Seduced by Sin: Sean (Rugged Riders #3) (13 page)

“Karlina, I am so sorry. What can I do to make this up to you?”

“You can start by leaving my room.”

“I’m sorry. I had every intention of divorcing my wife before she told me that she was expecting my child again.”

“So, now you’re telling me that you would stay in an unhappy, unfaithful marriage.”

“I haven’t quite decided what I will do. I realized that I married the wrong woman for all the wrong reasons.”

“I hope that you don’t continue to cheat on your wife. You shouldn’t remain in an unhealthy relationship and you shouldn’t tie anyone down without telling them the truth.”

“I know this now.”

“Karlina?” There was a call from my doorway. It was the nurse. “Someone is here to pick you up. We’re going to try the crutches again first. We can always switch to the wheelchair. I’ll be right back with the crutches and your belongings.”

“Well, will I see you again?” Jonathan asked.

I rolled my eyes. “What do you think?”

“I’m asking you if I can?”

“Are you serious?” I hissed. “Are you telling me that you want to continue cheating on your pregnant wife with me?”

He lowered his head. “If I divorce her, will you change your mind?”

“You know what…get out of my room! Get out, now!”

He wheeled his chair towards me and took a black velvet box out of his pants pocket. “That night, if we had made it home…I wanted to ask you to…” he opened the box and revealed a princess cut diamond ring.

“No.” I stopped him, shaking my head.

“Please, I know you’re angry. If you had said yes, I would have known that it was time to divorce my wife and move one. I just needed some confirmation that it was really love—”

“There was no love!” I spat at him. “You didn’t love me!”

“Will you rethink it—”

“No, please get out! Or I will call for the nurse. There is no more us, and there will never be!”

Jonathan closed the box, placed the ring next to me on the bed, and rolled his wheelchair away from me. “I understand. If you ever need me again, then you know where to reach me.”

“I don’t need anything from you!”

He took one last look at me and he was gone. At that moment, the nurse came back in the room with the crutches and my belongings.

“Aren’t you ready to get out of here?” she asked, helping me out of the bed.

“Oh, yes.” I nodded.

“Good. Do you want to take this?” the nurse was holding up the little velvet box.

“Actually, no. Will you give it back to the man that was just in here?”

“You mean the guy in the wheelchair? The one a few rooms down?” the nurse asked.

I nodded.

“I can do that for you.” The nurse put the box in her pocket. “Let’s hurry. There’s a nice gentleman that’s been waiting so patiently down there for you.”

“Gentleman?” I was confused.

“Sean Brooks. He’s picking you up, right?”

“No, my friend, Eva—” I started.

“Oh, right,” the nurse interrupted me. “Your friend called to tell us that she sent another one of your friends to pick you up.”

My whole body stiffened and the nurse had to support my back to keep me from falling over.

“Is everything, okay?” she asked.

“Yeah. My cell phone?”

“Your cell phone is probably somewhere in your car. You’ll be able to go to the tow company and get your other belongings once you get out of here, don’t worry. Are you feeling okay on those crutches, Ms. Nguyen?”

“Yes.”

When we reached the lobby downstairs, sure enough, Sean was waiting for me, in the flesh. When he saw the nurse helping me off the elevator, he half ran, half walked over to us.

“Hi,” he breathed.

“Hi.”

The nurse handed my bags to Sean, who threw them over his shoulder.

“Great. Well, it was nice knowing you.” The nurse gave me a small hug then lifted my arms up so that I was now rested on Sean.

“I know what you’re thinking. Your face gives you away every time,” Sean said as he helped me towards the door.

“I appreciate you coming to get me. I wish someone would have told me you were coming to pick me up, or at least given me a choice in the matter.”

“It was all so sudden, I just offered to do it. Eva got a hold of me this morning at my place, which was when I found out about the accident. We were able to reach your parents this morning, and they’re catching an early flight in the morning. They should be here Saturday afternoon and I told them that I’d take care of you.”

“Thanks for coming to get me anyway,” I said as we walked out the door, where his Range Rover was parked in front of the door. He opened the passenger side door.

“Can I sit in the back?” I asked.

“Why? Are you still mad at me?”

“No, I’m…I’m…” I was actually still a little uneasy from the accident and I didn’t want anything to remind me of what had happened.

