Page 12 of Tangled
Brad caught Ryan’s eye, and his heart sank at the resolve he saw there. He understood the reasons behind what his cousin was about to do. But Scarlett was sick and had just passed out. She needed to go to the doctor. Or at the very least, rest.
“I think you need to come down to the station,” Ryan said, not without sympathy. “Whatever it was you were doing down in LA that caught the attention of a drug dealer—and I assume that’s what you meant when you referred to a supplier—may have followed you up here. I need to know everything you know,and everything you don’t. It may help us find Maria’s killer, but it’s also easier for us to protect you if we know what we’re protecting you from.”
Brad flickered a grateful look at his cousin. Ryan wanted answers, but he understood that whatever else might be going on, Scarlett was important to him. And to Kara. And therefore, that made her important to the family.
“Can you give her a couple of hours?” Brad asked.
“I’m fine and he’s right,” Scarlett said.
“You may be in danger,” Brad said. “I want you to stay with me until we know what’s going on. I have a guest room.” Ryan snorted, and Brad shot him a glare. “I have a guest room,” he repeated. “And the building is more secure. I also think you need to rest. You were sick enough yesterday to call out, and you just passed out. I’d like to call Asher or Kara to come have a look at you.”
Her gaze darted to Ryan, who rose and grabbed his jacket that he’d draped on the back of the chair. “I’ll wait outside,” he said. “My wife is due with our first child, a girl, in three weeks, and I’d like to check in with her.”
Brad frowned at that odd bit of personal information Ryan offered. Then again, if Scarlett stuck around, if he could convince her to, she’d be all up in the Warwick family business, because that’s how the family operated. Very rarely was anyone ever able to keep a secret.
Scarlett nodded, then watched him as he departed.
“Please come stay with me,” Brad said. “I swear there’s a guest room, two actually, if that’s what makes you most comfortable. I know we barely know each other, but…”
“I may be bringing a killer to your door,” she said.
“Better mine than this one,” he countered with a nod to hers. They had security all over the lodge. But it was much stronger on the fifth floor where his apartment and the offices were located.
She hesitated, then nodded. “I’ll come, but not so much for me,” she said. Confused, he waited for her to explain. “I want to find out what happened to my friend and, as you said, I need to stay alive to do that. But…” She hesitated, her eyes searching his. “There’s another reason. A more important one.”
He couldn’t imagine anything more important than her staying safe. Staying alive. But he nodded, encouraging her to continue.
She paused again, then took a deep breath. “I’ll come because I want to keep our baby safe.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Brad blinked at the bomb she’d dropped. She’d never intended to keep it from him, butuntil twenty minutes ago when he’d knocked on her door, she hadn’t known how to find him. Or even his real name. But now that he was here and, as improbable as it was, sitting right beside her, she felt no hesitation. Especially now that she knew he was a Warwick. She’d never doubted her instincts about him from that night two months ago, but now she had the added benefit of knowing from Kara that family was everything to them.
“I, I’m not sure what to say,” he stammered, his color a shade lighter than it had been a minute ago.
They’d used protection, so she hadn’t expected him to accept the news without skipping a beat. And she didn’t blame him for his hesitation. She’d had her own moments of wondering whether having a baby was a good idea. But she’d heard the rumor about the supplier looking for her the same day she’d confirmed her pregnancy, and her first and only thought had been to protect their baby. The memory of that emotion, of that fierce need to shield their baby from any harm, far outweighed any doubts she’d had since. She still wanted to find the truth about her friend’s death, but her priorities had shifted when she’d seen those two little lines.
With another blink, she all but watched Brad’s resolve snap into place. Taking her hand, he met her gaze—direct and unwavering. “You’re ill. You passed out. I’ve seen my sister-in-law and four of my cousins’ wives go through the early stages ofpregnancy. None of them passed out. Ever. We need to get you to a doctor.”
If she hadn’t been holding his hand, he probably would have shot up from his seat and started pacing. Karahadmentioned that the Warwick men tended to get a little worked up when their wives got pregnant. Not that she was his wife, but she doubted that mattered. Not right now.
“My morning sickness is severe,” she said. “Hyperemesis gravidarum is what it’s called.”
“Have you passed out before?” he demanded with a look of both horror and terror.
She shook her head. “No, that was the first and hopefully only time. I think it was the surprise of seeing you,” she said. Then she paused, knowing her next words were important and wanting to get them right. “I want you to know that I wouldn’t have kept this from you,” she said. “I didn’t know your name or how to find you. But I’d planned, once I felt better, to reach out to Kara and Ethan and ask for Ethan’s help.” She paused again, then let a little chuckle out. “I figured HICC could get into the hotel logs and find out who’d checked into the suite that night. Then, in full disclosure, I was going to have him investigate you before I reached out. You deserved to know, either way, but I wanted to be prepared if you weren’t the man my instincts told me you were.”
She hesitated, rolling her sweatshirt material between her fingers. Then, taking a deep breath, she finished what she needed to say. “I also want you to know that while I’d like you to be a part of our baby’s life, if that’s not a role you are willing to step into, then I’d rather you figure that out before he or she is born. I don’t want anyone yo-yo-ing in and out of their life.”
Brad’s eyes narrowed, and his jaw ticked. “There will be no yo-yo-ing. Ever,” he said. “That baby is mine. It’s ours. And not only does he or she deserve to have everything that it meansto be part of my family, Iwantto give him or her that.” He paused, then smiled at something. “And you should know, my dad is going to freak out. In a good way. Helovesbabies. He and my mom are already starting a renovation on their house in the spring so that all the grandkids have a place to stay when they come over.”
Now it was her turn to blink. Kara had talked about how close the family was, but building a wing for grandkids? “How many does he anticipate?” she asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer.
“Cody’s wife, Tia, is due with twins. Then Mitch and Ava are getting married in July and Mitch claims Ava agreed to have enough kids to field a baseball team. Although she says she only agreed to consider a basketball team.”
Her stomach churned, only this time, it wasn’t due to her morning sickness. “Um, okay.”
He eyed her. “Are you going to pass out again?”
