Maya Banks - No Place to Run

She gestured down at her belly in disgust. “Not only does pregnancy make me slower, but I swear it sucks all the brain cells.”

“Sophie, you need to calm down,” Sam said as he put his hands out in a placating manner. “Come back and sit down. You shouldn’t be up.”

“Where are my clothes?” she demanded as she looked around. “I need my clothes.” She knew she sounded desperate and irrational. But damn it, she needed something to wear, and she needed to get the hell out of here. Sam said she’d been here several hours. Tomas and company would know exactly where to look for her.

Her gaze lighted on a pair of sweatpants in the corner, and she bent down to pick them up. When she stood back up, pain splintered down her arm, and she bobbled like a drunken party girl wearing stilettos. Sam was there to catch her, but she yanked herself away and edged toward the bed so she could pull the pants on.

They were way too big, but she didn’t care. They were warm and dry. As soon as she got them on, she stood again and reached for Sam, tugging on his arm. He looked at her in disbelief, like he’d look at a crazy woman.

“Come on, Sam. We have to go. We can’t stay here. They’ll come. They’ll kill you. And your brothers. I didn’t know you had brothers. Sorry. I didn’t realize. I thought it was just you and your men.”

Her pulse thudded painfully at her temples, and her chin wobbled as she chattered out the rest. She didn’t make any sense whatsoever, and Sam just stood there staring at her like she’d lost her mind.

She reached again and this time took his hand between hers. She pulled until his palm rested on her belly.

“They were going to kill her, Sam. He had a knife. He said he’d slice me open and let her spill out. I can’t let that happen. I need your help. Please. You have to help me.”

Sam stared at her in horror, then his gaze dropped to where his hand was splayed across her abdomen. He looked so appalled that she stopped for a moment and wrapped her arms around her stomach, trapping his hand there.

“Sweet mother of God,” Sam muttered. He pulled his hand away and then yanked her into his arms.

It hurt like hell, but she didn’t care. She didn’t protest and she didn’t try to pull away. She wanted to absorb him right into her soul. Finally she felt safe. Like maybe she wasn’t so alone.

For just a moment she stood there, but reality crept in despite her wanting to indulge in the fantasy.

“We have to go,” she whispered.

She pulled away, but he held her firm.

“Let me go,” she protested. “We have to get out of here, Sam. Your brothers. They have to go too. They’ll kill them.”

He grasped her good arm, and with his other hand he gripped her chin and held her so that she was forced to stare back at him.

“Let’s get a few things straight here, okay? One, you’re not going anywhere. Period. Two, I need answers, Sophie. A lot of damn answers. Three, no one is going to hurt you or my child. Four, if you knew where I’ve been all this time, you damn well should have come to me the moment you knew you were in danger.”

She stared at him in disbelief. Then she laughed. It was all she could do. He was so determined, and how like a man to try and simplify matters.

“You don’t get it, Sam. I can’t stay. I won’t put my baby in danger,” she said fiercely. “I barely managed to escape the bastard last night. He shot me. He would have killed my baby. I’m not giving him a second chance. I’ve stayed ahead of him for the last five months.”

“And now he’s caught up to you,” Sam said calmly. “Sit down, Sophie. You and I have a hell of a lot to talk about. I want to get the personal stuff out of the way first. Because then I want my brothers here when you tell me all this other shit.”

The fight left her and the pain overwhelmed her senses. She sagged onto the edge of the bed and dropped her head in defeat.

Sam knelt in front of her and carefully placed his hand on her belly.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

She glared at him again. “You didn’t act like a man who wanted to know. You lied to me about everything from the moment we met.”

“And yet you know everything about me. How is that, Sophie?” he asked in a dangerously low voice.

She stared stubbornly back at him.

“I came back for you,” he said, surprising the hell out of her.

She furrowed her brow and frowned hard at him. “What are you talking about?”

He ran a hand through his hair and looked briefly away. “I was there undercover. I couldn’t tell you things, Sophie. I couldn’t share anything more of myself than I did. But when it was over, I came back, but you were gone. Disappeared. I searched, and it was as if you didn’t exist.”

Her cheeks warmed under his scrutiny, but she refused to feel guilty. She hadn’t had a choice but to run and run hard. She’d spent the last five months hiding. All because she’d helped him. And betrayed her father in the process.

“Look at me and tell me she’s mine,” Sam said fiercely. “I have to know. Don’t jerk me around about this.”

She raised her gaze until she stared levelly at him. She let calm invade her because she had nothing to hide when it came to this. Oh, she had plenty of secrets, but in this, her conscience was clear.

“She’s yours. There’s been no one else, Sam. Not for a long time.”

Was that relief she saw in his eyes? Regret? Joy? Maybe a mix of all three? It was hard to tell.

For just a moment, his focus shifted to her belly. He spread the material of the shirt tight over her stomach and he slid his fingers over every inch, studying the curve and the shallow indention of her belly button.

“I can’t wrap my brain around it,” he said hoarsely. “I’m going to be a father.”

She started to thrust her fingers into his hair but held back. There was so much unresolved between them. And maybe there was nothing to resolve. She had been a fling for him—or so she’d thought—but he said he’d come back for her. Did she dare believe him? A man would say a lot to get himself off the hook when his ass was to the fire.

But then he hadn’t made her any promises, and she sure as hell had kept a lot from him. So many secrets. So much betrayal. It would be a lot easier to just warn him of the impending danger to him and his family and walk away.

