Intimate Strangers (21 page)

Hannah excused herself, found a pay phone, and called the private number Nicholas had given to her. His voice mail clicked on after just one ring, an electronic voice that bore no resemblance to Nicholas’s sexy growl asking her to leave a message.

Although disappointed that she couldn’t speak to him, she left a message, "This is Hannah. My flight home was trouble–free. Your friends were very kind to me. Mom’s surgery just ended, and she’s in cardiac recovery. The procedure took more than eleven hours, but the surgeon is cautiously optimistic. When I have more news, I’ll call with an update." After a brief hesitation, she said, "I miss you, Nicholas," before she severed the connection.

** ** **

Four days later Hannah and her younger sister sat together in the cardiac intensive care unit’s waiting room. Jessica Cassidy was periodically alert, but she still required constant monitoring.

Hannah and her younger sister, Sarah, who’d taken emergency family leave from her work as a police officer, maintained a daily vigil at the hospital and kept everyone abreast of her progress. Other family members took turns relieving them during the evening hours.

"How many times are you going to reread that book?" Sarah asked Hannah with obvious exasperation. "You must have memorized the whole thing by now."

She glanced up from a particular passage near the end of the story that kept stirring something in her sub–conscious mind, even though she couldn’t figure out exactly why. "What?"

"Get a grip, girl. There are some terrific looking men wandering the halls of this hospital, and you’re ignoring them all. Are you really my sister?"

She frowned. "No interest. They’re all yours, baby girl."

Sarah hooted with laughter, her humor contagious enough to make the other people in the waiting room smile at her. A leggy redhead with a perfect peaches and cream complexion, she’d just completed her rookie year as a police officer, although she looked more like high fashion model material.

"What exactly happened to you in Nevada? You haven’t said two words about your trip, other than the fact that you located Sean."

"Nothing happened, Sarah. Nothing at all." She returned her attention to the book, rereading a line that tweaked a recent memory.

A few minutes later her sister breathed, "Oh, my." When she received no response, she elbowed Hannah. "That guy definitely gets an A plus."

Annoyed, Hannah didn’t look up from her book. She simply elbowed Sarah right back, hissing, "Will you quit grading every man who walks down the hallway? You sound like an adolescent in the midst of a hormonal crisis."

"He’s not a doctor."

Hannah shrugged. "Maybe he’s a nurse."

"Not with two armed bodyguards trailing behind him."

Hannah froze. Bodyguards? She peered at her sister. "What did you just say?"

Sarah spoke out of the side of her mouth. "They’re carrying concealed weapons. Hope they’ve got permits for them." She laughed softly. "Mister A plus can’t take his eyes off you. Smile, Hannah, cause the big guy is coming our way. God, would you look at those shoulders! Talk about sexy and dangerous in one perfect package."

Hannah turned in her chair and glanced in the direction of the waiting room doorway. She felt her heart stutter to a stop in her chest.

Too stunned to move, her voice reflected her shock when she whispered, "Nicholas?"

Looking more delicious than he had any right to in his three piece navy pinstripe suit, crisp white shirt, and a hand–painted silk tie, he paused before her and extended his hands. Hannah snapped shut her book, shoved it at her sister, and reached out to him. The warmth of his touch reassured her that he was real, not some figment of her imagination.

Her heart raced. She felt alive again for the first time in days. He tugged her to her feet, his eyes sweeping over her features like a man starved for the sight of her. Hannah made no effort to conceal the hunger she felt for him.

Sarah cleared her throat. "What’s going on?"

Hannah laughed, and then bit her lip when she heard the faintly hysterical note in her own laughter. She glanced down at her sister. "This is the man whose voice you liked so much."

Sarah whistled, one of her less feminine traits, according to her sisters and mother. "Now I know why you didn’t want to come home." She grinned at Nicholas.

He nodded at her with a brusqueness that confirmed he hadn’t even noticed her endless legs or brilliant smile. His attention remained totally focused on Hannah.

"Don’t let this guy get away, sis. He qualifies as a keeper."

"Can we speak privately?" Nicholas asked.

His low voice rumbled over her, reminding her of the sensuality they’d reveled in less than a week ago. "Of course."

