Guarding His Heart (2 page)

When his eyes opened, he looked her then struggled to his feet, using the gurney for support. He faced her again. “Please tell me I didn’t hurt you.”

Confused, Lynn looked down. “This is your blood. You kept rubbing up against me when I first came in,” she explained. His eyes widened, and she hurried to fill him in, since it looked as though he didn’t remember much. “You freaked out when Dr. Lewis tried to give you a shot to calm you down.”

“The last I remember, I was holding the rogue down while the doc sedated him,” he explained, nodding toward the feline across the room. “The doc came toward me with another syringe, and my jaguar took over from there.” Jag shook his head as if trying to clear it. “I’m sorry if I scared you.”

“It’s fine. I didn’t know what to expect coming in here. Liam just told me you were hurt and in trouble. I ran straight over here to help.” She gestured to the side table. “Can I get you cleaned up and bandaged now? I’d hate for you to scar because they weren’t properly closed.”

When he shrugged and hopped up onto the table, she took that as a “yes”. Doctor Lewis had left out some sutures, butterfly strips and enough gauze to wrap Jag like a mummy. Seeing the syringe he’d also left on the counter, Lynn slipped it into her pocket, lest Jag see it and panic. She didn’t have any fear of him attacking her, therefore she had no intention of sedating him, ever.

“Let me get some Lidocaine to numb around the worst of these so I can stitch them up. I think he keeps it in the cabinet over there.”

She’d only gone halfway when Jag snarled behind her. Spinning to see what was the matter, she came face-to-face with the massive cat that had somehow come to and managed to launch itself at her.

Lynn hit the floor with a painful thwack. Her head bounced off the linoleum, as stars burst behind her lids. An immense pressure on her chest had her forcing her eyes open, and she found the bloody feline had her pinned down with his giant paw.

Jag was still in his human form, a scalpel in his hand as he growled. The shifter above her began to change, his paw shrinking down to a hand that slid up to grip her throat, even as his gaze stayed on the weapon held by the man who was her only hope of survival.

“You don’t want to be doing that,
Jag
,” the man sneered. “It would be a pity if I were to accidentally snap the neck of your weak human mate.”

“She’s not my mate.”

“Please! She’s covered in your scent.”

“She was tending to my wounds, you idiot. That’s my blood all over her.”

“Sorry, I’m not buying it. I think this little lady is about to be my ticket out of here,” he said, jerking her up and onto her shaky legs.

The sudden movement blurred her vision, and the throbbing in her head doubled. Her hand bumped her side, and she felt the syringe. It was a long shot but a chance she was willing to take to avoid being kidnapped by this psychopath.

He’d wrapped his hand around the upper part of her left arm, leaving her right free.
I guess he’s not worried about the little human hurting him
, she thought.
Well, let’s see what he thinks about this
.

Flicking the cap of with her thumb, Lynn spun forward, putting her body right in front of his as she plunged the needle into his chest, depressing the plunger with one sharp thrust of her thumb.

Enraged, the man screamed as he grabbed both her arms and threw her into the wall. The impact drove the air from her lungs, and Lynn sank to the floor in a heap, her vision dimming. Just before she lost consciousness, Jag approached the now tranquilized shifter and snapped his neck then came over to her.

“Lynn?” He cradled her to him, seeming to forget his own wounds, and she couldn’t remember ever feeling so safe. It was the only reason she went willingly into the darkness that offered a reprieve from the pain.

* * * *

Lynn was so still, her breathing shallow and her pulse erratic. Jag felt completely helpless. When the door behind him burst open, he snapped his head around to find Liam and the doctor gaping at the scene before them.

“Help her,” he barked, and Dr. Lewis quickly came to his side.

“Are you in control?”

Jag barely tolerated the arrogant man, but he was the only one around that could possibly help Lynn, otherwise, in his current state, Jag may have torn out the doctor’s throat. “As much as I can be.”

Liam cautiously approached, his steps slow and measured. “So what happened in here? We went to the doc’s office down the hall to call Dylan and inform him you’re back and fill him in on the new prisoner. It doesn’t look like we’ll be getting much information out of him now.”

