Page 29 of Devil's Den

Chapter Nine

Beth had missed being back at work. She wasn’t going to deny that the break was refreshing and helped her to recharge, but getting back to work gave her a sense of focus through the day.

The only downfall was the man she was now expected to take along with her to each job. Rome said his name was Paul, and that he didn’t like to talk but he would be a good guard for her.

She’d been back at work for one week, and so far Paul had stayed true to his word. He stood in the corner of every place she worked. The agency hadn’t been happy about her suddenly having a guard, but all it had taken was one phone call from Rome, and there had been no arguments. She wished she knew what he said to people. She had a feeling it was the kind of stuff that made people regret questioning him.

It was so strange to her. So many people feared and respected him, and Beth was so afraid to admit what she did feel for him. She also knew if she told Rome she had fallen in love with him, she had a horrible feeling he’d burst out laughing. There had been a few times in the past couple of weeks, late at night, when she had wanted to tell him she loved him. But she kept secret locked up in her chest, with no way of telling a living soul.

She had never been in love before. She had no idea what she was doing.

Rome had invited her to stay with him, but that didn’t mean anything. She didn’t want to expect anything from him.

She stepped back from dusting the top corner of the room, and was on some tall ladders to get to those places. She took a deep breath, and all too soon, she felt a little unsteady on her feet. She gripped the top of the ladder as the earth seemed tomove, and she felt sick.

“Paul, help!” she said.

She started to feel herself losing her grip, and then, nothing.

****

Beth opened her eyes to look at Paul, and at first she was confused. He was on his cell phone and it took her several blinks to realize she was on the floor.

“She’s coming to, sir. Yes, I will, right away,” he said, hanging up.

“What’s going on?”

“You fell off the ladder. You gave me just enough time to catch you, before you hit the floor.”

She closed her eyes and opened them, and then saw the ladder in the corner. “I … got dizzy, I think. How long have I been out?” she asked, frowning.

Paul was trying to help her to her feet. “A couple of minutes, but I need to get you to the hospital.”

“I’m not going to the hospital.”

“Beth, Rome has already given me instructions, and he’s on his way—”

“No! You need to call him up right now and tell him you were faking it, or you were worried for no reason.” She couldn’t help but feel an overwhelming sense of panic. There was no way she was going to the hospital, even though she had no reason to take a sudden fall. That did terrify her just a bit. She wasn’t going to tell Paul that.

“Miss Hunter, you cried out for my help seconds before you fell off that ladder. You didn’t see how you looked or the fact for several minutes I couldn’t get you to respond. You’re not my boss. Mr. Hayes is, and I answer to him, not to you. If he says you’re going to the hospital, then that is exactly where you’regoing.”

The journey to the car was a bit hazy. She believed Paul carried her to the car, even though she became something of a dead weight to him. After that, it was still blurry. The city didn’t quite seem right to her, and, well, nothing felt right at all.

They arrived at the hospital and much to her surprise, they were ushered into a private room. This never happened to her, and she could only assume Rome had called ahead. She sat on the edge of a bed and was still waiting to be seen.

This didn’t feel right. The last couple of days she’d been waking up feeling a little sick, and now, she had almost fallen off a ladder.

Paul no longer stood with her in the private room. She sat alone, collecting her thoughts, and they were not good ones.

The doctor came and went, all before Rome turned up, and when he finally did, it was like he was a force of nature. Her door was partially open, and she heard him talk to Paul first. She clenched her hands together.

Blood had already been drawn, her vitals taken, notes written down, and now she had to wait for a dizzy spell. This made no sense and she had no doubt this was already costing Rome a fortune.

Finally, she got to see the man himself.

“You don’t look happy to see me,” he said.

“That’s because right now, I’mnotvery happy to see you. I’m … irritated.”

---