“Oh!” With that, he lifted me up into the back seat of the SUV. After he got inside, he turned around to look at me. “You know that you cannot assist yourself for at least another four weeks?”

“I know, once my parents get here, I’ll ask them to stay with me for a little bit, or go to Tasha’s house.”

He turned around, started the engine, and pulled off. All of a sudden, my eyes felt heavy and I was exhausted. I leaned over on the seat and closed my eyes.

W
hen I woke up
, I had yet another headache. Except it was one of those headaches you get when you wake up and realize that you’ve slept too long. I always felt bad when I slept in past twelve noon on weekends, and that’s how I felt now. I lifted myself up and sensed that I wasn’t in my own bed quite yet. But I wasn’t at the hospital either. The bed was much too comfortable and much too soft. When I opened my eyes, I felt lost. Where was I? I recalled Sean saying that we would go to his house, but this wasn’t his house and this wasn’t his bedroom. The room I was in was three times the size of what I remembered. I looked down and saw the silk sheets and duvet cover wrapped around my torso where I lay. The bed that I sat on was huge. It was almost king-size, maybe even bigger. I didn’t remember getting in this bed. Although, I did remember passing out in Sean’s SUV. Gosh, I didn’t even remember him bringing me in here. What was wrong with me? Certainly, I couldn’t have been that tired. It must have been the drugs.

I pushed the covers off my body and looked at my left leg. It was certainly a little swollen, but it was a good thing that I didn’t feel any more pain. I was also glad that I didn’t recall the pain from right after the accident. I looked around again, still trying to figure out where the hell I was. And where the heck was Sean? I wished I could get up and figure out whose master suite I was in, but I was utterly helpless. I noticed there was a remote control on the nightstand that displayed the same brand name as the wide-screen television over the fireplace in front of me. I turned the TV on and changed the channel to a local station. The on-screen information revealed that it was five in the evening. I’d left the hospital around eleven this morning. Had I really slept that long?

The doorknob rattled, and Sean stood in the doorway with a tray.

“I knew I heard something up here,” he said.

He walked towards me and placed the tray on the nightstand beside me. On the tray was a glass filled with iced water and the rest was concealed in white Styrofoam take-out containers. But it sure smelled good, whatever it was. Suddenly, my stomach growled and I prayed that he didn’t hear it.

“How are you feeling?”

“I feel like I slept all day.”

He grinned. “Well, you did. I brought some food. I’m sorry that it’s take-out, but I don’t have much in the fridge to eat and no pots and pans to cook with. Are you hungry?”

“Yes, thank you.”

He placed the tray on the bed beside me and opened the container. The grilled chicken, steamed rice, and vegetables inside looked much better than what I had been eating at the hospital. I picked up the fork and began stuffing my face, remembering that I hadn’t eaten anything since late last night.

“Where am I?” I mumbled, with a mouth full of vegetables.

“My house.”

“I don’t remember your bedroom being this way, or maybe I have developed amnesia and they didn’t discover it at the hospital.”

“No, you’re okay. I moved a little over a week ago. I finally bought my own place. When this house was placed on the market, I didn’t waste any time putting a contract on it and got a pretty good deal since it was a pre-foreclosure.”

“Congratulations. Too bad I can’t look around.” I smiled.

“We’ll have plenty of time to do that. I’ll carry you around and give you a grand tour later on.”

“Sean, I really appreciate you doing this for me. I know you’re very busy. I promise as soon as my parents or Tasha gets here, I’ll be out of your way.”

“I’m not too busy for you, Karlina. And just so you know…and please don’t get mad…I actually begged and pleaded with Eva and Carla to let you stay with me. I don’t want you to go anywhere, Karlina. You can stay here as long as you want. Though if you decide to go back with your parents or Tasha when they get here, I’ll understand.”

“I don’t want to inconvenience you, you know.” I couldn’t believe he’d actually admitted to begging my friends to be with me. I knew that he was still infatuated with me, but after he’d found out that I had moved on, I was sure that he would, as well.

“It’s not an inconvenience. I almost had a nervous breakdown when I found out. Nothing else matters at this point. Ever since the day I met you, nothing else has mattered.

