Tamed (Corcoran Team: Bulletproof Bachelors Book 3) (17 page)

Chapter Twenty

The next day Shane waited outside the hospital for Makena to come out. He stood in the parking lot, leaning against her car. She’d been keeping vigil by Jeff’s bedside since the ambulance crew brought him in. She’d called the Corcoran headquarters to let them know Jeff was going to be okay. She’d talked about going to Holt’s house to wait for him to get in after a series of canceled flights delayed him.

Shane wanted to see her before Holt did. Wanted to see her...period.

Footsteps sounded beside him, but Shane didn’t flinch. He’d seen Connor park nearby and head for him. He’d likely come over to give Makena a break at Jeff’s bedside. A decent thing to do. Shane had never thought of it. He’d left her yesterday and stayed away because there was something he needed to do before he talked with her.

Connor took up position beside Shane and stared at the front door of the hospital. “If Holt were here, he’d tell you to stop moping and go get your woman.”

Shane turned slightly to face his boss. “What?”

“This, the doubt and guilt.” Connor held out a hand in front of Shane. “I get it. Believe me. I almost lost Jana because I was so worried about
losing Jana
.”

Shane had listened to many lectures from Connor during their time at Corcoran. The guy liked to talk and wanted things to be done his way. Shane appreciated the way Connor ran the business and the team. He had no complaints. Except for these talks that didn’t make a lot of sense in or out of context.

“Clue me in on what you’re talking about.” His mind kept zipping back to Makena and all the things he needed to say to her. Talking with Connor just wasn’t a priority, no matter how much Shane liked the guy.

Connor sighed. “Man, you’re stubborn.”

He’d been hearing that his whole life. Since Shane agreed, he didn’t bother to deny it. “That’s not news.”

“I know you’re invested in the whole bachelor thing.”

Was.
Before Makena. Before being with her and realizing he didn’t want to be without her. “I am?”

“You’re not?” Connor wasn’t one to miss a clue. He didn’t this time, either. “Are you saying—”

“I love her.” The words that had once stuck in his throat now freed him. Shane said them and his whole world shifted into position. The failed marriage was behind him. Makena was his future.

Connor laughed. “I know.”

“You could have told me.” But Shane knew that wasn’t fair. Each of the team members had talked about the difference between life on his own and life with a woman who meant everything. They’d tried to sell him on getting involved again and taking the risk. He’d blocked the comments and ignored every word.

“You weren’t ready to hear it.” Ever the undercover agent, Connor scanned the parking lot. Watching people as they moved in and out. “So, what was the thing with leaving the hospital room yesterday? You have to know that hurt her.”

He hadn’t, really. Not until after, when Cam had texted to call him an idiot.

But Shane hadn’t been playing games or thinking over his options. He knew he loved her and wanted to be with her, no matter the consequences. But he did have responsibilities and tried to meet them. “I needed to talk with Holt. I owed him that and wanted to go to Makena with a clear head and no barriers between us.”

Connor smiled. “What if Holt had told you to back off?”

It would have ripped him apart, but Shane’s answer didn’t change. “I would have ignored him.”

“Yep, that’s love.” Connor pushed off from the car and stood up straight. “Okay, good luck.”

That sounded ominous. “Luck?”

“It’s cute that you don’t think you’ll need it.” Connor shook his head as he waved and kept walking. “I almost feel bad for you.”

* * *

M
AKENA
’
S
BODY
BEGGED
for sleep. She was ten seconds away from dropping. She’d dozed on and off in that chair. Talked with the team members and her brother. Checked in and managed to get two of Jeff’s relatives to stop by.

Helping that guy could be a full-time job, but she didn’t plan to let it get away from her like that. She’d been there for him, providing support. He was recovering well and other people he knew, some from whom he’d been estranged for years, were taking over. Now she could rest.

If only she could close her eyes without seeing Shane’s face swim in front of her. As she was walking across the parking lot, it happened again. She was wide-awake with her eyes open, yet he seemed to be standing there, right next to her car. She blinked a few times, expecting him to disappear. But no.

