I was pretty pissed off I’d been kidnapped again. I was also pretty certain I was about five seconds away from losing a kneecap. I’d never paid a lot of attention to my knees, but after inspecting them closely in the waiting room, I decided I liked them just the way they were.

I’d been afraid, afraid for my life, afraid for my kneecap and although I’d been nearly blinded by tear gas, I’d seen Tex take a bullet for me.

Being afraid made me mad. It made me mad that I’d been kidnapped on the doorstep of my home. It made me mad that Kitty Sue was hysterical. It made me mad that Malcolm stood glancing at me every few seconds as if he wanted to say something but thought I was too fragile to hear it. And it made me mad that my Dad sat across the waiting room wearing his worried expression.

And as I ciphered the bits and pieces of the puzzle that had been floating around me for days… pieces of the puzzle I’d been too stupid to fit together, I became pretty f**king angry.

The thing was, I was pretty certain that Lee had played me.

Lee and Hank walked into the waiting room and everyone looked at them. Lee’s face was stony. Hank looked angrier than me and he shook his head in negative once to Malcolm and Malcolm’s face became even tighter. At the silent communication, Dad cursed loudly.

I guessed (correctly) Pepper Rick got away.

Hank walked right up to me, pulled me out of the chair and gave me a tight hug that stole my breath.

Lee stopped at Dad, Malcolm joined them and they started to have a quiet discussion that I couldn’t hear.

This made me mad too.

Hank came to hug me but Lee barely even looked at me.

Jerk.

I mean, he might still be mad at me for what I’d said at the barbeque, but I’d just been kidnapped, for God’s sake. That deserved at least a pat on the shoulder.

Hank let me go because the doctors came in and said Tex was okay. The bullet entered at the shoulder, breaking the shoulder blade and ricocheted out a second hole.

They said if we were quiet and didn’t stay long, Mr. Kumar and I could go and visit Tex together.

Tex looked out of place, too peaceful and way too big for the bed. I didn’t know what to make of him without his night vision goggles.

I barely knew this man at all, and he’d saved my kneecap.

He came to groggy, opened his eyes and they focused on me.

“You’re a fun date, what’re we gonna do tomorrow night?” he asked.

After he asked the question, he fell back to sleep hearing my stunned laughter.

* * * * *

Mr. Kumar drove to the hospital and took himself home. Ally took Kitty Sue home while Hank drove the rest of us. Malcolm sat in front with Hank and I sat sandwiched between Lee and Dad in the back. It was clear they were my honor guard.

Dad held my hand, tight, and Lee had his arm along the backseat of Hank’s 4Runner which meant it also ran along my shoulders. This was not a show of affection but so we’d have more room.

No one said anything. There was nothing to say.

Hank stopped in front of Lee’s condo building and Lee unbuckled and slid out, then unbuckled me and grabbed my arm, pulling me out with him.

I was a little surprised. I thought he was still pissed about what happened at the barbeque. I was pretty certain I was going home that night, not to Lee’s. Furthermore, I wanted to go home. Lee might be pissed about me and my stupid mouth, but I had more reason to be angry.

“Liam,” Dad called and Lee kept his hand on my arm but bent at the waist to look in the backseat.

“Yeah?”

“You take care of her,” Dad said, his voice gruff and the Guinness folks could have popped by to record the occasion, such was my world-record pissed-offedness.

I mean, no one makes my Dad sound like that. Those f**king kidnapping losers.

“Yes sir,” Lee replied.

I bent over too and blew Dad a kiss. He smiled at me, Lee closed the door and they idled at the curb while Lee propelled me into the building. I probably should have told him I wanted to go home but I thought everyone had enough drama for one night.

Hank didn’t take off until the door closed behind us and we were well into the foyer.

There was no chit chat between us. Lee took the bracelets off in his bedroom with a universal key.

Once he threw them on a dresser and turned to me, I crossed my arms on my chest, hitched a hip and said, “You still mad at me?”

He ignored my belligerent stance, a stance that communicated an unequivocal, “stand back” to every other man I’d known. Not Lee, he walked right up to me and put his hands on my hips.

“No.”

“Then what’s your problem?”

He didn’t even hesitate, he answered me. He actually answered me, and it sounded like the honest-to-goodness truth.

“I’m angry at myself for reacting the way I did to what you said when you meant no harm and I’m angry with myself for leaving you unprotected.”

I stared at him for a beat, hiding my surprise, and then said, “Good. Now that’s settled, I’m taking a shower.”

His hands tightened on my h*ps and his eyes narrowed on my face. It was his turn to stare at me for a beat, then he said, “I take it I’m not invited to this shower.”

I pulled away from him. “Nope.”

I took my shower, washed my hair and surveyed my new cuts and newest bruises while I let the water run over me.

When I’d stepped out of the shower, I noticed that, unfortunately, when I went into the bathroom, I didn’t take any clothes with me. I had to grab Lee’s light blue, cotton robe from the hook on the back of the door. I wrapped it tight around me and tied it secure.

I went into the bedroom and Lee was lying in bed, his chest bare and the sheet pulled up to his waist. He was reading. Believe it or not, casually lying in bed reading.

Grr.

If I’d had something, I would have thrown it at him. Instead, I went straight to my bag, rooting through it to find underwear. I found it, straightened and glanced at Lee. He’d put the book down and was lying on his side, his head in his hand, watching me.

“It’ll be a wasted effort, puttin’ those on.”

I sent him my best Polar Freeze Glare, turned my back on him and pulled up the panties.

“Talk to me, Indy,” he said on a sigh.

I turned and put my hands on my hips.

He wanted me to talk? Then, I’d talk.

“I’ve had some time to think, what with being kidnapped, cuffed and tied to a chair for part of my evening and then spending the rest of it sitting in a hospital waiting room.” I was lying about thinking while I was kidnapped, but he didn’t need to know that. Anyway, it made my introduction more dramatic. “This morning, you told Hank you had a client. I thought you meant me, but I was wrong, wasn’t I?”