expecting, but it wasn’t her looking weak and helpless.
She studied him. “Do I really look that bad?”
He’d obviously let his poker face slip again. Still, the sight of her lying there injured had shaken him more than he’d anticipated. “Sorry. I wasn’t expecting to find you all bandaged up.”
“Jax, there’s something I need to tell you—”
“And how’s the patient?” A male voice came from behind him.
Jax turned to find a doctor in a white lab coat standing at the opening in the curtains surrounding the bed. He glanced back at Cleo. “We’ll talk later. I’ll just wait outside.”
“It’s okay.” She grabbed his hand. “You can stay for this.”
The doctor cleared his throat. “Ms. Sinclair has a mild concussion. We’re still not certain about the extent of damage to her leg. I’m waiting on the films. However, I want to keep her in the hospital under observation. She was unconscious for a bit and I want to make sure there aren’t any complications. But she’s insisting that she’s going home.”
Jax turned to her. “You need to listen to the doctor. He knows what he’s talking about.”
“I’m not staying.” A stubborn glint reflected in her eyes. “I can’t sleep in hospitals. Besides, I feel fine now.”
“She can go home as long as she isn’t alone,” the doctor said while looking directly at Jax. “Can you stay with her?”
“I don’t need him.” The sincerity in her pointed words poked at Jax. “I can take care of myself.”
The doctor’s brow drew together. “I’m sure you can in most cases, but you’ve got a serious bump on your head and you need to stay off your leg as much as possible. So either you stay here and let the nurses look after you or you can go home with...”
“Jax. Jax Monroe. And I’ll see that she’s taken care of.”
Cleo worried her bottom lip. And in that hospital gown, she looked like a child again. All he wanted to do was take care of her any way possible...even if it meant getting closer to her instead of beating a trail into the sunset. That would have to wait for another day.
Cleo’s worried gaze turned to him. “Are you sure about this?”
“I wouldn’t have said it otherwise.”
The doctor’s gaze swung between the two of them, deciding if he could trust them. “Now that it’s settled, I’ll go check on things. If you wait in the lobby, we’ll call you when she’s ready to go.”
Jax didn’t mind a few minutes to himself to pull his scattered thoughts together. He started for the doorway when Cleo grabbed his hand.
“I need to talk to you. I just remembered something.”
“Don’t worry. We’ll have plenty of time for that later.”
“But this is important.” Her distressed tone caught his attention.
He wondered if this had something to do with the police poking around. “I’m listening.”
“There’s a man after you.”
“What?”
As though recalling her fingers were still gripping his hand, she let go and made a point of straightening her white sheet. “When I went back to the bungalow a man approached me. He wanted to know how to find you.”
“And he attacked you?”
“Not really. When I tried to get away from him, he followed me. He grabbed my arm and put a hand over my mouth. He said he had a message for you.”
Alarm arrowed through Jax’s chest. “What is it?”
Cleo’s gaze lowered. “I don’t know. I bit his finger before he could relay the message. He let go of me and the rest is kind of a blur.”
His gut was telling him trouble had followed him from New York. And Cleo had ended up paying the price. Guilt beat at his chest.
“Don’t worry. He won’t bother you anymore.”
“How do you know? Who is this man? What does he want?”
Jax held up his hand, halting the flow of questions. “I don’t know him, but I promise you won’t have to deal with him again. Remember from here on out I’m in charge of your safety. Doctor’s orders.”
She started to sit up. “Jax, I need to know what’s going on.”
“Calm down.” He placed a hand on her shoulder, pressing her back against the pillow. “When I learn something I’ll tell you. Now I have a couple of phone calls to make.”
Jax hated the thought that he’d dragged Cleo into his problems. He had no proof that this mystery man was tied into the money-laundering case, but he’d be willing to bet his fortune that he was right. His priority now had to be keeping Cleo safe. And since that hired thug knew her name, her face and where she worked, it wouldn’t take long for him to track her down at home, either.
Just then the doctor returned. “We’ll have you fixed up in no time.”
That was Jax’s cue to leave. He turned back to Cleo. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything.”
As he strode away, she called out, “What are you going to do?”
He didn’t pause to answer because, at that moment, he didn’t have a clue. It was obvious that he needed to get Cleo and himself out of Las Vegas. But how far could he take her with her injuries? If she needed further medical attention, he didn’t want to be stuck out in the middle of nowhere. There had to be a compromise. A place where the thug hired to scare him into silence wouldn’t think to look for either of them.
* * *
Free at last.
Cleo settled back against the leather seat of a large SUV. Even though her hospital stay had only lasted a matter of hours, for her it felt like days. And now Jax was playing the dutiful hero and riding to her rescue. She had no idea where he got this sweet ride, but she appreciated its spaciousness more than she could say.
“Thank you. But you really didn’t have to go to such lengths. I could have called a taxi to take me back to my place.”
“I don’t think so. Remember I’m the one who promised the doctor I’d take care of you.”
At the next traffic light, he turned left instead of right.
“You went the wrong way. Wait. How do you know where I live?”
“I don’t.”
“It’s the other direction. I live at 331 Villa Drive, apartment C3. You can just turn left up here and loop around.” When he kept going straight, she sat up a little straighter. “Where exactly are you taking me?”
