we aren’t finding much more. Whoever this man is, he is very good at hiding their activities.”
“We did find one possibility though,” Annie interjected. “Damen Cole works for some very secret partners. In other words, we haven’t been able to find out who he works for but he’s one tough man. Doesn’t mind spending money if it gets him what he’s going after. But from what we’ve been able to discover, he isn’t the one in charge, someone else calls the shots.”
“Keep digging,” Gunner grumbled. “We need to know just how far he will go. Now that Blacky is dead, we need to know if he will come after us or just walk away. No one here knows about Blacky’s dealings with the man and he’d have a hard sell to claim Blacky sold us out.”
“If we can find more on this Damen Cole,” Harry added. “Then we might possibly have a way to stop him.”
“Fuck, I hate all this secrecy.” Gunner looked incensed. “It could be anything or nothing.” He turned to Patriot and then looked at Becky. “Maybe you should take her back to her bed. I think she’s had enough people time.”
Patriot looked down at the woman in his arms. He saw the shadows under her eyes. His arms wrapped around her and he got to his feet with her in his arms.
Becky looked up at him.
“Say goodnight Gracie,” Patriot told her under his breath as he carried her down the hall.
Gunner almost cracked a smile. He felt it was about time the man got a woman of his own.
Becky snuggled up to his broad chest and whispered, “Goodnight Gracie.” Closing her eyes, she was almost asleep when she felt him lower her to a bed. When he laid down beside her, her eyes flew open and she whispered, “What are you doing?”
“I’m tired of sleeping alone,” he told her simply. “I’m tired of sleeping in that fucking chair beside your bed. I need to hold you and show you that I’m a good man. I can control myself until you get stronger and I’ll wait until you want me as much as I want you... just don’t make me wait too long.” Patriot smiled his dimple showing.
“Oh....” Becky whispered while looking stunned at his words. “Ok.” Looking curious, she cocked her head to the side. “But why? I mean why would you want a broken girl like me?”
“You are not broken,” he insisted. “You’re stubborn, stronger than most, but you aren’t broken. Blacky couldn’t do that and that pissed him off greatly. You didn’t give in to your pain and just give up and that says more about your character then you will ever know. It takes a special kind of person to survive the life you and your sister have lived, yet you both did. She never gave up on you and you never gave up on the fact she would find you. That’s the kind of woman I want to claim as my own.”
She swallowed hard, her blue eyes widened. “You do?”
Patriot smiled. “You bet I do. Not everyone can live the kind of life we live. It gets tough around here sometimes. I just never thought to find a woman who could take it, then you came here. You were so close to death I didn’t know if you would make it or not. But the longer I cared for you, the harder I fell.”
“Why didn’t you say something before now?” She wanted to know.
“I was trying to give you time to notice me, as a man, not just as your doctor.”
His words were simple but they slammed into her chest like a steel ball. Finally, she swallowed the lump in her throat. “Oh, I noticed you from day one. You have a very gentle touch. Just being near you set my heart racing and the nights you were close to me were the nights I slept the best.”
Patriot shook his head. “Don’t say those words if you don’t mean them, woman.”
“Oh, I mean them and so much more,” Becky whispered. “I’ve been getting stronger every day, with care and decent food but I was regretting it because I didn’t want to leave here. I-I didn’t want to leave you. I just didn’t know how to tell you and I was afraid that maybe you were just caring for me like a patient.”
Patriot paused to take in her words. “No, it is so much more than that, sweet girl.” He gazed into her