T is for Temptation (58 page)

Tiny did a flying Superman dive, arms outstretched at ninety-degree angles, and everyone collided under the force of his propulsion.

The combined force sent Tony crashing into the side of the sofa. His knees buckled, and he collapsed on top of Henry’s legs.

Tony’s hired thugs joined the melee. Feet and arms tangled into a
Rugby
scrum.

Another shot rang out.

The noise reverberated.

The acrid smell of sulfur tickled Jake’s nose, and the trunk’s familiar, sooty fog inhibited his vision and corrupted all other senses.

Tiny had opened the trunk.

The warrior was the first to recover and he bounded to his feet, bellowing, “Laird, Stephen, lads, to me!”
 

Fierce war cries punctuated the silence of
Brodick
Castle
’s great hall. The sound of men unsheathing their swords drowned out shouted war cries.

Tee fought the arms crossed under her chest, which dragged her sideways.

“It’s me, Tee, Jake,” he whispered in her ear.

She relaxed against him. “I can’t breathe. There’s something squishing my chest.”

Jake’s horror mounted as her bright, sparkling eyes dimmed, and dampness seeped through her sweater, coating his fingers. He drew his hand away and stared at the vulgar ruby stain on his palm in numb terror.

“Tee,” Jake shook her, oblivious to the frantic, tussling men surrounding them. He scooped her into his arms, sat up, and used his legs to lever them out of target range of the battling men.

Horror and every protective instinct kicked in. He shielded Tee with his body and waited for the inevitable outcome of the battle. Even with modern guns, the thugs and Tony proved no match for sixteenth-century warriors wielding primitive claymores.

Thirty minutes later, Tiny and his men and Alex had the situation under control.

Tony sported multiple sword wounds, most of them superficial. Five of his men were injured, two seriously.

Inspector Flood received a fatal blow in the melee, and two Brodick warriors dragged his body outside.

Tiny chained all the thugs together. Tony, he tied with ropes, but left him in the middle of the hall and allowed his men to prod him with their swords. Cat and mouse play.

Elaine tended to Henry’s bruised temple.

In the center of the room, Alex and Tiny argued with Stephen and Kieran over the disposal of the prisoners. All four men gesticulated furiously.

Jake stood up. Tee had passed out. He’d discovered a bullet hole just under her collarbone. He’d managed to stop the bleeding, but Tee needed immediate medical attention.

Alex caught the movement out of the corner of his eye. His complexion greened when he saw the bright red splotch on Tee’s sweater. “Crap. Tee’s hurt.” He sprinted across the room. “What happened?”

“A bullet wound right under her collarbone. I need to get her to the hospital.”

“Use the trunk. We’ll clean up this mess.” Alex gripped Jake’s arm and squeezed. “She’ll be okay. Don’t worry.”

“Hurry, Alex,” Jake muttered. “Find the damned chest.”

His mother trotted over to him. Elaine stooped and her fingers flitted over the singed, round hole in Tee’s sweater.

“I have to get her back to my time immediately.” Jake tried to keep the building panic out of his voice.

The trunk appeared out of nowhere in Elaine’s hands. She gave it to him. “Here, Son, take it. God go with you.”

“What about the others?”

“I’ll send them back when they’re ready.”

“Thanks.” Jake took the chest, rested it on Tee’s pelvis, and flipped it open.

Hours later, Jake paced the waiting room of the
University
College
Hospital
in
London
. The door to the sterile, sparsely furnished waiting area creaked open, and he lifted heavy lids in the direction of the sudden noise.

“Arthur.” He rushed to the older man. “Jesus, it’s so good to see you. When Tony said he’d taken care of you, I feared the worst.”

“You met up with
Trent
? Who shot Tallulah?”

“He did.” Jake massaged the back of his neck. “How did you know?”

“All
London
hospitals are on alert for any one of you or Trent, Leandro, Constantine, and the caretaker.” Sir Flood adjusted the navy arm sling hanging from his neck.

“What happened to you?”

“A hotline tip re
Constantine
’s location, which turned out to be a deliberate ruse, and we fell for it.” Sir Arthur grimaced. “I lost two men, but we overcame them, even though they outnumbered us two to one. Ah,
Trent
must have been behind the attack. I had attributed it to the other three. Where are the others now?”

Stumped by his question, Jake hedged. “Look, Arthur, I’m not sure where everything stands. When I realized Tee had been shot, my whole focus was getting her here. I don’t even have my cell phone with me, so I haven’t a clue as to what’s happening. I’m assuming they’re all at the condo and everything’s under control.”

“That’s why I’m here, Jake. The flat’s empty. And even Henry isn’t answering his cell.” Deep furrows appeared on Arthur’s forehead.

Blast it. Jake hunted for any excuse other than the obvious; cell phones didn’t exist in 1501. “I can’t help you, Arthur. The last thing I remember is Henry calling an ambulance, and the attendants loading Tee onto a stretcher.”

The door creaked open again, and, grateful for the interruption, Jake turned in that direction. One of the surgeons who’d been operating on Tee walked through the doorway.

