“No. I don’t think you can.” He softens his voice, but his words are just as harsh and damning. “I can’t be gentle when underestimating his evil will get you killed too.”
Shell-shocked, I whisper, “This can’t be real. It has to be a mistake.” Then louder: “I can’t be the person Niccolo is looking for.”
“If it is a mistake, I’ll figure it out, but I can’t do that if we’re both dead.” He pushes off the wall and scoops my clothes off the floor to set them on the toilet. “Clothes. Now. I want us walking out of this building in ten minutes.” He digs his phone from his pocket. “In the meantime, I’m going to make a phone call. Pray the name Ella leads us where we need to go.” He doesn’t wait for my reply, crossing to my left to face the far wall, his back to me, assumably his version of giving me privacy. And I don’t even care. I just want out of this gown and this hospital that’s become a cage. I need Kayden to make that happen, but where he and I go from here, I don’t know. I’ll decide on the fly, but whatever the case, I will make an educated decision that has nothing to do with his damn blue eyes.
Launching myself off the wall, I dart for the jeans that are supposed to be mine, grabbing them and shoving my legs inside, because apparently the other me doesn’t wear underwear. They fit perfectly, but they’re still not familiar, and I promise myself I will remember every last part of my life, down to my socks. I will own my world again and I will own a plan to make that happen. And while I don’t want to be a person who would be involved in any way with a man like Niccolo, I’ll figure out how to fix that, once I figure out how it began.
I squat next to the bag, and hear Kayden say, “I need you to search the passport entry for the name Ella,” and I pause in the process of digging for a bra, another dash of hard-core reality hitting me. He’s asking someone to break the law to help me. He’s also openly admitted to hacking police records and knowing Niccolo. Who knows a mobster? I squeeze my eyes shut. Right. Who? Maybe me, it appears, and I have to face that possibility to get to the other side of this, wherever that may land me.
“No,” Kayden says into the phone, “I do not have a last name,” and while the irritation lacing his tone is intended for the person he’s speaking with, I feel it like a punch in the gut. Why would I remember my first name and not my last? And the answer is instant. My last name would return me to my real world, and knowing what I know about the trouble I’ve found, I’m pretty sure that I don’t want to go back. And it’s unacceptable. I can’t fix what is broken if I don’t even try.
“Coward,” I whisper, scolding myself and refocusing on the urgency to get dressed and the contents of the duffel. I remove a pair of tennis shoes and socks and set them on the floor, my eyes going wide as I retrieve a gorgeous cream-colored bra from the bag, noting the splattering of sparkly jewels over the silk. Searching for the brand, I discover the tag is written in Italian. Or I assume it is. It’s sure not English, and while I remind myself that tourists buy lingerie, Kayden’s words play in my head. We don’t even know if you are a tourist. And this time, I start to wonder if I really am.
“Yeah yeah yeah,” Kayden murmurs into the phone. “I know all the reasons this is difficult, but you’re always bragging about how you do ‘magic.’ Now I’m paying you to prove it.” There are a few beats of silence in which he listens, and I struggle to put on the bra without taking the gown off, only to end up a tangled mess. “Within the hour,” Kayden tells the person on the other end of the line, abruptly ending the call, and before I can ask what happens in an hour, he peeks over his shoulder and asks, “Are you dressed?”
“Don’t turn around,” I order, and once I’m certain he’s listened, I tear both the gown and bra from my body, groaning when the hook attaches to the armhole.
“Need help?” he asks.
“No!” I say quickly.
He gives a low, sexy rumble of laughter and holds his hands out to his sides. “Just trying to speed up the process, but I have to warn you. In about sixty seconds you get my help whether you want it or not.”
He might have prefaced that warning with laughter, but he’s serious, and I quickly hook the clasp at my back and reach for my shirt, only to freeze at the sound of activity in the other room. Kayden hears it too, rotating to face me, his finger pressed to his lips, warning me not to speak. I nod, praying Gallo hasn’t returned sooner than expected, and preparing to feign illness to avoid those fingerprints.
Kayden’s gaze sweeps low, raking over my nearly naked breasts, and when my nipples pucker beneath the silk in reaction, his jaw clenches, eyes flashing with one part heat, another two parts disapproval. He closes the space between us, snatching up my shirt and pressing it to my belly, mouthing, “Now.” It’s a small action that tells me he’s as concerned as I am that Gallo has returned and he’s preparing for a fast departure.
My hand closes over the cotton tee, and I’m about to pull it over my head when a knock sounds on the door, and I fumble it, letting it drop to the ground. Heart thundering in my chest, I hold out my hands, silently asking Kayden if I should answer the knock, receiving a quick, negative shake of his head in reply. And so we stand there, neither of us daring so much as to blink. I assume we’re waiting to find out who we are dealing with to decide on a response.
Another knock sounds, and I swear I jump a mile high before I hear, “Are you doing okay in there?”
Relief washes over me at the sound of Maria’s voice, and even Kayden’s shoulders visibly relax. “I’m good, Maria,” I call out, rushing toward the door, fully intending to peek outside and send her on her way. Kayden is there in front of me, though, blocking the door and giving me another negative shake of the head.
I grimace at him, and a silent conversation between us ensues.
Me: “Why can’t I open the door?”
Him: “Don’t ask questions, just do as I bid.”
I surprise myself with a “Fuck you!”
He arches a brow, eyes hinting at amusement, not anger.
“Can I get you anything?” Maria asks.
Offering Kayden my back, I press my hands to the door, preparing to wing this any way I can without his silent bossiness. “No thank you,” I reply. “Just brushing my hair and washing my face.”
“You really must be feeling better,” Maria replies, sounding pleased. “Do you want something special for dinner to celebrate? Maybe chocolate cake?”
I jump on a chance for privacy. “Actually, my brother’s bringing me dinner soon.”
“Oh, how nice! I’ll cancel your dinner tray, then. Buzz me if you need anything.”
“Thank you!” I call, holding my breath to await her departure, listening as her footsteps sound and begin to fade. Finally breathing again, I turn around and flatten against the door, finding Kayden standing in front of me, a long, sexy lock of light brown hair brushing his brow, my shirt in his hands. My almost naked breasts between us.
“Put it on this time,” he ord
ers, tossing the shirt to me, his gaze sweeping low, brushing over my breasts, where they linger a moment before landing on my bare feet. “And shoes,” he says, his eyes meeting mine again. “Quickly.” He snaps out the last word, turning away and crossing to the cabinet where he retrieved the duffel bag, while I try to catch the breath he’s stolen from me.