Page 18 of Seductive Desires

“There is no time. Are you coming or not?” Amari snapped.

I grabbed my clutch and my keys, throwing myself into the back next to Mateo. One guy was holding a towel against the wound while another sat in back, holding Mateo’s shoulders so he didn’t topple over. I didn’t know what to do so I grabbed his face, trying to wake him. But no matter how many times I called his name and patted his face, he didn’t move. His breathing was shallow. It almost looked like he wasn’t breathing at all.

I sobbed, pressing my forehead against his. “Please wake up.”

The driver drove like an insane person and we arrived at the hospital much faster than I anticipated. I’m pretty sure he ignored all traffic laws to do it but I didn’t care. I helped them slide Mateo out of the SUV and onto the waiting gurney, like the hospital knew we were coming. Someone must’ve called them. I raced alongside them, trying to stay with Mateo until a nurse put her hands up, blocking us.

“We’ve got it from here. You can wait in the waiting room for updates.”

She didn’t stick around, racing after them. I wrapped my arms around my waist, trying to hold back the sobs that wracked my body. I can’t breathe.

“We did all we could. It is in the doctor’s hands now.”

I sucked in a breath. Amari stood behind me. I dropped my arms, clenching my fists.

“Where the hell were you?” I snarled through clenched teeth. She was the head of his security so why was I the one fighting to protect him?

She raised an eyebrow at me. “He asked us to stay back so you wouldn’t notice us. We were unaware of the attack until we hadn’t heard from him. We swung around the corner just as you fell.”

“Why would you listen to him? It’s your job to protect him!”

I was getting overworked. I knew it wasn’t her fault. It’s not like the attackers were after him. They were after me and he was trying to protect me. Guilt slammed into me over and over again. I have been training for years and I still froze. If I had reacted sooner, I could’ve stopped that guy before he dragged me away, before Mateo even noticed. I shook my head, trying to bring the world back into focus but my chest felt tight.

My pained expression seemed to startle Amari. Her eyes darted around as she looked for someone to help her. But no one was here, not for me. The only people who cared about me were Carlos and Mateo and one of them was fighting for his life. Little black spots started appearing at the edges of my vision.

Amari smacked me on the back, hard. It shocked me into sucking in a breath, gasping. She gripped my shoulders, shaking me. “You can’t help him if you pass out, Mariana. Breathe.”

She didn’t let go until I pulled myself together. She certainly wasn’t a gentle person, but effective and calm in a crisis. She walked me to the waiting room, pushing me into a chair before stalking off. She came back a little while later with a coffee for me, sitting beside me with a scowl on her face.

It took hours before the doctor finally came out to speak with us. He was young, almost looked too young to be a doctor, with bright red hair and a five o’clock shadow. His glasses only made him look younger. He smiled when he stepped up to us.

“He’s going to be fine. He’ll need lots of rest but I can take you to see him now.”

I stood immediately, but no one else did. I frowned at Amari, who shook her head. “He would rather see you than me right now. Go. I’ll check in with him later.”

I followed the doctor, who introduced himself as Dr. O’Connor. “You wouldn’t happen to be related to Liam O’Connor, would you?”

His eyebrows jumped up. “He’s my brother. How do you know him?”

“He bought a piece from my friend’s studio a few months ago for his wife.” I smiled fondly at the memory. Liam didn’t look like the type who bought art often. He kept running his fingers through his hair and sighing until I stepped up to help him. His wife’s birthday was coming up and he wanted to get her something different because she didn’t like him buying her things. I introduced him to Carlos and they commissioned a piece that would be special just for her. That was the first big commission Carlos ever got and we celebrated hard with champagne. I ended up sleeping on his couch that night, too drunk to walk home.

Dr. O’Connor chuckled. “I remember that. She was so happy she nearly gave him a concussion.” My eyes went wide as I stared at him. He just grinned. “She is… affectionate. She tackled him and knocked him to the ground in her eagerness to thank him.”

I snickered. I couldn’t imagine someone brave enough to knock that man down. Liam was intimidating, even when he was just shopping for art. But I got to meet Jo a week later at a small showing Carlos had. Liam brought her to meet the artist, not knowing Carlos avoided any event like the plague. Jo and I became fast friends though. She likes to text me when she’s in need of girl talk. Apparently she only has one other girl friend who travels a lot with her husband and a lot of guys live at their home. I didn’t know what Liam did for a living that would require a lot of guys to live with them, but I didn’t ask. Not my business.

* * *

The walkto Mateo’s room took way too long in my opinion. Or maybe I was just eager to see him. He was still in the ICU being monitored by a lot of nurses who filtered in and out. Mateo was still asleep when I came in. He looked pale, his hands clammy when I held it.

“Is he really okay? He looks pale.”

“He lost a lot of blood. He’ll be okay with lots of rest.”

Dr. O’Connor left me alone with him. I didn’t know whether I wanted to wake him just to hear him speak again or let him rest because he needed it. When I brushed his hair off his forehead, he grunted and flinched.

“Mateo?”

His eyes flew open. “Mariana? What happened?”

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