“Mr. Mathews, I have good news.” The white-coated doctor strode over to them. “Your wife is fine. The bullet didn’t hit any major organs. We extracted it easily. We did discover a minor flesh wound on her right arm, where we surmise another bullet grazed her skin, but everything aside, she’s well on the way to a full recovery.”

“Thank God.” He let out a deep breath.

“I’m happy to say no harm’s been done to the fetus.”

“Fetus? Tallulah’s pregnant?” Sir Arthur clapped him on the shoulder. “Congratulations, old boy. Henry will be over the top. A grandchild, well, well.”

“Is she awake? When can I take her home?” He barely heard Arthur’s blustery well-wishes.

“We’ll monitor her overnight. Provided nothing untoward occurs, we’ll release her in the morning.”

“I’m staying with her.” Jake folded his arms and glared at the doctor, daring him to contradict his statement.

“By all means, go ahead. Although if I were you, I’d get a good night’s sleep and return in the morning. I’d like to schedule a couple of follow-up appointments. I need to take out the stitches in five days. Shall we adjourn to the nurses’ station?”

Distracted, Jake didn’t even notice Arthur’s departure. He didn’t take the good doctor’s advice and slept on a foldout chair in Tee’s room. Halfway through the night, she whimpered in her sleep. He edged onto the bed and spooned her resting form, tucking her back loosely against his chest and pelvis.

He awoke feeling musty-headed and aching all over, especially in the vicinity of his solar plexus where Tony’s thugs had landed a few blows. Jake inhaled, and Tee’s comforting scent cocooned his muddled thoughts. He lay on his side, one arm snagging her waist, his head next to hers on the pillow. She snuggled closer and sighed, and a peaceful smile teased her mouth.

Content, he drank in Tee, tousled hair, golden complexion somewhat dimmed, dark lashes casting faint shadows on her flesh, long, straight nose, lips twitching in a smile like puppy-twitch dreams. Bizarre how in the space of a few short months his life had altered, his priorities turned upside down.

Tee and the baby, the sole focus of living. Protecting and cherishing them, nothing mattered more. Never could he imagine feeling anything this deeply, as if love for her had been branded into his soul. While waiting for her to awake, he calculated the quickest way to switch the business headquarters to
Trinidad
and sifted through his employees, deciding who could operate the Boca location.

She was his island siren and blossomed in the
Caribbean
. Taking her out of that environment, the equivalent of forcing a hibiscus to open at night when nature designed it to flare brilliantly only in the sunshine. Tee needed the easy rhythm of the island way of life to perpetually flower. The fast-paced North American lifestyle would gnaw at her like ants stripping a shrub bare.

A uniformed nurse bustled into the room, disrupting the cozy, intimate atmosphere. The young, curvaceous blonde grinned at them and cleared her throat.

He rose on one forearm.

“The doctor’s making his rounds. It might be a good idea to take a seat.” The nurse inclined her head to the chair.

He nodded and slid off the bed. His movements stirred Tee.

Her amber eyes, a trifle dazed, opened, and she blinked. Her focus returned with each flutter.

“How do you feel?” He touched a finger to Tee’s bandaged shoulder. “Sore?”

“A little. The baby?”

“The doctor said it’s fine. No damage to either the baby or you, thank God. Do you remember what happened?”

She nodded. “Tony shot me. Tiny used the trunk, I think. It’s pretty hazy, but we went back to Brodick, didn’t we?”

“Yeah.” He couldn’t resist pressing kisses on her uninjured shoulder. “You passed out while we were there. I brought you back and called an ambulance. The surgeons operated right away, and they managed to get the bullet. The doctor said there were no internal injuries, and they expect you to fully recover.”

“Where’s Dad and Alex and the others?”

“I left them at Brodick. You were bleeding, witchy woman, and I couldn’t take any chances.” He twined her good hand with his.

She smiled at him.

“They’re still there, then?”

He nodded. “Not to worry, Tee. Between Tiny, Alex, and my father and brother, everything was under control.”

“Tony?”

“Minor surface wound. Unrepentant and furious, last time I saw him.” A grin curled his lips when he remembered Tiny’s men prodding Tony with their swords. Until that moment, he hadn’t realized how bloodthirsty a nature he had. Every drawn drop of Tony’s blood satisfied a small part of his craving for revenge.

“What’s so funny?”

“Let’s put it this way. I wouldn’t want to be the focus of Tiny’s anger.”

“And Tony is?”

“You bet.”

“Good, I hope Tiny hurts him. Hell’s too good for him.” A flare of anger shot her eyes more gold than brown. “Was, was Flood there? Not Arthur, but the nephew?”

“You remember that, do you? Yeah, Tony planned to blame our massacre on Inspector Flood, not that he would’ve survived.” He shook his head. “I still can’t get over how thoroughly he deceived all of us.”

“I never thought he had the brains for all of this.” She edged onto her good side. “I wonder if I’ll ever stop feeling like an idiot when I think about Tony.”

“Babe, you scared the shit right out of him with your conjuring. Now that I think about it, I’m convinced that’s why he tried to get you on your own. He wanted you dead, Tee. When I mentioned the Vikings in the apartment, he went ballistic. If it weren’t for that, I’m not sure we would’ve gained the upper hand. As it is, Alex and Tiny were brilliant. I owe them. Big time.”