Ruthless Game (GhostWalkers #9)(58)
Author: Christine Feehan

Whitney had always been the all-powerful figure in her life. She’d never conceived of the idea of actually defeating him. She had run, but in the back of her mind, she’d accepted the idea that in the end he would reacquire her. She had wanted to make it as difficult as possible, and if she could, hide the baby where Whitney could never find him. She even accepted that Whitney might kill her for her actions, but always, she knew, he loomed large, a dark threat that would ultimately find her.

She reached down and rubbed at the tattoo she’d grown so fond of. Instantly Kane covered her hand with his. “Did you tell Mack or Javier about the satellite?”

She nodded uneasily. “Javier and Jaimie spent some time looking at it. I didn’t mention because … well …” Her voice drifted off. The truth was, Whitney already knew where she was, and Kane had been unconscious a lot of the time. The tattoo had become the least of her problems.

The doctor, who she distrusted on principle, had performed a three-hour surgery while she paced, nearly inconsolable, outside the door of the makeshift operating room. The last few weeks, she’d immersed herself in caring for Kane and the baby, and for once in her life, she’d allowed herself to think of nothing else, not even the threat of Whitney.

Jaimie McKinley, who owned the building, had been nice to her, shopping for clothes and baby items, but nothing had mattered but Kane’s recovery. She’d barely forced herself to get sleep, afraid if she closed her eyes, he would die. She’d kept Sebastian with them every minute, uncaring that the doctor wanted her to rest or that everyone had offered to watch the baby for her. Rather than accept help, she’d kept them all together.

Jaimie brought meals, and men poked their heads in constantly to check on Kane, but she tried to ignore them, terrified but determined. She didn’t want to admit she hadn’t been exactly cooperative with his friends.

A strobe went off, flashing in the bedroom, a signal the front door had been opened. Automatically, she slid off Kane and reached for her robe and the gun she kept inches from her fingertips.

“Sweetheart, no one has the code but family,” Kane said. “You just can’t break Jaimie’s codes.”

“Nevertheless.” She crept silently across the floor and stood to one side of the door, the gun ready.

Chapter 12

“Dr. Lambert is here to check the baby, Rose,” Jaimie McKinley called out, knocking even as she pushed open the door to the living area. “You decent?”

Rose tightened her hold on the gun and threw Kane an anxious look. “Why does he have to keep checking him?” she hissed, indignant. “He’s a normal baby. The man acts like he’s going to grow horns and a tail the way he carries on all the time.”

“Be right out,” Kane called, shifting off the bed. “Sebastian is sleeping peacefully.” He winced a little as he made his way toward the bathroom. “Offer them coffee.” He stuck his head around the door. “But put some clothes on first. I don’t want to have to kill anyone.”

“Offer them coffee,” Rose muttered under her breath and dragged on her clothes as quickly as she could. She was a mess. Seed running down her thighs and milk dripping from her br**sts. She hurried to the doorway of the bathroom. “I can’t possibly …” She broke off, seeing the laughter in Kane’s eyes. He had pulled on a pair of jeans, and he grinned at her, clearly teasing. “You’re so horrible.”

He bent his head to brush a kiss over her upturned mouth as he passed her. “The shower’s all yours.”

She cast an anxious look toward the sleeping baby. “I don’t want them touching Sebastian without me right there.”

His lashes flickered, sweeping down to cover his expression and then up so he was meeting her eyes. “Is trust already going out the window?”

Remorse and guilt nearly crushed her, but she wasn’t going to lie. “I don’t trust them. I know you’ve known them a long time, but I haven’t. Please be patient with me, Kane.”

“Jaimie is family—a sister to me. She’d walk into hell for me—for us. I don’t know Eric well, but he’s always been the doctor to the GhostWalkers,” Kane said. “I don’t expect instant trust for the others on your part, Rose, but I do expect you to have an open mind when it comes to my family.”

She nodded, her fingers clutching the doorjamb until they turned white. She hated that she was disappointing him. “I’ll try.” It was the best she could do. For now, she couldn’t bear Sebastian to be put into the hands of strangers without her present.

She bit down hard on her lip, more agitated than she realized. It hurt to know that she might be letting him down, but she couldn’t bring herself to hand her child over to strangers, even with Kane looking on. He didn’t view them as threats, so it would be easy to kidnap the baby. He wasn’t watching for it.

Kane padded back across the floor, his bare feet making no sound. She watched him come, heart pounding, until he was looming over her. Up close, Kane was intimidating, yet his hands were gentle as he framed her face and bent to brush a kiss across her mouth. “Sebastian is too important to take risks with. If at any time you’re afraid for his safety,

I want you to rely on your instincts. I mean that, Rose. Never be upset because you’re protecting our child.”

She would have thrown her arms around him and hugged him close, but milk was still dripping, and she’d make a mess. “I’ll work on getting to know Jaimie,” she promised.

“I know you will.” The confidence in his voice steadied her. Maybe he really knew her better than she knew herself.

Kane reluctantly allowed his hands to slip from her face, instead of caressing her as he was inclined to do. Visitors could be a major pain, he was finding, when all he wanted to do was worship Rose’s body. And kiss her. He loved her mouth, that soft, shy, velvet paradise he could lose himself in for hours.

He bent over the baby’s bed. Jaimie had found a small crib, and the boy slept peacefully, unaware that his mother was upset over company. He touched the baby’s hand, aware that Rose watched him without moving, waiting to see if he would pick up Sebastian and take him into the other room. She was na**d beneath the robe, not the best garb to follow him out of the room, but she made no move, just held herself very still.

“Mommy is a little freaked out, Sebastian. Until she feels comfortable, you behave and don’t be too demanding about seeing visitors.” The little fingers closed around his, and he brushed his thumb over the child’s tiny knuckles. “Isn’t it strange to think we created this little miracle?”