Page 275 of Sin Bin

By the time they reached his place, she had fallen asleep.

He parked in the garage and sprang out of the car, hurrying around to the passenger side. He unbuckled her seat belt and swept her up into his arms as if she weighed no more than a child. She didn’t stir as he carried her to the elevator and up to his floor, through his front door and down the hall to his bedroom.

He laid her down at the foot of the bed, unslung her purse from around her neck and squatted to remove her high heels. Then he carefully took off her dress, gulping thickly at the sight of her sexy lace bra and panties. The sweet scent of her perfume rose from her heated skin, making his mouth water against his will.

He helped her into one of his clean T-shirts, the material engulfing her petite body. Her feminine fragility made him feel even more fiercely protective.

She mumbled incoherently as he picked her up again and gently lowered her to the middle of the massive bed. She looked so small and fragile that his heart twisted in his chest.

Pulling the covers over her, he tucked her in and tenderly brushed her hair back from her face.

She stirred and lifted her lids, looking up at him. Black mascara was smeared under her eyes. He gently pressed his thumb to her skin, wiping away tears and makeup.

She caught his hand, holding it against her cheek. Those huge amber eyes shadowed with turmoil brought out all his protective instincts. Something was eating at her, and it killed him that he couldn’t get it out of her.

“Hold me,” she whispered.

He was already shucking off his boots and climbing into bed with her. She curled into him, her head slumping onto his chest. He held her tight, rocking her gently, stroking her hair and whispering soothingly as she drifted off to the oblivion of sleep.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

MEADOW

The only thing worse than waking up in the morning with a hangover was waking up with a hangover brought on by unimaginable grief.

The moment Meadow opened her eyes, pain sliced through her skull and ricocheted through her heart. Everything came rushing back in nauseating waves, the devastating events of yesterday becoming today’s reality.

Logan was sitting in a chair next to the bed, watching her intently. He wore a pair of torn jeans, and his chest and feet were bare. His black hair stood up in unruly disarray. He looked like he hadn’t slept all night.

When their eyes met, he leaned forward and tenderly stroked her hair as he searched her face. “Hey, there.”

“Hey,” she whispered.

“How are you feel—”

Before he could finish the question, hot bile surged up her throat. She bolted from the bed and ran to the bathroom, reaching the toilet just as vomit spewed from her mouth. She dropped to her knees and bent over the bowl, her stomach heaving violently.

Logan was right there, holding her hair back as she retched into the toilet. She vomited until she had nothing left to purge and she was dry heaving in painful spasms.

Weak and dizzy, she slumped back against the wall, tears running down her cheeks.

Logan squatted in front of her, murmuring soft words of comfort as he wiped her face with a cool, damp washcloth. When he finished, he gently lifted her off the floor and carried her back to bed, propping her up against a pile of pillows.

She closed her eyes, still feeling a little woozy and nauseous.

Logan left the room, returning promptly with a glass of water. The mattress sank as he sat beside her and held the glass to her lips. She took a few small sips before leaning back against the pillows.

“Better?” he murmured.

She nodded. “Thank you.”

The glass clicked as he set it down on the bedside table. Then he kissed her forehead and returned to the chair so he could see her face. “I’m going out of my mind with worry. Please talk to me, sweetheart. Tell me what’s going on with you.”

Tears filled her eyes as she relived in her mind what had happened to her parents, how they’d been killed and how she’d been utterly powerless to help them.

“Everything I thought I knew about the past was a lie,” she whispered.

Logan frowned at her. “What do you mean?”