Burns So Bad (Smoke Jumpers) (27 page)

He leapt out of bed anyhow, his
fingers already punching buttons. But her color is better. Her lips weren’t blue
and he couldn’t hear her breathing.

“Please?” She leaned back against
his pillows, clearly wiped.

That
please
did him in because damned if he didn’t take his thumb off
the Send button.

“I have PSVT,” she said finally.
“It’s no big deal. I’ve dealt with it all my life.”

“PSVT?” She was speaking a language
he didn’t understand.

“It’s a heart arrhythmia. Paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia if you want the fifty cent
words.” She tried to grin at him and all he knew was that something was wrong
but damned if he had the knowledge to fix it.

“You have a
heart arrythmia.”

That hadn’t
been in any of her application materials. He definitely would have remembered
that. His head skipped ahead. “Did I cause this?”

“My episode?”
She shrugged casually, but her eyes studied him intently. “It’s not simple
cause and effect. If I get too tired or too stressed, I’ll have an episode.
Sometimes, though, the episodes come out of nowhere.”

“We had sex.
I got you excited.”

“We were both
excited,” she pointed out. “Weren’t we?”

“Only one of
us has an arrythmic heart,” he said grimly. Did she take her life in her hands
when they got in bed? Was this his fault? And then they’d argued.
Shit.

“Sex isn’t
going to kill me, Rio.” She sounded sure. “This is just something I have to
watch out for.”

He sat down
on the side of the bed, setting the cell phone on the bedside table. He could
dial in five seconds, but his legs were telegraphing an urgent sit-down-now
message to his brain. How had the night gone from hot sex to fighting to this?
Wrapping his fingers around her wrist, he found her pulse and counted.

“See?
Better.”

How could she
sound so sure? Her lips had been
blue
.

Before he
could answer, however, there was a soft knock on the bedroom door. Perfect. Now
his mother was in the mix.

“Rio? Gia?” Nonna’s
calm voice filtered in from the hallway. “I don’t want to intrude, but is
everything okay?”

“God.” Gia
closed her eyes. “This is a nightmare.”

He agreed
with her there. His mother was concerned enough about the noise coming from his
bedroom to come and bang on the door. And, well, shit. He couldn’t leave her
standing in the hallway, wondering. So he got up and went to the door. Opened
it and, sure enough, Nonna was standing there, looking worried. She had the
instincts of a firefighter’s family for trouble.

“Gia isn’t
feeling well,” he said.

Which was an
understatement.

“I’m fine,” Gia insisted.

“Are you a doctor now?” He stepped
back so Nonna could come in.

She came in, seemingly unfazed by
Gia’s presence in his bed, although he’d bet he’d hear about it later.
Christ
. He hadn’t lived at home since he
was a teenager. Nonna didn’t beat around the bush any, going straight to Gia’s
side. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Gia did sound okay.
Tired, but like herself. “I have a heart arrythmia. I had an episode. It’s over
for tonight.”

Nonna nodded. “You want me to call
someone?”

“Like a doctor? Family?” Gia shook
her head. “I’m done for the night. Sorry to have woken you up.”

“Honey—” Nonna sounded like
she wanted to say something, but settled for fussing instead. The attention
made Gia uncomfortable, but what could she say?

His head was stuck on what Gia had
said. That Nonna didn’t need to call her family. Damn straight.
He
was her family, or he wanted to be.
He intended to be the person by her side when this thing hit her. He had a hell
of a lot to learn, but he had no doubt that he could do it.

Because she was his everything.

And, shit.

She was.

It was that simple.

He saw Nonna to the door and then
turned back to Gia.

“You’re really okay?” He needed to
hear her say the words. One or two hundred times might be enough.

“Absolutely.” She swung her legs
over the side of the bed, fishing with her feet for her shoes. He recognized an
exit in the making. He’d done the same thing himself, although without the
medical drama.

“Stay,”
he said, really meaning tonight, tomorrow and every day after that.

She shook her head. “I don’t think
so, Rio.”

“Why not?” he asked carefully.

“I need some space.” She swiped a
hand over her face. “And some sleep.”

“You’re not one hundred percent.”

“So you’re volunteering to take
care of me? Again? You should buy a lottery ticket, you’re so lucky. I can take
care of myself, Rio.”

