to get the women out a rear exit without being detected, unless they climbed out the high bathroom window, and that would be tricky with a baby. They were trapped.
He could tell by Shannon’s quickened breaths that she’d come to the same conclusion. Her look to him was one of barely contained panic. His brain said call the cops. His gut said there was no other way, but somehow, his heart overruled them both.
He turned around and handed Shannon his cell. “Tell Dina to lock the bathroom door and call the police.”
“But...”
“Do it, Shannon.”
“Dina,” Shannon called. She pushed her way in. Her gasp told him the truth before she emerged with the baby in her arms.
“She bolted. Climbed out the window and left the baby on a towel. The diaper bag is stashed under the sink.” Shannon fingered a piece of paper scribbled with a lipstick note. “‘I’ll be back in two days. Keep her safe for me. Don’t let them take her.’”
He met Shannon’s eyes, the iridescent pools that pulled him in. “How do you want to play this?”
“I promised to buy Dina a few days to find her brother. If we call the cops now...”
He nodded. “Baby goes into foster care, most likely.”
Shannon bit her lip. “If the gang takes the baby, Dina will never get her back...” She shook her head. “I promised. A few days, I promised.”
“A promise is a promise,” he said, trying not to choke on the irony.
She lifted her chin, voice gone hard. “I understand if you don’t want any part of this. It’s not your mess. I shouldn’t have called you.”
He didn’t answer. Then he clapped on his Stetson, threw open the door and strode out, Shannon on his heels, still clutching the baby. That hadn’t changed, anyway. Shannon had never shied away from trouble.
The riders approached quickly, coming up close, too close. Viper spoke first. “It’s her. The doctor.”
“What are you doing here, Doc? Saw you beelining from the hospital,” Cruiser said. “Sudden vacation?”
Jack straightened to his full height, a good four inches taller than either man. “Who wants to know?”
Cruiser cocked his head. “Who are you, Cowboy?”
“Name’s Jack Thorn. Yours?”
“Not here for a meet and greet.”
Jack stared him down. “Then why are you here?”
“I want the girl and the baby.”
Jack arched an eyebrow. “I don’t have a girl and a baby to hand over—not that I would anyway.”
“So, who do you think you are? John Wayne?” Cruiser glared.
Jack didn’t answer, just stared.
Viper spoke up. “Doc treated our brother T.J. back at the hospital. We think she’s hiding somebody who pushed him down the stairs. Girl Doc here is a liar.”
“First point, she’s not a girl,” Jack said, looping an arm around Shannon’s waist. She went rigid. Every cell in his body felt stunned by the physical connection, as if some deep part of him remembered the woman he ached to forget. He punched the feelings back. “This is a woman, a doctor, and she’s here with me, nobody else, so watch your mouth.”
Cruiser’s hands bunched into fists. Jack kept his palm relaxed on her hip, ready. Anticipating an animal’s reaction was nothing new for him. He could tell when a horse was about to bolt, to kick, to struggle. Cruiser was going to make a move and soon.
Cruiser’s brow furrowed. “I think you’re lying, too.”
“I don’t care what you think.”
“Who are you, Cowboy?”
His mind whirled, searching and discarding ideas.
If things got physical, it would probably end with the baby being taken and Shannon hurt. Best to talk his way out of it.
“Like I said, name’s Jack.” He held his chin high. “I’m her husband.”
Husband. The word seemed to flutter in the wind like a Fourth of July flag. Viper strode past them and pushed into the hotel room. After a moment, he returned. “No one else there.”
Cruiser’s eyes narrowed. “And I suppose that’s your baby?”
You said it. I didn’t.
Jack felt Shannon pull away a fraction, heard a soft exhalation of air.
When Cruiser took a step toward the door, Shannon moved to meet him. “Stay away from my baby.”
Cruiser smiled. “Going all Mama Bear on me now? Baby’s pretty young to be traveling.” He jutted his chin. “Bringing it to a hotel in the middle of the sticks?”
Jack shrugged. “It was a good halfway point. We’re meeting up for a much-needed vacation,” he continued. “Our jobs keep us too busy, don’t they, Shan?” He nuzzled her ear, dizzied by the feel of her warm skin, his brain wondering what in the world he was playing at.
“Uh-huh,” she mumbled, heat rising off her.
“I think you’re lying,” Cruiser said. “If you’re married, where’s the ring?”
Jack smiled. “I thought we’d already covered that I don’t care what you think. Cowboys and doctors have to use their hands a lot. Rings are inconvenient when you’re saddling horses, not that it’s your business.”
Cruiser glared at him. “I still think you’re lying, Cowboy, and if I find out you’re hiding Dina, I’m gonna kill you both and take what’s ours—Dina and her baby.”
Jack released Shannon and stepped forward, every muscle taut. He came nose to nose with Cruiser. “No one,” he murmured, “is going to touch my wife.”
Cruiser raised a fist, and Jack did the same, jerking his head toward the building.
“All right, but before we get this rodeo started, here’s a tip. Make sure the camera gets your good side,” Jack said.
Cruiser jerked, gaze finding the security camera mounted on the wall. He stepped back a pace, breathing hard. “I want Dina and the baby. They belong to the Tide. Anyone who gets in my way is my enemy. The Tide doesn’t forget, and we don’t forgive. We are going to be watching you.” He stalked back to his bike, along with the other man, and drove off in a roar of exhaust. Jack led Shannon back into the hotel room.
Seconds ticked in awkward silence between them. How could he explain
