Nicholas, Mac, and Harley left the infirmary and went to Mac’s cottage to prepare one of the rooms for Sable. Trevor and Doc remained with Sable. Doc had wanted to run some additional tests and X-rays and she agreed.
With a couple of hours of testing behind her, Sable was exhausted but comfortable. The medication had finally worn off and while the pain was terrible, she had a clear head and that was far more important to her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, turning to look at Trevor.
“You have no reason to apologize to me.” Trevor leaned forward and took her hand in his.
His warmth and compassion resonated in his touch and she was overwhelmed by guilt. Why had she been so hell bent on deception? Why hadn’t she been confident enough to walk right up to Trouble’s gates and knock?
“You don’t understand,” she whispered, looking the other way. “I do owe you an apology. I owe all of you one.”
Trevor pulled her face to his. Cupping her chin, he said, “Whatever it is you think you’ve done, you’re wrong. We want you here. You’re in Trouble, a town that was built with a solid foundation and a set of principles that matter. Women have a right to feel safe in their homes. Men, while often overlooked as the abused partner, have a right to walk down their city streets without stones thrown at their backs. Human beings have a right to choose their own paths in life. There’s no shame found in being here, Sable. You’re where you’re supposed to be.”
“And maybe you should ask yourself how I got here.”
“I know how,” Trevor said, lowering his head to hers. “I know how and I’m fine with that.”
Without meaning to come across as eager, she framed his face. “Kiss me.”
He moistened his lips and whispered, “Nothing would make me happier.”
His mouth met hers and their kiss was ravenous right from the start. While she would’ve thought he might have been mindful of her recent split lip, he didn’t seem to notice. Instead, he curved his arm above her head, lightly ran his fingers through her hair, and thrust his tongue between her swollen lips.
Her tongue greeted his in a swirling motion. Thrust for thrust, their tongues dueled and danced, giving and taking the kind of passionate kisses that eventually fueled more illicit notions.
While her body felt broken and damaged, her mind was sharper than ever before. She was free to think about taking Trevor to bed, or all of them for that matter. She was free to touch and explore without the guilt of prior motives.
Someday she’d tell them. One day soon, she’d let them know.
When she’d searched them out, she’d searched them out for a reason. She’d wanted them to like her enough to want her. She’d wanted them to want her enough to need her. She’d prayed they’d eventually need her enough that they’d never let her go.
And so far, so good.
She slowly
backed out of their kiss and touched his cheek. “Thank you.”
“For the kiss?”
“For everything,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “Now I can go to sleep and know there is someone watching over me.”
“Always, Sable,” Trevor promised her. “I’ll always watch out for you and I’m not the only one. You have five men here in Trouble who will go to the end of the earth for you.”
“That’s right.” Doc reentered the examining room. “For now, though, we’re only going to the other side of town. You have a clean bill of health.”
“That’s what they told me at the hospital.”
“There, you were just another patient. Here, you’re a very important member of this community. Here, you’re very important to the doctor on staff and that means you’ll always have the very best of care.”
She believed him.
Chapter Eleven
One week later
“Rise and shine, beautiful.” Nicholas placed her breakfast tray on the bed, right next to her hip. She rolled over and smiled up at him. “Somebody likes to sleep late.”
“Somebody was up late.”