Page 91 of Justified Fear
“Your parents want to go to the house,” he said.
Both of them frowned at him, their arms crossed over their chests.The door creaked open.“Boys, come on.We have a lot to do, and I want to come back and spend time with Keely when she’s had more rest.”
Both men did her bidding, which had Keely laughing.“Mama boys until their dying days.”
He settled in the chair next to her again, Maya walked over and laid at his feet.“Why don’t you get some sleep so you can spend quality time with your mother later.”
“You’ll be here?”
As if she had to ask.“Always.”He took her hand and held tight.He sat, content to watch as she drifted off to sleep.Once her eyes closed, he felt his body give into his need to sleep, knowing that he meant what he’d said.He would always be there with her.
Epilogue
They kept her in the hospital for two days.TWO LONG DAYS.Keely was ready to crawl out of her skin by the time they let her go.Her family had been around, but not too obtrusive.Oh, her brothers were still giving Ryan crap, but he didn’t seem to be bothered by it.In fact, he appeared thoroughly amused by it.
Her mother had made sure she had a lot of her favorites in the refrigerator, so she didn’t have to cook unless she felt like it.
The day after she was released, she was sitting on the lanai when Ryan came out.The sun was setting, and the heat of the day had burned off.She and Maya had been enjoying the serenity of her backyard away from everyone in the house.When she thought they weren’t obtrusive, it didn’t mean her brothers weren’t annoying her.She hoped her parents were taking them back to the mainland with them tomorrow.
“Hey, are you getting hungry?”he asked, but she sensed a dark mood had settled around him.
“What?”
“What do you mean what?”
“Ryan, I know that you can hide your moods, but I know when you’re upset over something.”
As if to prove her point, Maya got up and walked over to Ryan.She was a good SAR dog, but she was also intuitive to people’s moods.
“Now tell me what’s bothering you.Did you have a fight with my brothers?”
He snorted as he took the chair beside her.“I can handle a couple of shit kickers from Texas.”
Yeah, her brothers liked him.He stood up to them, and she knew Ryan had gained their respect.
“Love, you’re going to tell me at some point, so just tell me.”
He sighed.“Raymond Garcia is dead.”
She blinked as her brain tried to figure out who that was, then she remembered.Ray had lied about a lot of things, including his last name.Hehadbeen from Bedford, but Ray had some top-notch computer skills.He’d created a whole identity for himself and called on his old friend Chad Brothers to help him.Only…Chad had gotten caught up in the idea of having his own restaurant.
“What happened?”
“He was attacked out in the yard.I have a feeling the cartel found out he had gone completely bonkers.They would be worried about just what he would reveal.He also made a lot of enemies, including several factions of the Yakuza.”
She sat there for a second, waiting for the guilt.She had felt that a lot over the last three days, thinking of all the bloodshed Ray had caused to get to her.But she didn’t feel any.Not for this.Ray had chosen to be the way he was…or, well, maybe he did have a mental illness.Either way, it wasn’t her fault.
Keely sighed.“Well, I guess that’s that?”
He nodded.“How are you feeling, baby?”
Usually, she didn’t like that name when another man would call her by it.In fact, when Chad had called her that, she told him to stop.When Ryan did it, she got all tingly.
She took his hand.“Are the bros still here?”
He narrowed his eyes at her.Yep, he had been horrible about not touching her for the last few days.The doctor said she was fine.She just had to be careful of her shoulder.
“Yeah.And, apparently, TFH has decided to show up at your house.”
