Both Lance and Melina swiveled to Sloane with a jerk.
“Guys, it’s not the first I’ve been shot at. Can you just check Luke? Please?”
Just standing was draining her, but it was her worry for Luke that was the hardest to manage.
Luke rounded the car and went to her. He looked like hell, and she probably wasn’t any better. With a hand on her naked waist, his thumb stoked a little before he pushed her forward. “Lead the way, doctor. We’re both going in.”
Luke followed Melina as she left, and he didn’t let go of Sloane until he was instructed to sit on the examination table. Sloane leaned against the wall while Lance remained standing by the door.
When Luke discarded the coat and sweater, it was clear that none of the garments were salvageable, and Lance took everything away. She saw extensive bruises on his back, mixed with older scars. Were they from his time as a Marine? She knew so little about him beyond what she’d seen in his office, found in her web search, and the tidbits he’d let slip.
As Melina unwrapped his head, all Sloane’s attention was on the wound. Could he be suffering from more than a gash? He’d said he’d had a headache since the explosion.
Melina continued her examination, cleaning the wound, asking questions, probing, and touching, even bringing a smile to Luke’s face and unease tightened in the pit of Sloane’s stomach. It was like a slimy knot, slowly expanding with every passing minute. Unsettled, she became fidgety, trying to tell herself she was tired and the pain was messing with her brain until she exploded, and kicked a nearby trash can with more force than was necessary.
Not only didn’t it make her feel better, but now three sets of eyes were on her, and she couldn’t say a word to save her life. With an improbable blush creeping up her cheeks, Sloane mumbled something about getting the rest of her suit off and walked away as quickly as possible, or fast as her body would allow.
In the changing room, she’d at least have a minute to analyze what had just happened, but that alone time was brief when Lance walked in.
“Care to tell me what that was all about?”
The hell if she knew, and instead of answering, she sat on the bench to remove her boots.
“I’m talking to you, Sloane Friday. Unless you received a blow to your head too.”
“Give me five damn seconds. Is that too much to ask?”
It had been years since she’d felt this undone, just after she left the force. She shed her pants, letting them fall on the ground.
“Damn, Sloane.” It was obvious by the catch in his voice that the bruises looked worse than she thought, and to be honest with herself, she didn’t care at the moment. “You need to…”
Grabbing a pair of sweatpants and hoodie, she put on some sneakers before facing him. “Lance, please, I just need... You know me. Sometimes, I don’t feel like myself, and it’s happening now, and I don’t want to hurt anybody, and in this state, you know I will.”
To his credit, he didn’t reach for her, but it was clear he was concerned. “I know where you’re headed and you need to rest, not go for a ride.”
“I’ll go with her.” Luke, still bare-chested with a fresh dressing on his forehead, a much smaller one this time, arrived followed by an angry Melina.
“You, Sloane Friday, aren’t going anywhere until I examine you. Luke is worried, and said he only agreed to be examined first because you were concerned for his head, which is only a gash near the hairline and nothing serious.”
That statement only made Sloane more unhinged, until Luke came forward, dark eyes even deeper than before until he rubbed shoulders with her. A simple touch that strangely helped.
He leaned close to her ear so the others wouldn’t hear. “Go get checked out, and then we can go anywhere you want. I’m not letting you out of my sight, especially since there are a few more questions that have popped into my head. And we have a mission to finish.”
The familiar hand pushed her forward, back to the medical bay.
Melina yelled after them. “Be ready when I get there, Sloane. Especially if you want me to be quick.”
Lance stayed behind, probably talking to Melina behind her back, and Luke’s too.
Reaching the bay, Luke entered behind her.
“You’re going to stay and watch?”
“You stayed for my examination and I’m staying for yours.”
How could he draw a smile from her when she felt so ungrounded. “Just admit you want a peep show, professor.”
Luke scratched his beard, an interested look on his face. He came closer, so close, Sloane hoped for a kiss, but instead, he grabbed the bottom hem of her hoodie and pulled it up with the torn cami underneath, bearing her down to her bra.
Not the shy type, she let her hands fall to her sides, waiting for the usual reproach about being hurt. Even with her friends at Noctem, even if there was no reprimand, she knew they cared, especially the male members. They never doubted her ability or the way she could handle herself in the field; it was more the deep worry that radiated from them when any of the women taking their turn at being the vigilante came back with an injury. The men could return with bullet wounds, one pint short of being completely bled out and nobody gave them grief about it. It had been the case all of her life, for every single job she’d held.
Bracing for that same look, those same words, Sloane prepared for the attack, so again, she was thrown off balance when Luke fell to his knees in front of her. For the first time, he examined her stomach, and winced at the bold blue and purple all over it, but her breath caught when his lips skimmed her belly. His whiskers tickled as he traced upward, standing, even making a detour to the last speck of blue on the swell of her breast.
As she remained still, Luke stood and kissed her. It had nothing of the explosion they’d created the other night, more like a sweeping of heat that eased the pain and even gave her a boost of energy.
Over too soon, way before her brain could register the need to hold him in place for more, he stepped back.
“I like that lost look on your face when you’re surprised, Sloane Friday.”
“What was that about, professor?”
“My way to take inventory of every inch of you to make sure those nasty injuries disappear as quickly as possible. And, I admit, distracting you so you’d stay put until Melina checks you out.”
Her face scrunched. “So it’s Melina now. You’ve already got people around here spilling their secrets. You’re the real danger here, professor.”
Melina arrived and was all business, so Luke retreated to a corner. “I’m only interested in yours, Miss Friday. Only yours.”
Chapter 14
Sloane was one fidgety woman and Luke fought hard not to smile. After Melina made sure there wasn’t any internal bleeding, she injected her with a painkiller so she wouldn’t fuss about taking it. Sloane had tried to ditch him several times. Not that it had worked. She’d talked about going for a ride until Lance reminded her it was the middle of the night. Wherever she wanted to go, her plan fell flat, but it didn’t calm her down.
It was obvious both of them needed to rest, but something was troubling Sloane.
Melina disappeared after tending her, but Lance kept close, always watching with an ominous glare. Luke couldn’t decide if he was angry with Sloane or Lance was about to kill him and make his body disappear.