Page 42 of Coveting Catherine

The doctor cut the shirt away from Leo's arm and grimaced. His body seemed to finally register the pain radiating from his arm. Concern for Catherine and Melody blocked out the burning feeling on his arm.

“Mr. Armstrong, I’ll give you something for the pain. I'll need to scrape the burn, and it's a painful process. We need to see how bad it is,” the doctor informed him.

“Will it make me sleepy?” he asked.

“Most likely, yes,” the doctor admitted.

“Numb what you can and get to work. I'm not sleeping until I know how Catherine’s doing,” Leo ordered.

“I can't numb it in the areas I'm concerned with?—”

“Do it without, I don't care. You aren't putting me to sleep,” he gruffly informed the man.

The doctor nodded and left the room. Victoria giggled in the cubicle next to him.

“You men are all alike. Get the medication, burns hurt. Kassie texted. They intubated Catherine due to the smoke inhalation, her ankle is broken, two broken fingers and second-degree burns. Her arm and ribs aren’t broken, but severely bruised. They didn’t find any internal injuries. Kassie will keep us posted,” Victoria reported. “Her best friend is watching over her. Rest now, we’ll ensure everything is handled. Let your family care for you.”

Leo let out a relieved breath. “Kit Kat’s okay? She'll make it?”

Victoria peeked around the curtain. “My men have stabilized the mountain. Carol, Jake, Maddie, and Joe left and will arrive in another hour. Chase and the team brought Ash’s body. You'll need to decide what to do about him. He listed Catherine as his only relative. Agent Rhodes took the others. Now rest while you can,” she gently admonished.

Leo nodded. He blamed Ash for ruining Ragu's life. The men attempted to keep their teammate in their circle despite their doubts. Until the fateful mission, he always remained professional and carried out his job satisfactorily. As team leader, Leo refused to risk his men on the field. Drug abusers lied about their substance abuse all the time.

Ragu gradually removed himself from their lives. Although he swore he never took drugs of any kind, blood tests didn't lie either. Ragu felt the strain on his friends as they mourned the losses of Olaf and Whiskey and were forced to take sides with his presence. When news of Ash's death became public, Ragu disappeared altogether. He most likely felt the burden of the team’s split.

He pulled the phone from his pocket and dialed Matthew's number.

“Boss,” Matthew answered.

“Did you find Ragu?” Leo asked.

“I pulled his employment records when I discovered he lost his apartment. He got fired from his last job. There's no record of him using credit cards or banking,” Matthew listed the information he found.

“Okay, keep me posted. Ragu's a top priority.” He flinched as the doctor poured a fluid on his other arm. The team needed to find their friend and help him clear his record and hopefully improve his life from the sounds of it.

“On it, boss. Agent Rhodes called. They took Rahimi into custody and you’ll be receiving a check for services rendered. We also caught his second in command,” Matthew clicked the keys on the laptop.

“Call Rebecca and let her know I appreciate the update and the help.” Leo blew out a breath as the doctor began picking at the burn. He disconnected the call.

He stared at the curtain next to him. He thought of everything Ash confessed. Catherine worked as a nurse. Surely, she knew when she got pregnant. Women tended to keep track of those things. Why didn't she request a blood test? Maybe she didn't tell him because she blamed him for Olaf? Doubt and frustration churned in his gut. What if she preferred Ash as the father over him? Did Catherine hate him enough to keep his child from him? Ash promised to divorce her. He searched his memory of every time he saw her with Ash, the first time Leo saw her after their marriage stuck out in his mind.

Leo watched as Ash helped Catherine out of the car. Sucking a deep breath in, he let it out his nose. Catherine refused his calls, and he finally stopped calling to give her space. A few weeks later, Ash announced he and Catherine had married. The team congratulated him, not showing what they truly felt. Two months later, while they waited for the green light to proceed with a mission, Ash announced Catherine's pregnancy.

His gut churned with anger, hurt, and loss. If the enemy ran through the dense trees, Leo would've gladly stood up and let the bullets rip through him. The bullet Catherine put through his heart left him feeling numb.

He noticed the faint outline of Catherine's protruding belly sticking out as the firelight caught her white top with embroidered pink roses. Her hair pulled off her neck in loose ringlets, cascading down her back. As they neared the bonfire, he noticed she licked her lips nervously, and her eyes searched the crowd. When they landed on him, her eyes darted away, and she smiled at Ash like the world began, and ended with him. Leo grabbed another bottle of beer.

Saint walked toward him and grabbed a drink from the cooler. “If I was a bettin' man, I’d say things aren't what they seem to be.”

“What do you mean?” he whispered as Catherine made her rounds, hugging Shadow and Taco. She tossed her head back and laughed at something Taco told her. Shadow asked her something, and her mood instantly cooled. Ash ran his hand over her baby bump, showing his possessiveness, and his other arm slunk over her shoulder.

Blind rage filled him as he endured watching Catherine get pawed on by his teammate. She promised to marry him. Did he misinterpret her feelings for him when she married Ash mere weeks after refusing to see him? As Catherine neared Saint, she shot him a smile, but it didn’t make it up to her eyes.

“It's good to see you, Saint. I'm sorry I didn't make the last couple of meetups.”

She nervously glanced in his direction and avoided his eyes. “Hello, Leo,” she acknowledged him coolly.

Saint drew her in for a hug to draw the attention away from his leader as the group stayed silent with baited breaths to hear his reply.

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