So Sensitive (3 page)

“Don’t force it; you’l remember soon enough.” He paused a moment, then said, “You were in shock when the paramedics brought you in, but you did ask someone to cal Ms. DuBois. I believe she notified your friend and your father. Speaking of which, when your father returns would you like to see him as wel ?”

She knew what he was asking. Say the word, and she wouldn’t have to deal with his drunkenness. She sighed, wishing she’d gain a damn backbone for once. “It’s fine, doctor. I’m used to him.”

“If you’re sure.” He stepped away from the bed and went out the door. Seconds later, Wade strode through it, his expression set in hard lines.

When he looked at her, he stopped and cursed.

“Do I look that bad?”

He grunted, then closed the distance. “You look like hel .”

Gee, what a charmer. “Thanks, real y.” She tried to smile, but it hurt too much.

“The airbag,” he explained when she touched her cheek. “You have bruises al over your face from the impact. It looks like you went a few rounds with a heavyweight.”

“That’s about how I feel.” She looked over at the cast on her wrist and groaned. “What a mess. I real y didn’t need this right now.”

He pushed the hair out of her face and tucked it behind one ear. His touch was so gentle; it surprised her that a man so large and intimidating could be so tender.

“What happened? Al I got was that it was a hit-and-run accident at a curve near your apartment. How’d you end up in some damn ravine?”

As she stared at him, a memory started to break through the fog blanketing her mind. “It wasn’t an accident.”

Wade frowned down at her. “Tel me what you remember.”

Her heartbeat sped up as fragments of memories surfaced. “I just . . . I think someone forced me off the road on purpose.”

“What makes you think that, Gracie?” he asked, his gentle tone drifting over her body in a soothing caress.

“Someone hit me from behind.”

“We know that much, and it bites that he took off, but how was it a deliberate attempt to force you off the road?”

“Not once, Wade. He slammed into my car three times. I think he was trying to . . .” The e-mail from her stalker popped into her mind. His warning that she needed to learn obedience.
It’s for your own good; remember that.
No, she was reading too much into his words. It was an accident. A drunk driver maybe. That had to be it, right?

Wade stroked her hair. “Gracie, is there something going on that you’re not tel ing me? Talk to me, honey. Let me help you.”

“I don’t even know where to start.” Her voice broke when she admitted, “H-He’s . . . I’m just so tired, Wade.”

Wade’s hand stopped moving. “Wait,
he?
Is this about an ex-boyfriend or something?”

“I wish it were so simple. No, he’s not an ex-boyfriend. It’s about . . . I have a stalker.” It sounded so insane when she said it aloud.

Wade was quiet a moment, as if assessing whether she’d lost her mind when her car had gone into that spin. “Since when?” he final y asked, his voice matter-of-fact enough to calm her anxiety.

“He’s been e-mailing me for about two months.” She let out a breath and plucked at the bed sheet. She hadn’t realized how good it would feel to confide in someone. She’d kept it to herself for so long.

Wade moved his hand away and crossed his arms over his chest. “How often does he e-mail? And does he communicate any other way?

Has he approached you?”

She answered his questions in order. “He used to e-mail once a day. He’s graduated to nearly every three hours. And yes, he’s cal ed. I can’t swear it’s him, because he never says anything, just sits there, listening. The cal er ID always says ‘unknown.’ ”

“He hasn’t approached you? Have you gone to the police?”

She shook her head, regretting it when her brain seemed to rattle around inside her skul . “No, he hasn’t approached me. I did go to the police, but the e-mails haven’t been threatening so there wasn’t a lot they could do.”

Wade touched a fingertip to one of her bruises and growled low. “And you think this guy is the person who hit you?”

When he put it like that it sounded absurd. Like something out of a movie. “I don’t know what I think. I don’t even know why I brought it up.”

“You brought it up because you think he tried to drive you off the road. Don’t negate your gut instinct, Gracie. It’s trying to tel you something; listen to it.” She nodded, and he went on. “I’m going to be severely pissed at you later for not tel ing me about this guy before. For now, you’re going to do what the doctor says. After the tests, you’l rest. When you get out of here, you’re coming to stay with me.”