But she didn’t have to. She had
him. He opened his mouth, but she kept right on talking.

“I’m tired of it,” she said. “My
whole life, everyone has rushed to look after me. To do things
for
me. It’s not necessary. I’m not
limited.”

“Which is why you never mentioned
it?” Her color looked good now. Maybe he didn’t need to roust Spotted Dick for
a hospital run.

Her chin came up. “What would you
have said, Rio, if I’d mentioned the PSVT before I joined the jump team? Would
you have politely passed?”

He answered her question with one
of his own.

“What would have happened if you
had one of these attacks out there in the field?”

“I handle it.” She glared at him.
“Has it happened? Yes. It has. And you didn’t notice, Rio. It was no big deal.”

Well, hell.

He thought back and, yeah, it
didn’t take long to remember the episode in his truck. The slow burn of anger
followed the memories. She’d been sick. He should be gentle. But—fuck
that. She claimed she didn’t want special treatment.

“You lied to me.” He held a hand up
when she would have spoken to me. “You lied to our team. A lie of omission is
still a lie, Gia. You didn’t tell us about something that could impact every
man on that team. We counted on you and you let us down.”

She shoved off the bed. “I’m not my
PSVT. It doesn’t make me weak. It doesn’t stop me from doing what needs to be
done.”

“Unless you can’t breathe,” he
snapped. “Then, it sure seems to me like you’ve got a problem.”

She’d put herself in danger. She’d
taken unacceptable chances. He catches her arm, turning her to face him. He
didn’t know what to say. But part of him apparently had plenty of words,
because the words kept on coming out of his mouth.

“You’re grounded. Permanently. No
more jumping.”

“You can’t do that.” She tugged on
her arm.

“I can.” For a dozen reasons,
starting and ending with the fact that he represented one third of Donovan
Brothers, which put him in charge whether she liked it or not.

She froze in the door. “So much for
loving me.”

“I do love you. And because I do,
I’m going to make damned sure you stay safe. And that what I’m doing is best
for you and our possible family of three. Don’t push me on this, Gia.”

She shook her head. “Fuck off.”

Two words that summed up the
situation perfectly.

###

Rio’s bedroom door slammed closed.

Hell.

Gia
had him coming and going. He didn’t know what she wanted him to do or to
say—and, for the first time ever, he
wanted
to please.What had happened
between them here in his bed should have been a step in the right direction.

Wrong.

Shit.
He had it bad, and his brothers would be merciless. He’d thought he and Gia had
a
thing
, and she’d walked away. Just
like a guy, he thought, and wry amusement curved his lips. Except that he
wasn’t done with her.

And
he didn’t know how he felt about that.

Sex,
he told himself firmly. Their relationship had been about sex and sex only. This
business of him loving her was simply a misconception on his part that he’d get
past. He didn’t know why he’d expected something more, or why he was looking
around the room for some kind of sign that she’d been there. Gia wasn’t
Cinder-fucking-ella, dropping glass slippers on her way out the door. She’d
gone.

And,
yeah, he still loved her.

So
it was plain pathetic that he rolled over, putting himself on her side of the
bed, his head on the pillow she’d used. Not, he promised himself, because that
side was where she’d slept, but because that was his usual spot. He always got
the right side of the bed, and this was definitely his favorite pillow. He was
lined up like a soldier on report, hugging one side of his bed, when he usually
sprawled all over it.

Absolutely
pathetic.

Yet
he couldn’t bring himself to move away, to
not
lie in the place she’d just vacated. The sheets were still warm from her body
and the sweet scent of her perfume drove him nuts. She liked those light floral
scents he’d always hated. A fun, flirty scent that clung to her clothes. He’d
never walk by the fragrance counter in Macy’s again without getting a hard-on.

Again,
pathetic.

Instead
of getting out of bed, though, he turned his face into her pillow, breathing in
her scent. Lowered his hand to his dick and thought about Gia while he took
care of business.

Gia
still wasn’t talking to him the next morning.

Rio
didn’t know how he felt about that, but she damned certain didn’t get to take
her pissed-off and drive away on her own, even if she claimed her ankle was
better and she was more than capable of driving. He was her eyes for the
morning. So here he was, with Mack riding shotgun, trailing her to the jump
hangar while she limped ahead on her crutches with Joey for her morning
companion.