If he’d picked this moment to tell her they needed to stay friends, she might just curl up in a ball. A woman could only take so much. Her bruises had bruises. Worse, her heart felt shredded. He’d done that when he walked away. Fine—if he wanted to walk, he should just keep going.

She stopped in front of him but didn’t say anything. For a second, neither did he. He leaned against her car and watched her. Stared, really. The intense scrutiny had her squirming.

“What do you want?” It came out harsher than she’d intended, but she didn’t have anything left in the tank. She couldn’t hide her reactions or control her feelings. She wanted to strike out and scream. Life seemed so unfair at the moment.

“You.”

He’d said that once before and she’d bought it. Not this time. “We’re not sleeping together again.”

He frowned. “I hope that’s not true.”

“Look, Shane.” She inhaled a few times as she worked to keep some portion of the emotional wall she’d built against him in place. “I’m not your consolation prize. I’m not a side benefit to your case.”

“No, you’re not.”

“What are you doing?” The last of her energy drained out of her. Her shoulders slumped and she fought to stay on her feet. “I’m not in the mood for games or for—”

He stepped up and leaned in. Before she could blink, his arms came around her and his lips met hers. He kissed her with a kick of heat and intensity that stole her breath. She held on as his mouth traveled over hers, and her knees buckled.

When he lifted his head again she expected... Actually, she had no idea what to expect. He could have said anything and she would have nodded. Her brain refused to work and every word died in her throat before she could say them.

“I love you.”

Her heart jumped. Hope pulsed inside her, but she tamped it down. He was handing her everything, but she feared it meant nothing. She couldn’t bring herself to believe, so she shut it all down. “No, you don’t.”

“You’re telling me how I feel?” He sounded amused by the idea.

Nothing about this moment struck her as funny. She shoved against his arms to get him to let go. “Goodbye, Shane.”

She fumbled with her keys. They bounced off her fingers and fell to the ground with a clink. Lost and heartsick, she stood there and tipped her head back to stare up at the sky.

“You can leave, but I’ll just follow you.” His voice came from right behind her. His hands went to her arms, and his face rested against her hair. “I can’t let you go.”

He said... She couldn’t process the words or anything else that was happening. She turned around to face him, letting him see every ounce of pain running through her. “Is this about your ego?”

“It’s about loving you.” He rubbed his hands up and down her arms. “About realizing that I was wrong and pushing you away when I should have been grabbing on with all my strength.”

That sounded good, but her mind couldn’t hold on to a single thought. “I don’t understand.”

“I’m sorry I let fear and old wounds keep us apart.” He balanced his forehead against hers. “I will never do that again.”

“You love me?” The words didn’t even sound right to her.

He lifted his head and stared down at her. There, written on his face, she saw tenderness and hope, a good bit of lust and, yes, love. She had no idea where or why, but the hope finally took hold. She didn’t bat it away or downplay it. She held on.

“Almost losing you nearly killed me.” He lifted her hand and pressed her fingers to his lips. “I don’t want to be away from you.”

“You were last night.” That piece didn’t make any sense in light of all the wonderful things he said now.

The corner of Shane’s mouth kicked up in a smile. “I had to tell Holt while I didn’t need his permission and wasn’t asking for it. I hoped we had it.”

“I talked with him.” She ran through the conversation in her mind. Now some of Holt’s stray comments made sense. “He never said anything.”

“I asked him to let me win you back first.” Shane shrugged. “For the record, he made me work for it.”

As if that would be hard. “I bet.”

“I would have done and said anything. Though I have to admit you are the one I want to win over, not him.”

She tried to imagine that conversation and how hard a time Holt must have given Shane. The idea that he would go through that, that he’d even thought it was important to take on the challenge of winning Holt over, made her smile.

“I love you.” She said it because she needed him to know. She’d thrown it out in the heat of the attack. Now, in the middle of the parking lot with people walking by and nothing on the line, she made the vow again. “With all I am and all I have.”

“Good.”

The response made her laugh. “That’s all you’ve got to say?”