“Pupil reaction is sluggish,” the doctor announced, gaining Jag’s full attention. “There’s a good-sized lump on her head, and it appears she’s got a cut as well. No doubt she has a concussion, but I need to get her scanned to see how severe. Help me get her onto a gurney so we can get her into CT.”

Lifting her limp body as gently as possible, Jag brought her to the same table she’d seated him on mere moments before. He settled her, taking care to ensure her head was on the soft pillow. With her taking not one, but two blows, she’d surely be suffering one hell of a headache when she woke.

Dr. Lewis raised the side rails and unlocked the brakes beneath the gurney. “I’ll get her scanned and into a room. I wouldn’t want her to come around and see all of this again.”

“I want to know where you take her and what her injuries are as soon as you find out,” Jag demanded.

“Of course.”

He watched, feeling helpless as Lynn was wheeled from the room. She’d been so brave, so fierce, as she faced the rogue. Any other female would have most likely dissolved into tears or hysterics, but not her. No, Lynn had taken one solid knock to the head then managed to stab the son-of-a-bitch with the very needle the doc had been wielding earlier. When the bastard had thrown her, Jag swore his heart stopped.

“Okay, man, tell me what the hell just happened,” Liam ordered, bringing Jag back to the here and now and handing him a sheet to cover himself with.

Taking a deep breath, he described the attack all the way to the point where Liam and the doctor had charged in. He had a feeling he’d be forced to recap the event again to the Prime, but it was the Prima he dreaded most.

Jag had come to like Samantha very much, and admitting his failure to protect Lynn would shame him greatly. There was Lynn to face as well.

How in the hell was he supposed to look her in the eye? His inner jaguar might want her for his mate, but Jag knew that he, the man, wasn’t worthy of her. No, Lynn deserved a male who could
protect
her as well as provide for her needs.

While the latter was no problem, the first had just proven to be something he failed at. If he wanted to pursue a proper claiming, he needed to show he deserved her.

“Damn,” Liam drawled. “The girl has guts; I’ll give her that.”

“I’m just glad
her guts
didn’t end up all over the floor. All it would have taken was one swipe of his claws to fillet her belly.” Jag shuddered. “I can’t remember ever feeling so scared…or helpless.”

Liam clapped him on the back, the move meant to be friendly. Since Jag had kept to himself for so long, it startled him a bit. “She’s your mate. I’m sure it won’t be the last time you experience that feeling, but it’ll be worth it.”

“She’s not my mate.”

“Denial is a sad, sad place to live. Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better, but your jaguar knows. You were scent marking her, Jag. I had a feeling you might like her, but I had no idea it went that far.” Liam shook his head. “This is my fault. I’m sorry, man.”

Jag couldn’t have been more shocked. “How the hell is this your fault?”

“We never should have left this piece of shit in here,” Liam snarled, kicking the dead shifter. “None of this would have happened. Lynn wouldn’t be hurt, and you’d be patched up.
Shit
, we still need to at least bandage you.”

“Is there a shower around here? I think it would be a lot easier if I just washed all of this off.” Jag waved a hand in front of himself as if Liam could have missed all the dried blood and mud coating his body.

“Yeah, follow me. I’ll have a few men deal with the body.”

With the sheet still wrapped around his waist, Jag followed Liam down the hall and into what was obviously a patient room. He showered as quickly as he could, vigorously scrubbing his body and ignoring the pain from his many wounds as he attempted to be done before any news about Lynn’s condition arrived.

He came out, this time with a small towel wrapped around his hips, to find Liam and Dr. Lewis standing at the foot of a hospital bed. Lynn lay there, utterly still, with an IV hanging overhead.

Guilt rose up within him. When she’d gone for the meds, he’d been so focused on the sexy sway of her hips in those cotton pants that he failed to notice the rogue shifter had regained consciousness until it was too late.

“How is she?” Jag asked.

Dr. Lewis grimaced. “Not well. She has a moderate concussion, and I gave her some pain meds to keep her comfortable. I went ahead and scanned her neck, too. It showed some signs of whiplash, so from the shoulders up, she’ll be pretty miserable for a while.”