He slipped his arm around her shoulders and led her out of the waiting room.

Sarah grinned and abandoned her chair. She trailed after the bodyguards, who maintained a clear view of Nicholas while also respecting his privacy. Never one to ignore attractive, dangerous looking men, Sarah asked to see their weapons’ permits after displaying her badge as a member of the local law enforcement community.

Nicholas had escorted Hannah down the hospital corridor, where they now stood just outside the intensive care cubicle that housed Mrs. Cassidy.

"What are you doing here?" Hannah asked, her concern for his safety apparent when she glanced at the two armed men hovering nearby.

"I’ve brought a letter for your mother from Sean."

"Nicholas… should you… " she began.

He settled his hands on her shoulders. "It’s fine."

"Why not FedEx his letter to me?"

"I’ve never been to St. Louis. Interesting place, from what I’ve seen of it." He smiled at the consternation in her eyes. "I’m going to spend a few minutes with your mother. Wait here for me, alright?"

"You don’t even know her."

He smoothed his fingertips across her cheek, his light caress reaching into her heart as she looked up at him. "Sean asked me to deliver it personally and then read it to her if the need arose. And I expect to get to know her quite well in the years ahead." He frowned as he took in her hollow cheeks and the shadows beneath her eyes. "You’ve lost weight. Aren’t you feeling well?"

She huffed out a gust of air, baffled by his presence and his concern. He’d just admitted that he was in St. Louis because of Sean, not because he’d missed her or wanted to be with her.

"Hannah?"

She answered his question. "I lost my appetite. I’ve been worried about Mom."

"I’ve spoken to her doctor. He’s given me a very thorough overview of her medical situation and her long–term prognosis. I’m very glad the surgery was so successful."

"You’ve spoken to her doctor? How? When?" She pressed her fingertips to her temples. "Why do I suddenly feel as though I’m in another solar system right now?"

"Please don’t ever change," he said as he chuckled. "May I see your mother for a few minutes?"

"Of course, but you must be careful with her. I haven’t gone into any real detail about how much Sean’s changed since she last saw him. I didn’t want to risk the truth of his condition quite yet."

His good humor disappeared. "Do you trust me to do what is best for everyone concerned?"

"I trust you completely where Sean’s concerned, and I know you’d never hurt my mother."

He drew her into his arms, enveloping her with his strength. She felt like crystal that could shatter at any moment, not to mention terrified that he might leave as abruptly as he’d arrived.

Sliding her arms around his waist and pressing her cheek against his shoulder, she absorbed the tremor that rippled throughout his sturdy body.

"But you don’t trust me to do what’s best for you?" he finally asked.

She eased back in his embrace and looked up at him. "I want to."

"Good girl. Now, will you wait here for me? I don’t need more than a few minutes with your mother."

"I’ll wait but should you even be here?" she asked, too worried now about his safety to be subtle.

He sobered. "I’m tired of hiding."

She looked past him. "And those men? They’re… "

He shrugged. "Old friends. I’m still cautious, but I’ve given up my paranoia. You’ve been a very good influence on me, Hannah Cassidy."

She stood in the open doorway as he approached her mother, introduced himself, and then asked if she would listen to a letter written to her by her eldest son. Tears trickled down her cheeks as she heard the almost child–like tone of the letter Sean had written. Having seen her brother’s vulnerability firsthand, she understood what an incredible effort the short missive must have been for him. She also felt certain that Nicholas had helped him to write it.

"Before I leave you so that you can get your rest, Mrs. Cassidy, I want you to know that Sean has expressed his hope that you’ll visit northern Nevada when your health improves. As I’m sure you can tell by his letter, he’s undergone many changes since you last saw him… changes that must be accommodated for his peace of mind."

Nicholas leaned forward to listen to a comment from Jessica Cassidy. And although she couldn’t hear her mother’s words, Hannah heard his reply and the reassuring tone of his voice.

"Sean’s body is healthy, Mrs. Cassidy, but his emotional state is fragile. He’s reluctant to leave his home or to travel long distances, but Hannah’s visit helped him to understand that he needs his family, more now than ever. When you’re ready to make the journey, I’ll send my private jet for you and you’ll be my guest during your stay. Sean and I have a close friend who is a physician, so you’ll have the best possible medical care available to you at all times. Hannah knows how to reach me when you’re ready."

