Chapter 1
The pain was unbearable, but I had to keep moving. I had to keep running because, if I didn’t, he’d find me. I looked behind me as I ran through the streets; scared, alone, and in the dark as the mist of rain hit my face. There was no time to think and there was no time to stop. My shoes were soaked as they sloshed through the puddles of the dimly lit streets. As people passed by, they looked at me strangely. I kept my hand on my side as the throbbing pain continued deep inside me. I started to get dizzy, so I stopped in the alley and sat up against the brick wall. My breathing was shallow. I removed my hand from my side and held it up so the dim light could reflect on it. I gasped as the blood soaked my hand and dripped onto the cement. I started to shake, and I felt like I was going to lose consciousness, but I had to keep moving. As I stood up and leaned against the wall, I pressed my palm against my side and started moving out of the alley.
My mind kept flashing back to what had led me here in the first place. The fight, the rage, the look on his face that I’d never forget, and the knife plunging into my side. The sidewalk started to spin and the pain was getting worse. I didn’t know where I was, and I didn’t know where I was going until I bumped into a man, and he held onto me as I collapsed in his arms.
“Whoa, miss. Are you all right?”
I couldn’t speak, and I started to fall to the ground. I felt him take my hand from my side as he picked me up, carried me a few feet, and slid me into the back seat of a vehicle.
“What the hell, Joshua?” I heard a low voice say.
“She’s hurt and she needs medical attention. It looks like she’s been stabbed.”
“Call Dr. Graham, tell him what happened, and have him meet us at the house.”
“Don’t you think we should get her to the emergency room?”
“We can get back to the house quicker. Now let’s go.”
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me down onto his lap. I felt the palm of his hand press against my wound as I flinched at the pain that shot through my body.
“Relax. We’ll get you all fixed up,” his low voice said. “Who did this to you?”
I tried to look up at him, but all I could see was darkness and shadows. My eyes slowly closed until I felt his strong hand grip my chin.
“Stay with me. Don’t close your eyes. You need to stay alert.”
“I−I can’t,” I whispered.
His grip on my chin tightened as he moved my head from side to side.
“You can and you will. It’s not a request; it’s a command. Do you understand me?”
Before I knew it, the vehicle had stopped and the door opened. After I was taken from the car, the man carried me inside and up the stairs.
“Lay her here, Ian, and let me do what I have to do,” I heard another male voice say.
“Is she going to be all right?” the low voice asked.
“I’ll do the best I can, but it looks like she’s lost quite a bit of blood,” he said as he cut my shirt up the side.
I tried to focus on what was happening, but I couldn’t. Between the room spinning and the blurry faces, I just needed to close my eyes. I felt a prick on my skin and that was the last thing I remembered.
****
I slowly opened my eyes and took note of the oversized bed in which I was lying in. The sheets were soft and the pillows were fluffy. As I stared straight ahead, I noticed the beautiful green fabric that was draped amongst the four intricately carved cherry wood posts.
“You’re awake,” the low voice said as he walked through the door.
“Where am I?” I asked in a soft whisper.
He walked further into the room and sat down on the edge of the bed. “You’re in my house.”
“What happened to me?” I asked, since my mind was nothing but a ball of blur.
“Why don’t you start by telling me your name?” he said as he sat on the edge of the bed and leaned over me.
I stared into his blue eyes as I answered him. “Rory. My name is Rory.”
“Rory?” he asked with an odd look on his face.
“It’s short for Aurora,” I replied.
“It’s nice to meet you, Rory. I’m Ian Braxton,” he said as he got up from the bed and poured me a glass of water. “Here, take a sip.”
I lifted my head as he held the glass up to my lips. The pain in my side was throbbing, reminding me of that horrific night.
“Good girl. Now, why don’t you tell me who hurt you,” he said.
I looked away because I wasn’t about to tell him my troubles. He was a stranger, even though he did help me.
“How long have I been sleeping?” I asked.
“About two days. I’ll ask you one last time. Who did this to you and why?”
“I don’t know,” I lied.
“You’re lying,” he said. “I don’t like people who lie.”
“And I don’t like people who are nosy and think they can make everything their business.”
He raised one eyebrow. “Hmm,” he said as he stared at me. “Very well, Aurora. You’ll tell me in due time,” he said as he got up from the bed and walked over to the door. He put his hand on the handle and, before turning it, he turned around and looked at me. “I saved your life and now you owe me. That’s how this works. I did something for you, and you’ll do something for me.”
He walked out of the room and shut the door behind him. I tried to sit up, but the pain was too intense. When I closed my eyes, all I could see was him, the look in his eye, and the pain of the knife that broke my flesh. I turned my head and looked out the large window. The French doors that led out to the balcony were beautiful. The only thing I could see from my lying position was the blue sky. I had no idea where I was other than the fact that the house was owned by a man named Ian Braxton. A sexy man. A man who stood about six feet tall with light brown hair and blue eyes that reminded me of the sky outside my window. The slight scruff that he sported on his face made him even sexier. His voice was one I’d never be able to get out of my head. Low, deep, authoritative, and permanently etched into my brain. The only voice I heard when I was scared, hurt, and alone. My eyes felt heavy and, just as I closed them, I heard the light squeak of the door opening. I opened my eyes and saw Ian standing over me.
“You need to take your antibiotics,” he said.
“Antibiotics? For what?”
“So you don’t get an infection from your stab wound. Do you remember what kind of knife it was?”