“A nervous breakdown? Really? I’ve never ever seen you lose your shit. You’re so calm…about everything.”

“I can’t be calm about this.” He turned and looked at me with a serious expression. “I can’t lose you permanently.”

“I’m sorry, Sean.” I pushed the tray aside and wrapped my arms around him and gave him a hug. He hugged me back.

“Oh, I’m so glad I get to touch you once again. I know I don’t deserve this, but there was no way that God could have done this to me again. I know that I sound selfish, but…”

“It’s okay. I’m fine.”

He pulled away from me and looked down at the empty container. “You sure were hungry. Can I get you something else?”

I was still hungry. “I’m okay for now.”

“Your parents called while you were sleeping. I told them that I would have you call them once you woke up.” He handed me his smartphone from out of his pocket. “I’ll be right back.” He picked up the tray and disappeared.

When he was gone, I called my parents.

“Karlina?” The sound of my mother’s voice was so soothing.

“Hey.”

“Oh, baby. I’m so sorry we weren’t there. I’ve been praying for you non-stop. How’s my little angel?”

“I’m okay. I have a sprained ligament in my leg and my head hurts from time to time.”

“Baby, I could just beat myself up for not being there when you needed me. We’ll be there in the morning, your father and I, okay?”

“Okay. How’s Dad?”

“He left the house about ten minutes ago to fill up the gas tank so that we can leave as soon as we get up.”

“I’m okay, so don’t rush or anything.”

“Sean seems like a nice man. He offered for us to stay in one of his guest bedrooms while we’re up there. Tasha said he was your boyfriend, but how come you didn’t tell me about him?”

“We’re just friends now.”

“Okay, honey. Either way, we can’t wait to see you and meet him.”

“All right, call me before you leave to let me know that you guys are on the way.”

I looked down and noticed that I was still in the slacks and t-shirt that Eva and Carla had retrieved from my condo the other day. I frowned, wishing that I had chosen to wear something else. Maybe if I had known Sean insisted on picking me up, I would have told them to bring me something else. On top of that, I hadn’t taken a shower since yesterday. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, wondering how long I would be subject to hopping around on one foot.

“You still tired?”

I opened my eyes at the sound of Sean’s voice in the room.

“No, just resting. Do you mind if I take a quick bath?”

“No, go ahead. Want me to get it started?”

“If you don’t mind, please.” I leaned over and started removing the cloth bandage from my foot as Sean disappeared into the bathroom.

When Sean came back, he had a black bathrobe in his arms. “Change into this and call me when you’re ready and I’ll help you.”

He handed me the bathrobe and left the room. I was kind of disappointed that he showed no interest in helping me in the bathroom. He had seen me naked before. Maybe he’d lost his passion for me. Maybe he had given up on me, just like I had given up on him. And all for what? Nothing. I felt so stupid for letting Jonathan lie and cheat to satisfy his own self-interests.

“Sean,” I called out when I was undressed and covered in the robe.

Sean peeked in, strode over the bed, and lifted me up in his strong, muscular arms in one swoop. He sat me on the edge of the tub and turned off the water.

“This is a beautiful bathroom,” I said, admiring the huge jetted Jacuzzi tub, almost big enough for three people. The entire bathroom was white with flawless tiles on the floor and walls. The shower stall was also extra big, with two seats built into the corner, each below their own showerhead.

“Thanks. I’m not really into bathrooms, but I figured this one would do.”

“I can’t wait to see the rest of your house,” I commented. “From the looks of the master suite, this place must be huge.”

“Just six bedrooms.”

“Six bedrooms! That’s huge. What will you do with six bedrooms?”

“The basement and kitchen are what really sealed the deal for me. As for what I’ll do with six bedrooms…I’m still working on it.”

“Well, I’ll take you up on that tour when I get done in here.”

“I’ll be in the bedroom catching up on ESPN while you’re in here. Call me when you’re done.”

“One more favor…”

“Uh-huh?”

“The duffel bag the nurse gave you has my change of clothes.”

Sean retrieved my duffel bag from a closet on the other side of the door and set it beside the tub.

“Anything else?”

“No, thanks for everything,” I said and watched as he turned around and headed for the door.

“Just shout if you need me.” He closed the door behind him.