The authoritative attitude didn’t sit wel . She’d been taking charge of her own life since she was ten years old, after her grandmother had died, leaving her with her drunken father. Gracie wasn’t about to stop now. “Forget it, Wade. I’m fine at my own apartment.”

His dark espresso eyes locked onto her and held. “Yeah, I can see how fine you are. This asshole tried to kil you, damn it.”

“What?”

Gracie groaned as she looked at the door. Cherry and Dante stood there. Dante had his arm around a very pale Cherry. Gracie glared at Wade and grumbled, “When I can move again without pain, I’m going to kil you. One inch at a time.”

Cherry walked to the other side of the bed and took Gracie’s hand. “You can threaten him later. What’s this about someone trying to kil you? I thought this was a random hit-and-run accident.”

Gracie fil ed Dante and Cherry in on everything. By the time she was finished, Cherry, the traitor, was siding with Wade. “Please, Gracie, I’d feel so much better with Wade protecting you. He’s a good PI. He can find out who this guy is and put a stop to it. Let him help.”

“I’m going to talk to the police again,” Gracie hedged, unwil ing to drag anyone else down with her. “There might be more they can do this time.”

Wade rol ed his eyes, as if the very idea was ludicrous. “Unless there was a witness, and I’m not seeing one at the moment, there isn’t much they’re going to do.”

He had a point, but it stil surprised her that he would suggest she not involve the police. “You don’t think I should tel the police about this?”

Wade sifted his fingers through his hair, mussing it beyond repair. She ached to reach out and touch the dark strands. It drove her crazy wondering about the texture. “You should definitely make a statement,” he said. “This needs to be on record. I’m just saying there might not be much they can do. On the other hand, I can do what the cops can’t.”

Gracie pul ed her attention back to the problem. Wade managed to distract her just by being Wade. He always had. “Like what?”

“I can devote countless hours to finding out who this dickwad is and keep you safe at the same time.”

Gracie was starting to see his point. Al the same, she didn’t want him in potential danger. The idea that something could happen to Wade caused her stomach to rol . “No, it would put you at risk. For whatever reason this guy has it in his head that I belong to him. If he learns you’re helping me there’s no tel ing what he’d do. I think the only reason he hasn’t done anything drastic so far is because I’m alone. I haven’t dated anyone for a long time.”

“You know this by the fucking letters he sends?”

“E-mails,” she corrected. “And yes. It’s crazy, but he cal s me his ‘love’ and tel s me we’l be together some day.”

“You’re in the hospital because of this asshole,” Dante said, his Italian accent thick as he glared down at her.

“Yes, but why are you in the hospital?” Cherry asked, al eyes suddenly on her. “What set him off enough to drive you off the road?”

Gracie’d known that question would pop up. “It’s because I wouldn’t quit working at Serene Comfort, which he sees as some sort of den of iniquity or something. He saw that as ‘disobedience. ’ This was his way of putting me in my place.”

“Oh, God,” Cherry cried.

“I’m stil not quitting.” Gracie clutched the sheet with her uninjured hand. “I’m sick of playing his game.”

Wade spoke up then. “So, the accident was his way of letting you know who’s in charge.”

“Yes. Wel , at least I think that was his plan.”

Wade smiled, but the smile was fil ed with menace. She’d never seen him look so cold. “Then maybe we should push him a little harder. It could bring him out in the open.”

Gracie didn’t like where Wade’s mind was going. “You think tempting a lunatic is a good idea?”

“I’m saying if he thinks you’re no longer his love, maybe he’l get careless, make a move. Then we can catch him.”

“That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. Besides, I don’t have a lover and, considering he thinks of me as belonging to him, I’m pretty sure that’s the one thing that would real y set him off.”

“You’re about to come and stay with me. He’l think we’re lovers. That should be enough.”

He said it as if it were a foregone conclusion. “But we aren’t lovers.” She tried to hold on to her temper when she gritted out, “And I didn’t agree to live with you, so stop putting words in my mouth.”

“We’l see,” he said as he stepped away from the bed. “First, you need some rest. We’l talk about al this tomorrow.”

“We’re done talking, Wade. I’m not moving in with you, and that’s final.”

Cherry and Dante both smiled. Cherry patted her hand. “Everything’s going to work out fine. You’l see.”

