Page 22 of Deadly Target
Liking this recent turn of events in more ways than one, he smiled to himself.
Yes, Olivia Fiorelli definitely offered many opportunities, and he was going to make sure she ended up on his side of the law very, very soon.
* * *
Cooper Harris was indeed awake,but extremely groggy according to Mitch Holden, who met Victor and Olivia as they stepped off the elevator. Mitch’s handshake was firm and quick. He frowned slightly at Taz’s presence, but said nothing, giving the dog a pat on the head before he directed all of them down the hall toward the ICU.
Olivia planned to stay in the waiting room with the dog, and at first, Victor didn’t seem to notice she wasn’t right behind him. She’d just settled into one of the worn waiting room chairs when he popped his head back in.
“What are you doing?” he asked. “Aren’t you coming?”
The ICU floor limited how many people could be in a patient’s room at one time, and with Celina and Mitch already here, Victor would max that number. Plus, law enforcement was a funny thing. She knew Cooper and Celina casually, but she wasn’t part of the team. It could make things awkward. “They won’t allow Taz into ICU.”
He seemed genuinely surprised. “I’m sure the rules forbid it, but since when has that stopped you?”
She smiled, but stayed put. “I’ll hang out here with your dog. I know when to push it, and when not to. Go talk to your agent and tell him I said hi.”
After he left, she checked her emails as Taz lay at her feet. A minute later, Dr. Emma Collins came strolling into the waiting room.
“Hello, Olivia.” Emma was dressed in a peacock blue skirt and matching jacket. Her blond hair hung loose around her shoulders, and a pair of blue framed glasses sat on her nose. “I didn’t expect to see you here today.”
“Lending moral support,” Olivia said. “How is he doing?”
She leaned down and patted the dog’s head. “Cooper? They don’t call him The Beast for nothing. He’s one tough guy, and I suspect he’ll be up and running in no time.”
“And Celina? How is she holding up?”
Emma glanced out the window. Olivia had the feeling she wasn’t seeing the view from this floor. The doctor had some interesting experiences in her background, all of which would leave a normal person with severe PTSD, so Cooper wasn’t the only tough one around here. “There are times when it’s harder on the people around the injured person, because of the emotional strain, than on the person themselves.”
In other words, Celina was still a hot mess and probably would be for quite a while. Seeing the man you love shot in the heart right in front of you and your child was about as traumatic as it could get. “Victor hoped she might talk to you about what happened, so I’m glad you’re here. How is Jett?”
Jett was Emma and Mitch’s son, about the same age as Cooper and Celina’s daughter. The two kids had been fun to watch back at Christmas, and Olivia was once again grateful that no one had gotten hurt that night at the hospital.
“He’s a handful,” Emma said, bringing her gaze back and smiling at Liv. “I wouldn’t trade him for anything.”
There was that look in her eyes that parents got when they talked about their kids. Olivia wondered if her dad had ever looked like that when he’d told someone about her. “I don’t suppose he takes after his dad in the ‘handful’ department?”
The smile grew. “I’m surrounded by a lot of testosterone at the ranch. You should come out sometime. Do you like to ride?”
“Horses? Never been on one, but they look…nice.” She preferred dogs over just about anything, and found herself automatically reaching to pet Taz. “Does Jett like them?”
“Loves them. Mitch will have him riding before he’s walking, I’m afraid.”
Rarely did Olivia feel comfortable chatting with another woman about normal things like family, but Emma had a way of putting even a workaholic outsider like Olivia at ease. “A couple of daredevils, huh?”
She chuckled and took the seat next to Olivia. “I’m glad you and Victor are getting along so well. Thank you for being here for him with this. He’s not one to ask for support, if you know what I mean. Are you two…?”
Seeing each other? The invisible words hung in the air.Are we actually a couple?Sure felt like it, even though they’d only really shared a couple of intense lovemaking sessions and lots of texts and phone calls. It almost felt like being in high school instead of a mature relationship. “We’re taking it slow.”
What a lie. She wasn’t even sure what “it” was, but they’d jumped into a physical relationship so fast, her head still spun. That was not how she took it ‘slow.’
But then again, she hadn’t had a real relationship since…
Damn. She couldn’t even remember the guy’s name it had been so long. Dean? Dan? No wonder she was starved for attention and super-hot sex with a good-looking, powerful man. Her library card was way past due on getting stamped.
Emma smiled again, this one more placid, psychologist-like. “Nothing wrong with slow. I would expect nothing else from Victor. He’s not one to rush into a relationship. He’s a good man, Olivia. He deserves a strong, honest woman like you.”
And whoopsie, another lie. This one of omission, but a mistruth nonetheless. She was strong, yes, but she wasnothonest. She still hadn’t told Victor about her investigation into him for the Justice Department.