His
truck wasn’t the only vehicle on the road, but it was damned close. Rio scanned
each passing car in turn. “Did the DEA have any updates?”

“Nope.”
Mack didn’t shift from his post by the passenger-side window. The man looked
lazy and relaxed, but Rio knew the other man could kick into action at the
slightest hint of trouble.

When
they created the road, the road dipped and he could see ahead, around the curve
she was taking blind. “We’ve got more company.”

He
jerked his head towards the large SUV parked in a pull out intended for runaway
vehicles and turn-arounds. Emergency type stuff.None of which—shit—seemed to
be in play here. The SUV wasn’t familiar. The vehicle could be a local with a
new pair of wheels or a tourist. He frowned. Gia’d been living in a fucking
fishbowl, so any kind of takedown should not be happening.

“Call
Joey. Tell him there could be an SUV on his six in a half mile.”

“On
it.” Mack pulled out his cell and punched a text.

The
caution might be unwarranted, but Rio’s instincts screamed
trouble
. He wanted Gia within arm’s reach now. Even as he thought
it, however, she hit the gas, picking up speed. She loved driving.
Fuck
. He hated to rein her in. She’d
accuse him of being highhanded and dictatorial, and maybe she was right. Gia
didn’t take orders well.

“Move, Gia,” he growled as Mack looked up
from his cell phone.

The
SUV pulled out of its hidey-hole as Gia passed, dropping in behind Gia’s truck. Not
too close, but closer than Rio liked, especially on these roads. Mud covered
the plates, obscuring the license number.

It
hadn’t rained in weeks.

“Who
else do we have out here?” he barked, riding the accelerator hard. “Where are
the DEA eyes?”

Gia
took the next curve beautifully, her truck taking the bend tight and fast. Five
miles to base camp. The company would minimize her exposure, but she was still
vulnerable. The weight of the gun holstered at his back promised one solution,
but only if he could get close enough.Steering his truck along a stretch of
flat, he had a bird’s eye view of the SUV gunning to life as Gia shot by. The
vehicle pulled out, hard and fast, riding Gia’s bumper.

Damn it.

“DEA’s
a mile back. Flat tire.” Mack’s voice was lethally controlled as he tossed the
cell onto the seat, all playfulness gone. “Joey’s on speaker.” He rolled down
the window, palming his own weapon. Mack didn’t mess around. He’d been one of
the best snipers the military had to offer.

A
new curve in the road hid Gia and her tail. He pressed the gas pedal to the
floor, looking for more speed but the speedometer already hovered at eighty.
Any faster was near suicidal on a rural mountain highway but getting to Gia was
paramount.

“Seat
belt?” Getting Mack killed wasn’t part of his plan.

“Roger
that.” Mack’s hand curled around the oh-shit handle, handgun braced on that arm
and ready for business.

They
shot out of the curve and Rio pulled on the wheel, hearing gravel spin beneath
the tires. And then there was Gia and the assholes riding her.

“Drive,
Gia!” Rio bellowed the order.

The
pumped up volume on the cell registered Joey’s curse, loud and clear, but
nothing from Gia. Her truck picked up speed, though. A hundred yards and closing fast. The
man riding shotgun in the SUV raised a gun and sighted.

Rio
cursed, calling out the obvious. “He’s armed.”

“On
it.” Mack unbuckled and hauled himself into the window frame. Rio wanted to be
the one in the hot seat, but bitching about his place in this battle wouldn’t
help Gia any. Instead, he concentrated on keeping Mack’s ride smooth and
straight. Mack aimed, pulling the trigger as the SUV’s passenger fired.

The
SUV jerked as the leftmost tire ate the bullet.

###

Shit
was hitting the fan in a spectacular way.

Gia
tightened her grip on the wheel and pressed the gas pedal to the floor.

Beside
her, Joey cursed. “We’ve got problems, Gia.”

No
shit. Her first clue had been the SUV exploding onto the road behind her. Sane
people didn’t drive mountain highways like that. Thank God for the truck,
because anything with balder tires or less pick up and she’d have rolled the
truck.