollen wrist in amazement. "Oh my God, Alex. It looks like your hand is broken. Why didn't you tell the police you needed medical help?"

"Because I don't need an ambulance. Maybe just a ride to the E.R."

"You are definitely going to the hospital," she said taking the keys out of his good hand. "Let's go."

She slid behind the wheel as Alex got in the front seat and Tyler slid into the back. "I hope your hand isn't broken."

"If it is, it will heal," he said pragmatically.

"You beat the shit out of that guy," Tyler interjected, awe in his young voice. "I thought you were dead. That's why I called the cops."

"That was the smartest thing you've done today." Alex shifted in his seat, flinging Tyler another look. "Now tell me what happened at your house?"

Tyler hesitated. "I was sitting in the car waiting for Joan to come out. The keys were in the ignition, and I was just thinking it would be cool to be able to drive wherever I wanted to go. So I moved behind the wheel, and I started the car. I wasn't going to do anything or go anywhere. Then the stupid cat jumped on the hood and distracted me. I hit the gas, and I accidentally drove through the garage door."

"Was anyone hurt?"

"No, but Joan was pissed. She came running out of the house screaming at me. I got out of the car and I ran down the block, and I didn't stop."

"Tyler," Alex said with a sigh. "You can't run away. You have to make this right."

"It doesn’t matter what I do. They're going to get rid of me anyway. They're having a baby. I heard them talking the other day. They're finally going to get their own kid. You know what that means."

"Not necessarily," Alex said slowly. "You need to talk to them, and so do I. They're probably worried sick about you."

As Alex shifted, trying to reach his phone, Andrea saw the pain in his eyes. "Alex, you can wait to call them until you get to the hospital. Try to keep your hand elevated."

"All right, but I am going to call them." He gave Tyler a hard look. "And you are done running, all right? Don't make me chase after you."

"I won't," Tyler promised. "Maybe you could let me live at your house."

"We'll talk options later," Alex said. "The Monroes are a good family."

"Yeah, but I'm not in their family. I'm not their blood, not like this new kid is going to be."

Tyler fell silent as they pulled into the hospital parking lot. Andrea stopped the car at the door. "You can get out here. I'll park, and then Tyler and I will come in."

Alex didn't look like he cared for that scenario, but she knew he didn't have much choice. He couldn't leave Tyler alone, and right now she was the only one available to look out for the kid.

"Thanks, sorry about this."

"It's not a problem."

As Alex entered the hospital, she drove into the lot and parked the car. "I'm Andrea by the way," she said as she and Tyler got out of the car.

By the time they arrived at the lobby, Alex was already in an examination room, leaving Andrea and Tyler in the waiting room. It was the perfect time for her to pump the kid for information. He knew Alex better than she did. But Tyler was obviously worried about Alex, and she couldn't bring herself to take advantage of his vulnerability. It sounded like he had a lot of his own problems to deal with.

"How about something to drink?" she asked him. "Maybe a snack? I think Alex will be awhile."

"I am kind of hungry," Tyler muttered.

"Then let's go down to the cafeteria."

"Are you Alex's girlfriend?"

"No. I'm just a friend." As she said the words, she realized she didn't want to be Alex's friend or the reporter writing a story about him. But she didn't know how to be anything else, and more importantly, she didn't know if Alex wanted her to be anything else.

Even if he did, how could she contemplate getting involved with someone who had lied to her and to everyone else? She couldn't end up with another Doug. She had to be smart.

But she also wanted to give Alex a chance to explain. Before they were done with each other, she was going to know every last one of his secrets.

* * *

Andrea was probably grilling Tyler for information, Alex thought as the nurse stuck a needle deep into his arm, blending an immediate shaft of pain with numbing relief. He tried to remember just what Tyler knew about his past, but his brain was spinning from the adrenaline rush, the pain, and now the drugs, and he couldn't think straight. Nor could he do anything about the situation. He was stuck here until his broken hand was put in a cast, which was going to take some time.

In between visits from the doctor and the nurse, he managed to call Tyler's foster parents and explain the situation. Joan Monroe, Tyler's foster mother, wasn't angry, just very worried. When Alex told her that Tyler was concerned about his place in the family with a new baby possibly on the way, Joan started to cry, saying she loved Tyler. She didn't want to lose him. She wanted to adopt him whether or not a baby came along as well.

Alex was very happy to hear her honest and emotional words. The Monroes would do right by Tyler. Tyler just had to give them a chance.

He told Joan that he'd keep Tyler at his house for the night just to give them all a little breathing room. Then he'd take him to school in the morning, and tomorrow afternoon they could all sit down together.

After ending that call, he settled back on the exam table and stared at the ceiling, his body still tense with all the emotions that had run through him the past hour. When he'd seen that man grab Andrea, he'd been filled with anger and also terrified that he wouldn't be able to protect her. But she'd defended herself. She was a smart, gutsy woman, who didn't back down from a fight. She'd jumped out of the car to warn him, no thought to her own safety.

She was one hell of a woman.

The kind of woman he could respect.

The kind of woman he could love
.

He tensed at that thought.

He couldn't allow the word
love
into his vocabulary. It was the gateway to pain, and he'd had enough pain. A voice inside his head suggested that Andrea might be worth the risk. But he had other things to worry about besides love. He couldn't forget that Andrea had the potential to destroy more than a few people. She knew he'd lied about his parents dying in a car accident. He needed to stop her from finding out the rest.

* * *

By the time his wrist was set in a cast and he was released from the hospital, nearly two hours had passed. It was almost eleven when a nurse wheeled him into the waiting room. Andrea was reading something on her phone while Tyler was sprawled across two chairs and fast asleep.

Andrea immediately got to her feet when she saw him.

He tried not to look too closely at her, not wanting to let any of his hard-built resolutions of the past two hours get tarnished by a tender look. But when she touched the side of his face, tracing the bruise by his eye, his good hand went up to catch hers and he found himself letting her continue the gentle movement rather than pushing her away.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'll live. I just have a new accessory," he said, holding up his cast.

"At least you have a good story to go with it. You were quite the hero tonight."

"I think that could be said about you."

She shook her head. "I should have called the cops instead of jumping out of the car. That would have been the smarter thing to do."

"But you saw trouble, and you had to help."

"It's a bad habit of mine to act first and think later," she said.

"Most people are content to let someone else help out, but not you. I like that about you."

"Well, thanks. Does your hand hurt?"

"Right now I feel damn good," he said, his words slurring together.

She smiled. "Let's get you home."

"Good idea. By the way, I called Tyler's foster parents and told them he'd stay with me tonight."

"He'll be happy about that. He's worried about whatever punishment is coming his way."

"That's good. I want him to worry. Hopefully, he won't do anything so stupid again." Alex got up from the wheelchair and walked over to Tyler. Tapping him on the shoulder, he said, "Hey, kid. Time to go home."

Tyler blinked his eyes and gave him a sleepy look. "Are you finally done?"

"Yeah, and I talked to the Monroes. You can stay with me tonight."

Relief flashed in Tyler's eyes as he got to his feet. "Thanks. What about what I did to the garage?"

"We'll talk about that tomorrow."

"Okay."

They walked out to the car, and Andrea once again slid behind the wheel.

Alex yawned as he buckled his seat belt. He had a feeling he would be asleep before they were out of the parking lot.

"Do you remember how to get to my house?" he asked, his eyes very heavy.

"Yes. Just rest. Let me take care of you tonight."