As if sensing her sudden desire to flee, his hand tightened on her stomach and then he rose from his knees and took her hand in his.

“We can talk more about us later,” he said in a quiet voice. “Right now we need to talk about who the hell is trying to kill you and why you think me and my family are in danger. And we’re not leaving my brothers out of this conversation, since they’ll be the ones I’ll be depending on to help save our asses.”

A myriad of emotions flickered across Sophie’s face. Fear, indecision, pain and deep weariness. She should be in bed, resting, but she was as jumpy as a cricket, and she looked like she’d flee if he looked away even a second.

Sam urged her back to bed. He plumped the pillows and mounded the covers up over her body until she sat like a queen presiding over her subjects. Only she looked small and frail instead of stately.

He held up a finger as he stared down at her. “Don’t move. Not even a muscle. I’ll be back in a minute with my brothers.”

The sudden wash of fear in her eyes made his gut clinch. Her hands went to her belly, and she rubbed in a tight circle. He wasn’t sure who she was trying to reassure. Her baby or herself.

It was all he could do not to lean down and kiss her. To tell her it would be all right, that he’d take care of her and their baby.

There was too much unsettled between them, and the uneasiness in his belly kept growing in direct proportion to the suspicion that had taken root in his mind.

When he was sure she wasn’t going to bolt from the bed, he turned and strode to the door. He leaned out and didn’t see Van or Garrett, but he could hear them in the kitchen. With a quick look back at Sophie and an unspoken directive for her to stay put, he hurried to get his brothers.

Donovan was stirring something in a mug while Garrett stood to the side, arms crossed over his broad chest, a typical scowl etched on his face.

They both looked up when Sam walked in, and Donovan dropped the spoon on the counter.

“I heated up some broth for her. Found some pain medication in our stash and did a cross-check for contraindications for pregnancy.”

Sam nodded. “I need you both in the bedroom. Sophie’s got some things to tell me that I want you to hear.”

Garrett shoved off the wall and did nothing to disguise his interest.

“Like what?”

“I don’t know yet. She says she’s in danger—that we’re in danger. Since I depend on you two to cover my ass, and vice versa, I figured it would be helpful for you to hear whatever it is she has to say.”

“What if she’s full of shit?” Garrett asked. “Doesn’t this whole thing scream setup to you? I’d like to know how the fuck she knew where to find you. According to you she was a sweet-faced waitress with big eyes and you blew her off when we got the tip about Mouton’s arms shipment moving out.”

Sam’s jaw clenched. “You’re pissing me off right now, Garrett. You need to back the fuck off. You’re not saying anything I’m not thinking, but I’m not going to go beat her down when she’s hurt, scared and pregnant. She’s a woman, for God’s sake. Use your head.”

“One of us has to,” Garrett said evenly. “The right head.”

“I won’t tell you again. Back off.”

The two brothers stood nose to nose. Garrett’s eyes glittered with anger and impatience, but Sam knew he just wanted answers. Well so did he. Hopefully he’d use a little more finesse than Garrett.

Finally Garrett backed away.

Donovan cleared his throat. “So uh, are we going to be uncles?”

The casual question made Sam flinch. Then he slowly nodded. “Yeah. The baby is mine.”

“Jesus,” Garrett muttered.

“Hoo boy,” Donovan said from pursed lips. He gathered the mound of supplies, then picked up the mug from the counter. “Not sure what you want me to say, so I’ll just shut up.”

“Yeah,” Sam snapped. “Shutting up is good.”

“You’re so sure she’s telling the truth,” Garrett said with a hint of anger in his voice.

Sam stopped on his way back to the bedroom and turned around. He eyed Garrett evenly. “No. I’m not saying that at all. I am, however, embracing the very real possibility that the baby could be mine. She says it’s mine. For now I’m going with it. I’m not going to let anything happen to my child.”

Garrett rubbed his palm over his face and nodded. “Yeah, I understand, man. Van and I have your back. You know that.”

Sam nodded. “Thanks.”

He turned around and walked back into his bedroom. Sophie was listing badly to the right, her eyes half-closed. When she heard them come in, she jerked up and her eyes flew open. She winced and grabbed at her shoulder with her free hand.

“Careful,” Sam murmured as he went to her. He glanced back at Donovan. “Will this pain medicine knock her out?”

“That’s the plan,” Donovan said. “For the first little while she needs something stronger. Then we can knock it down to ibuprofen.”

Sam grimaced, then turned apologetically to Sophie. “We need to talk. I’ll have Donovan give you the medicine afterward. Then you can sleep for a good long while.”

She shook her head, her eyes fierce. “I can’t sleep, Sam. After I tell you what you want to know, I have to go. I can’t stay here. I’ve already been here too long. If you won’t go with me, I don’t have a choice but to take off on my own.”

He shot his brothers a pointed look but didn’t respond to her statement. He sat down on the edge of the bed and motioned for his brothers to get comfortable.

Donovan edged onto the bed on the other side of Sophie and looked at her as if seeking permission. He might as well have not even been there for all the attention she paid him. Her face was pale and strained, and it was obvious she was fighting to stay conscious.

Garrett stood at the end of the bed, arms folded over his chest, and he stared broodingly at Sophie. When she happened to glance up at him, she went even paler.

“Damn it, Garrett,” Sam muttered. “Ease up for God’s sake.”

Garrett shifted his position with an irritated huff.

“Talk to me, Sophie. I need you to back up and tell me why you disappeared. Then I need to know how you knew who I was and where to find me and why people are trying to kill you and why you think me and my family are in danger.”