Nicholas wished Jessica Cassidy a speedy recovery and promised to visit her again. After exiting her cubicle, he silently led Hannah to a vacant hospital room some distance down the long hallway.  He shut the door, only to turn toward her and find her backing away from him.

She felt the risk to her already battered emotions escalate with every second they spent alone. She paused, forced to a stop when she felt the edge of an empty, unmade hospital bed dig into the backs of her thighs.

Nicholas frowned at her as he loosened the knot of his tie, jerked the length of silk free of his collar, and stuffed it into his pocket. He opened the top two buttons of his shirt. "Talk to me, Hannah. What are you thinking right now?"

"For God’s sake, who can think?" she demanded. "I still can’t wrap my mind around the fact that you’re actually here or that Sean’s agreed to see Mom or that you’ve just talked her into visiting him in Nevada."

"I’m actually here at Sean’s request and because I want to be here, inviting her to visit Nevada was his suggestion, and your Mom likes to travel. End of story, so the only relevant topic left is us." He shrugged out of his suit jacket and tossed it onto the bed behind her.

"Quit undressing."

"Come here, Hannah."

She stayed put, her chin coming up as she studied him.

"You cannot even begin to imagine how hungry I am for you or how much I need to feel you in my arms right now."

She glared at him. "Nicholas, I’m starting to feel like a yo–yo, and I don’t like the feeling."

He grinned at her, took a step closer, and jerked her into his arms. He seized her hips, bringing them into intimate contact with his hard loins and muscular thighs. "You feel just right to me."

Hannah thought of a half dozen questions she wanted answered, but the feel of his powerful body rendered her mute. How, she wondered, could a man look dangerously sexy and jubilant at the same time?

Nicholas claimed her mouth in a stunning display of carnal male dominance. She surrendered to the taste and heat of him as he ate at her lips and then plunged his tongue into her mouth. His behavior was so primal, she felt desire spill hotly into her bloodstream.

He brought his hands forward, slid them beneath her sweater, and then filled them with her breasts. She trembled beneath his seductive assault, sighing into his mouth as he plucked her nipples to hard peaks of sensitivity.

They both abandoned all pretense of restraint. A soul–deep need to touch, to reassure each other that they were really together, and to explore the primitive need exploding between them, sent them reeling into a world of sensation that threatened momentary detonation.

Nicholas lowered one of his hands, traced a line down her abdomen with his fingertips, and cupped her mound. Hannah moaned as his long, narrow fingers curved possessively over her throbbing sex. She parted her jean covered legs, craving the intimacy of his caress.

"I want you," she whispered. "I’ve missed you so much."

He rested his forehead against hers, his breathing ragged as he gentled his stroking fingers. "As much as I want you right now, I can’t take you here."

"Come home with me."

He shook his head. "I can’t."

Hannah stiffened, her heart plummeting. "You’re leaving, aren’t you?"

"I have to, but only…"

She pulled free of him, turned away, and covered her face with her hands, trying to reclaim her composure.

"I have an appointment, but I’ll be back later."

Hannah lowered her hands to her sides, squared her shoulders, and walked to the door. "I’m not going anywhere."

He caught her before she could open the door. Forcing her to turn around, Nicholas waited for her to look up at him. "Hannah, I know you’ve been under a lot of pressure, but relax, will you? Everything’s going to be fine, I promise. I’ll be back soon."

I’ve heard those words before, she realized, not just that determined tone of voice. She glared at him then, her mind darting around like a moth attacking a light fixture on a hot summer night. How dare he look so pleased with himself, especially when she felt nearly disabled at the prospect of his impending departure?

Nicholas shrugged into his suit jacket. "Walk me to the elevator, why don’t you?"

She nodded, suddenly furious with his apparent calm, but too distracted by the passage from St. Gregory’s book that started to skip through her mind to put up much of a fight. She heard Nicholas speak each phrase in her head even as he pulled open the hospital room door and they made their way down the long corridor. She kept hearing his voice as he repeated one particular phrase over and over again.