“Definitely not. I have all sorts of things I want to say and do to you. Some of them in bed. Some against a wall. Some on G-rated dates.”

She loved the sound of all of it. “You tell me when and where.”

“We’re going to do this right.” He lifted her off the ground and held her tight. “Start over. Not fast-forward the relationship and skip over the good parts.”

She wasn’t sure she loved that. “Meaning?”

“We’re going to date. Go out to eat and do whatever it is dating people do. You’ll probably need to help me with that, because I’m clueless.”

“You’re doing great.”

“And, just so you know, I’m going to kiss you...a lot. Like, all the time. In private and sometimes in parking lots, like here.” He followed through by doing just that. Planted a kiss filled with promise and love and every great thing on her. It went on and on, and dragged her under.

When he lifted his head again, all the strain around his eyes had disappeared. She couldn’t help running her finger over his eyebrows.

“You’re going to know every single day how much I love you,” he said in a husky voice. “How much you mean to me and how you are my future.”

Light burst to life inside her, washing away the exhaustion and the doubts. Her head cleared just as her heart sped up. “We should start now.”

He laughed. “Are you making a pass?”

“Do I need to?”

“No, because I’m already yours.”

Then she kissed him. Parking lot or no, she wanted her life with him to start right now. “Take me home, so you can make up for leaving me yesterday.”

He nodded. “I’m willing to spend a lifetime doing that.”

* * *

F
OUR
DAYS
LATER
Shane still hadn’t stopped smiling. He’d survived seeing Holt again. Made it through all the doctor checkups and Makena moving into his place. That last one being the best thing to happen to him in...ever.

Every piece of his life had fallen into place.

He’d been the last bachelor in the group. The only one not attached, and he’d held that as a badge of honor for a long time. Something he now saw as ridiculous.

Maybe he hadn’t put a ring on Makena’s finger or waited for her at the end of an aisle, but he would. And not years from now—soon. Now that he saw his life with her, he wanted more. There was no reason to wait and see. He knew her. Knew them. Knew that life without her wasn’t worth much.

Connor walked into the conference room at team headquarters and dropped a file in front of Shane. “You ready to get back to work?”

He glanced around. “Am I the only one on this case?”

“Nah, that’s your expense voucher.”

Shane opened the file and stared at the pages. He had a check coming his way. Yeah, so what? It didn’t mean much to him. “Okay.”

Connor leaned back in his chair at the head of the table and grabbed a thick stack of folders off the long desk in front of the line of monitors. “I actually wanted you to look through these.”

The pile landed on the table with a thud. Shane had no idea what he was looking at or why. He could scan every page or he could just ask. “What’s going on?”

“Potential candidates.”

“For?” Shane opened the cover of the top one and glanced inside.

“To be Corcoran Team members.” Connor folded his arms in front of him and leaned against the table. “It’s time.”

They’d been so insular for so long. Connor rarely added new people. He talked about the need for camaraderie and joked that with too many members he risked being overruled. As if that would ever happen. He had their loyalty and trust, and they were not men who gave either easily.

Just so he was clear, he tried again. “We’re hiring?”

“I’m thinking we need a West Coast office.” Connor shrugged. “That will allow all of you room to pick and choose cases and spend some more time closer to home.”

That didn’t sound like the tough sharpshooter Shane knew. Sure, Connor had been married to Jana for years and spent his days protecting others and loving her. But making sure the rest of them had stable home lives? Interesting.

“Are you matchmaking?” Shane couldn’t even make the idea make sense in his head.

“Blame my wife.”

That, Shane got. Something about keeping Makena happy appealed to him. He hated when she so much as frowned. Shane didn’t mind the travel or the work. Still, the idea of spending most nights by her side in their big bed didn’t exactly stink.

Thank you, Jana.
“I love your wife.”

Connor did what he always did. Spun his wedding ring around on his finger without even realizing he did it. “You are not alone.”

“It won’t be easy to find qualified men and women who fit in around here.” Shane tried to imagine interviewing people and putting them through a series of tests. A daunting but interesting task.