appeared completely confused.
“Hello,” she whispered. “I’m glad to see you’re awake.”
“You’re the angel,” he said, his voice weak and barely audible.
She smiled and shook her head. “I’m...not an angel. I’m very real. And happy to see you’re better.”
He winced and pain reflected in his eyes. “Not sure about better,” he whispered. “Feels like I was hit by a bus.”
“Well, I didn’t see a bus. But something like that.”
“What happened to me?”
“I’m not sure,” she said. “I was driving along the interstate and saw your car in flames quite a distance from—”
“Jared, my God. You had us scared half to death.” A blond man strode into the room looking too much like the patient not to be related. Up until this point, she had no idea of his name; the hospital wasn’t sharing that information.
But...Jared? That was a good name for a strong man. It fit.
The man walked straight up to Jared, looking like he wanted to crush the patient tight in an embrace and at the same time rip him a new one. “Hey, bro.”
“Yeah, hey, bro.”
The man peered at the bandages covering Jared’s body and shook his head, tears welling in his eyes. It was a touching scene and she felt like an outsider. She was ready to slip out of the room now that Jared had his brother here to look after him. “Sorry I wasn’t here sooner. The authorities had trouble tracking me down. But, man, you almost died last night. You have no idea how close you came to buying the farm.” He inhaled and paused, as if regrouping his emotions. “Are you in a lot of pain?”
Jared nodded gingerly. The movement was probably too much for him right now.
“You have two broken ribs and some contusions, but honestly, bro, if it wasn’t for this young lady, you wouldn’t be here right now.” He turned to her and put out his hand, finally acknowledging her presence. “I’m Cooper Stone. Jared’s brother.”
“I’m...Bella.” She gave him her uninjured hand.
“I understand you pulled my brother out of the car and got him to safety.”
She nodded.
“And the car was on fire at the time?”
She nodded again.
“Thank you. You were very brave,” he said, his eyes misting up again. “And you were injured, too.” He glanced at the bandage on her right hand.
“It’s nothing. Just some scrapes.”
“You did that?” Jared’s voice was a little stronger now. It contained a hint of disbelief. “You pulled me out of the car?”
She understood his surprise. She stood five feet five inches tall and wore a size five dress. Hardly a match for such a big man. “How?” he mumbled.
She shrugged, her face warming from Cooper’s and Jared’s awed expressions. She couldn’t go into the whole Paul thing or the fact that she couldn’t have left him to die in that car without trying to help. Her conscience wouldn’t have allowed it. “Protein, every day.”
Cooper smiled.
Jared tried to smile, too, but pain seemed to grip him and he frowned instead. “Thank you,” he managed.
“I’d better let the nurses know you’re awake,” Cooper said. “Excuse me for a second.”
Bella waited until he was gone before walking over to Jared. His eyes were clear and locked on her. Having his full attention gave her the good kind of chills, and she ignored them because the bond she had with Jared Stone would be broken now. He no longer needed her.
She covered her hand with his, careful not to cause him further pain, and gave him a smile. “I’m glad I was able to help you.” She nibbled on her lower lip, thinking of Paul and somehow feeling that she’d evened out the score, in a way. Jared Stone would survive. “But since your brother’s here...well, I’ll be leaving you in good hands.”
“You stayed because I had no one else.” It was a statement not a question.
“Yes, and to make sure you’d survive.”
“I did, thanks to you.” He applied pressure to her hand, the squeeze only slight but enough to convey his emotions. Fatigue pulled the lines of his face down and his eyes began to close.
“I’ll be going now. Have a good life, Jared.”
She wasn’t sure if he’d heard her goodbye. Yet when she walked out of his hospital room, an odd sensation stirred in her belly. As she approached the nurses’ station, she noticed Cooper in a discussion with a floor nurse.
Looking out the window, she saw a news van from a local Dallas station pulling up to the hospital. It wouldn’t do to be here when the journalists started doing interviews. She couldn’t afford to be recognized. She slipped past Cooper without being noticed and then exited the hospital.
Sienna sat in the middle of Amy’s living room, stacking colorful plastic blocks on top of each other. “I make castle,” she announced.
“It’s beautiful,” Bella said. The formation tilted far to the left, and as soon as Sienna’s chunky little hand attached the last block—shaped like a blond-haired princess—the whole thing toppled over.
Sienna broke out in giggles and Bella laughed along with her. “Oh, no!”
“Do again, Mommy. Do again.” Sienna’s wide green eyes beseeched her.
“Okay, sweet baby. We’ll do it again.”
Bella took a seat beside her daughter on the floor and helped gather up the blocks.
Amy came out of her bedroom and plopped down on the sofa. Her home was the epitome of class and elegance, with its white furniture, glass fixtures and beautiful light-slate flooring. Amy had worked hard since their days at Berkeley, becoming a successful real estate agent. Bella could fit her small rental home where she’d lived with Paul twice over into this big luxurious condo. Yet, she’d never minded living on Paul’s salary alone. Her father’s form of punishment in withholding her funds had backfired on him. She’d actually loved living on a budget, as long as she and Paul were together.
“No luck on that job interview, I’m afraid,” Bella told her, grabbing a few blocks and starting to build again. “I won’t be the new sous chef at the Onion Slice.”
“Did you do as I said?”
She shook her head. “No, I didn’t cover up my bruises with makeup. It wouldn’t have worked anyway. They would’ve seen right through it. Literally.”
“I
