Page 12 of Enigma: The Final Chapter
I nod as Isaac moves closer to my bedside. “Isabelle is having some issues with her memory.”
The doctor smiles to ease the panic fettering his face. “That isn’t unusual for someone who sustained a level three concussion. Her CT scan came up clear. There's no bleeding or swelling of the brain. Symptoms of a concussion can clear within minutes, hours, days, or even a week. Unfortunately, it is just a waiting game, but until all the symptoms of your concussion are gone, you can’t return to your normal activities.” Her smile merges into a full-toothed grin. “That includes vigorous bedroom activities.”
I squirm as my knees meet. Just the idea of undertaking any bedroom activities with Isaac has my inner vixen climbing out of the pit she entrenched herself in two weeks ago. The dryness impinging my throat earlier returns full force when I spot the devilishly delicious smile curved on Isaac’s mouth. His eyes consume me, touch not required to ignite every nerve in my body.
Our lust-filled stare-down is interrupted when the doctor giggles. I cringe, mortified I forgot she was here. I shouldn’t be surprised. When Isaac is in the room, no one else matters. They're nothing but white noise in the background.
After removing my IV, the doctor says, “Give me a few hours to do a complete set of monitoring on your condition. I want to make sure I haven’t missed anything. If it all goes okay, you can be discharged later tonight or maybe tomorrow morning.”
“Thank you.”
She smiles before running her hand down Isaac’s arm in a comforting manner. Surprisingly, I don’t feel the slightest bit of jealousy from her gesture. I can see her fondness for Isaac is just like Regan’s. They're friends, nothing more.
When she exits the door, Isaac’s focus returns to me. My thighs quake when he stealthily prowls to me. “I'll explain everything that happened…” A glint in his eyes stimulates my core. “… after I kiss you. It’s been too darn long since I’ve tasted your lips.”
Before I can protest—not that I was going to—his lips seal over mine. His kiss is soft and sweet but laced with the promise of something greater to come. Even in my concussed state, I know we have a lot of unresolved issues we need to discuss, but after everything we’ve been through this weekend, I no longer have the energy to fight a war bigger than us both.
I cup his jaw so I can kiss him with just as much tenderness as he's bestowing on me. His arms wrap around my waist, pulling me closer as his tongue delves into my mouth, sampling and savoring every inch like he's starved for my taste. My breathing deepens when he adjusts my position, so his thickened rod braces along my stomach.
Our kiss grows more passionate when I weave my fingers through his thick, luxurious hair. I pull him nearer, deepening our kiss. The playful, tantalizing embrace has my womb coiling with every nip and stroke inflicted.
A shameful whimper rumbles from my tingling lips when he inches back from our embrace. His heavy-lidded eyes shift between mine as he caresses my left cheek. “You scared me, Isabelle. I’ve never been scared before, but when Col pulled out his gun and aimed it at you, for the first time in my life, I was truly scared.”
Warm tears slide down my cheeks from the genuine fear relayed in his beautiful eyes, but I remain quiet, exulted that a man as guarded as Isaac is opening up to me.
“Fury raged through my body hot and fast when I saw you bound and gagged to that rickety wooden chair. Your hair was damp and clinging to your neck. Your eyes were open wide with pupils dilated, and your beautiful face was stained with tears.”
He stops talking to wipe away my tears with his thumbs. “Your concussion is my fault, but I had to protect you. I didn’t mean to hit you so hard, but I had to beat the bullet. I couldn’t let him hurt you.”
His words come out strong, but his gaze remains fixed on the wall behind me. I want to speak and offer him comfort, but I can’t. My words are congested in my throat, refusing to be relinquished.
“The instant Col pulled the gun out, I charged at you. We hit the ground with a sickening thud. I sheltered you with my body as bullets, screaming demands, and wounded cries broke through the shrill in my ears. The smell was sickening. Nearly as ghastly as the scent that invaded my nostrils when I entered the barn weeks ago. It was the smell of death.”
My brain struggles to unscramble the muddled mess clustered in it. I recall the argument with Hugo, being pulled into the white Range Rover, and swinging a bat at someone, but other than that, it’s a hazy blur of confusion.
“Was anyone injured?”
My breathing stills when Isaac nods. “When an unnerving quietness filled the air around us, I cranked my neck back to look behind me. Col lay dead on the dirty concrete floor with Ryan standing over him. Alex had your kidnapper kneeling in front of him with his hands twined behind his head, and one of Alex’s agents had Col’s right-hand man cuffed and lying on the floor at his feet near the entrance of the warehouse. Seeing that all potential threats had been secured, I unwrapped you from my cocoon.”
My brows stitch. I’m truly shocked that the FBI and Ravenshoe Police Department worked with Isaac to find me.
“I'd do anything to protect you, Isabelle, even asking my arch-nemesis for help,” he explains, reading my thoughts. “We made a deal to put our differences aside until you were returned safely.”
My heart squeezes as the most inappropriately-timed smile tugs on my lips. Alex has never hidden his animosity of Isaac, so I'm surprised and somewhat pleased that they worked together. Maybe now Alex will realize Isaac isn’t quite the man his FBI file makes him out to be.
Isaac’s brows lower. “My heart plummeted into my stomach when I noticed your eyes were closed and your mouth was ajar. I removed the restraints from your ankles and wrists before laying you flat on the ground next to the splintered chair you were bound to. My hands were shaking, petrified I'd killed you. Thankfully, even though it was faint, you had a pulse.”
I reach for him, wanting to erase the lines of worry marring his handsome face. He draws in a sharp breath when my fingertips brush his cheek. “Thank you.”
His brows furrow, seemingly confused by my praise.
“For saving my life,” I explain to his puzzled expression.
Stealing his chance to refute my accurate statement, I press my mouth to his. My heart warms when his lips move sweetly beneath mine.
After giving me a heart-stopping kiss, he murmurs over my lips, “You can thank me by never leaving my sight again.”
Smiling, I stare into his eyes, which don’t look as pained as they did a few minutes ago.
