Page 20 of Knight's Journey

“What do you want me to say?”

“That you’re in pain. That you’re afraid because De la Peña could very well know who you are and where you are. That he could come for you and everyone we love. That you’re done taking risks which put you and the rest of us in danger. Hell, I’d settle for you promising to take a few days to recover while the rest of us figure out how this op got blown all to pieces.”

He squeezed her hand. “I can’t sit by and do nothing.”

Sydney withdrew her hand and sat back with a long-suffering sigh. “Of course not. Except you may not have a choice. You’re recovering from a knife wound and major surgery. Your body needs time to heal, whether you like it or not. A little bird also told me Tristin and Jay benched you.”

“I’ll promise you whatever you want if you’ll break me out of here. This place is driving me nuts.”

“No such luck, Mr. Wilder.” His nurse breezed into the room pushing her laptop cart, the same stern expression she always wore on her face. He’d been too caught up in Sydney’s presence to notice her come through the door. “You’re going to be with us at least another day or so.”

Bridget glanced up, and he could see she hadn’t realized Sydney was with him. The two women stared at each other, Syd with her eyes wide and Bridget with her mouth open. He looked from one to the other, unable to decipher the weird vibe which suddenly invaded his room.

“Bridget,” Sydney murmured. “Oh, my God. It is you.”

“Syd, what’s going on?” Zane struggled to sit up straighter, wincing as the ache in his gut protested.

Bridget rushed forward to raise the head of his bed slightly while helping him settle comfortably against a stack of pillows. Then she faced the redhead with a warm smile which had Zane blinking, stunned. He’d never received a genuine smile from her, but Sydney gets one on their first meeting. The idea bothered him for reasons he didn’t care to define.

“It’s good to see you, Sydney. Marlowe has been wondering if you were successful in getting your car fixed.”

Sydney grinned. “Tell her yes. It was exactly as she said it was. The mechanic was able to repair it quickly. Cole and I still want to have you all over for dinner. We’ve had a lot going on.” Her eyes flicked over to Zane, and Bridget followed her line of sight.

“I didn’t realize you knew each other. Small world.”

“Zane and I are friends, and we work together. He is going to give me away when Cole and I get married in a few months.”

He cocked a brow at Sydney. A few months? When he left on assignment, Sydney and Cole had not set a date. He shouldn’t be surprised the wedding was so close. He’d been undercover for a year, and a lot can happen during that time. But hearing it still made it all seem real. Without a date, he could carry the tiny hope that he still had a chance with her or something could happen to break up her and Cole and he could be there for her. The hope dissipated with the news.

When he stared back to Bridget, he could see something in the depths of her dark eyes. It took him a moment to realize what he saw — understanding and empathy. She knew. With one glance and a few minutes in his and Sydney’s company, Bridget knew he was in love with his friend. Damn, this woman’s talents were wasted working in a hospital. She had all the makings of a strong FBI profiler.

“Either my brain is still in a painkiller fog, or I’m missing something here. You two know each other?”

Sydney rolled her eyes at him. “My car broke down one night, and Bridget and her niece and nephew stopped to help me. Her niece actually got my car running and told me what to tell the mechanic to check for. Even Cole was impressed. Anyway, they’re all new in town, so we wanted to have them over for dinner to thank them.”

“I told you it’s not necessary,” Bridget said smoothly as she went back to her work. “We were happy to help. Marlowe loves working on this stuff, and she’ll be pleased to know your car is working now.”

“Marlowe is your niece?” It was the first piece of personal information he’d been able to get out of her, and he was curious to know more.

“Yes. Mathias is my nephew. Now, how are you feeling, Mr. Wilder?”

“I’ve told you to call me Zane. I’m fine.”

“You’re not fine. You’re obviously still in pain. On a scale of one to ten, what is your pain level?”

“Not enough to rate. What were you saying about me being here longer?”

Her expression told him she didn’t believe his assessment of his pain, but she let it slide. “Sydney, would you mind giving us a few minutes?”

“Whatever you need to tell me, you can say in front of Syd. We’re practically family.”

Sydney placed a hand on his arm. “No, it’s okay. I need to check in with Kat before she leaves work. I’ll step out for a few minutes, and you can fill me in when you’re done here. Bridget, it’s good seeing you again. I promise to be in touch very soon. Say hello to Marlowe and Mathias for me.”

“I will. Nice to see you.”

Zane watched Sydney leave then watched Bridget take his vitals, a knowing smile hovering over her lips.

“You gonna ask me? I can tell you’re dying to.”

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