Why did she feel as if she’d lost an argument? Cherry let Gracie know she’d be back in the morning. As Dante escorted her out the door, Gracie was left alone with Wade. She looked up at him and sighed. It’d be easier to say no if he resembled a trol . With his sexy grin and rock-hard body, she could al too easily imagine relying on him to solve this mess for her. No, it’d be crazy to put him directly in the path of a stalker.

“I can see those thoughts as clearly as if they were flitting across your face. You think I should keep my nose out of it. You’re worried I’l get hurt.”

“Wrong. I’m worried you could get kil ed.”

“Gracie—”

She cut him off with a hand in the air. “Look at me, Wade. This was just a warning. He’s teaching me a lesson. What do you think he’l do if he suspects we’re sleeping together?”

“Do you honestly believe he’l be content to keep you at a distance forever? Eventual y he
will
make a move on you. The only thing I’m suggesting is that we force him to act sooner rather than later. This way we’l be ready.”

“He might just lose interest.” Even as she said it she knew she was deluding herself. “It’s possible he’l just get tired of the game and move on. We don’t know he’s going to escalate, Wade.”

“Do you real y believe that? In your gut, do you real y think this bastard is going to walk away?”

Crap, she hated to admit it, but he was right. She didn’t truly believe her stalker would give up and leave her alone. Not after two months of e-mails and phone cal s. The first time she defies him, she lands in the hospital. No, he wasn’t going to stop. “Don’t curse. It’s real y annoying.”

“Get some rest, honey,” he whispered. “We’l figure this al out in the morning.”

He moved closer and leaned down. The brush of his lips over her forehead had Gracie going stiff as a statue. His lips, soft and ful , felt much too good against her skin. She couldn’t al ow herself to imagine what they might feel like elsewhere. That road led to disaster. When he stepped back and sat in the chair next to the bed, she frowned. “What are you doing?”

“Staying. Got a problem with that, Gracie?”

The night? He’d be able to see her while she slept. What if she snored? “You can’t stay.”

He stretched out his legs and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m not leaving you alone here while some asshole has his sights set on you.

I’m staying.”

She tried another tactic. “You can’t sleep in that chair. I’m not even sure you’re al owed to stay past visiting hours. You aren’t even family. Be reasonable, Wade. I’m in a hospital surrounded by people. I’m perfectly safe.”

“I’m ex-military and a PI. I can sleep just fine in this chair. And hospital or not, I’m not leaving you unguarded.”

What could she say to that? It was impossible to argue with a gorgeous man bent on protecting a woman with his very body. “Suit yourself, but don’t blame me for the crick in your neck tomorrow.”

“Sleep, Gracie. Don’t worry about my neck. I’ve slept in worse places.”

She wanted to pursue that, real y she did, but she was too exhausted. Fatigue settled in around her.

Sometime in the middle of the night a nurse came in and took blood. Wade sprang to attention the instant the door creaked open. As she started to drift back off, she felt Wade’s hand against hers, his thumb stroking her knuckles. The light, soothing gesture worked better than any sleeping pil on the market.

3

“S
he’s going to be fine, Cherry,” Wade whispered to keep from waking the sleeping beauty. Damn, just looking at her made him see red. Her perfect ivory complexion was now covered in bruises. The bastard would pay for hurting her. “I’ve already got Jonas checking into a few things for me and, as soon as Gracie’s able to leave, I’m going to have her show me those e-mails. Maybe there’s something there that can lead me to this guy.”

“I’m worried about her. I feel responsible. Maybe if I hadn’t hired her, she—”

Wade had known this was coming. “Don’t even go there. This guy would stil be stalking her regardless of where she worked. Which reminds me. Her other job, that office she works at, what does she do there exactly?”

“She’s an administrative assistant. Why?”

“Maybe this guy works with her.” Wade’s gaze went back to Gracie. He remembered the tears he’d seen in her eyes the day before. Damn.

He should’ve tried harder to get some answers then. He’d known something was wrong, but he’d let it go, hadn’t wanted to push. Wel , no more.

He frowned as he realized how easily the woman went to his head.

At first he’d been intrigued by the way she stood up to him. Gracie had chal enged his dominant streak something fierce. And her cute blushes whenever he teased her turned Wade on quicker than anything. But seeing her hurt had al his protective instincts worked up.