Liam dragged his hand over his face, looking as exhausted as Jag felt. “I’ll need to set a guard at her door. I can come back once I brief Dylan and take over.”

“I’ll do it.” Jag wanted to be the one to keep her safe and knew he’d never relax unless he was certain Lynn was all right. “Just find me some clothes, and I’ll be good.”

Neither male argued. The doctor simply told him to hit the call button if she woke or in case he needed anything. A few minutes after they left, a plump little nurse breezed in with a pair of scrubs for Jag to put on.

Once he was properly covered, he opted to leave the door closed and settled into the chair beside her bed. The only thing left to do was wait and pray she’d be able to forgive him with time.

* * * *

Lynn slowly woke to the sound of hushed voices. Cracking her eyes to see who was near, she gasped and clamped them shut again as pain lanced through her head.

“Lynn?” A cool hand brushed hers. “Are you awake?”

Recognizing Samantha’s whispered voice, Lynn struggled to find her words, her mind uncommonly sluggish. “Lights,” she rasped.

Almost immediately, she noticed the increased darkness through her lids.
Why are my eyes so sensitive?
she wondered.

Doing a quick assessment, she came the only logical conclusion for the way she felt. “Ugh, I was hit by a truck, wasn’t I?”

A soft giggle came from Sam then she reminded Lynn of the truth. “Close. It was a shifter then a wall. How are you feeling?”

“Sore.” Broken memories surfaced, and Lynn struggled to sit up. “Where’s Jag? He was hurt!” The sudden movement sent the room into motion as everything seemed to tilt.

“Whoa! I’m right here. We didn’t mean to wake you up. I was just explaining everything to the Prima.”

“The name’s Sam, Jag. Use it.”

Ignoring her friend’s reprimand, Lynn addressed Jag as he eased her back on the bed. “So you’re all healed?”

“Mostly.”

He wouldn’t meet her eyes, and Lynn knew he was fibbing, but after everything they’d just been through—and the fact her head was splitting—she decided to let him slide.

“You must be hurting. Do you want anything for pain?” The concern in his gaze when he finally looked at her was touching, and warmth spread through Lynn’s body.

“I’m not sure I want anything just yet. I hate the effect they have.” Actually, she didn’t want her mind to feel as fuzzy as it did now. Not being able to concentrate or recall all that had happened made her extremely uneasy. “I could go for a drink of water though.”

Jag smiled, seeming happy at her request. He excused himself to get it for her.

“He blames himself,” Sam whispered once the door closed.

“For what? None of this was his fault.”

“That’s not how he sees it.”

More images flashed through Lynn’s mind, coming faster and faster until the scene played out in her head. Getting the meds, the other shifter tackling her, stabbing him with the syringe then flying through the air.

“How the hell does he figure that? There’s no way he could’ve seen the attack coming. The guy was out cold!”

“He’s not the only one criticizing himself. Liam is feeling really guilty too. He blames himself because he neglected to remove the other shifter from the room.”

As if that would have been possible. “Jag was barely in control at the time, and the only ones he considered threats were Dr. Lewis and Liam. If either of them had taken the time to move the rogue, they may have ended up with a very large jaguar on their ass.”

“I know, but
you
know how guys can be. It’s like some kind of blow to the ego. The whole ‘I failed to protect the girl’ bullshit.” Samantha grinned. “Guess they didn’t figure in how today’s women are a little tougher than in the past. By the way, nice job! I can’t believe you managed to take one of these guys by surprise.”

“What do you mean?” The only one taken by surprise had been her. Both Jag and the other guy had been seriously injured; who knew they could still move like that?

“Are you kidding me? Even Dylan was in awe of your quick moves. How did you even get the needle?” Samantha asked, sitting on the side of the bed.

“Dr. Lewis had it. He was trying to sedate Jag when Liam and I showed up. He’d left it on a tray with the supplies to patch up Jag, but I slipped it into my pocket so he wouldn’t see it and flip out again.”

Samantha nodded. “Good thinking. I’m just glad you had it.”

“My turn to ask a question. Why the hell are you here? You just had a baby for crying out loud!”

“Trust me, Dylan wasn’t happy about it, but I can be very stubborn.”

“Tell me about it.”

“He’ll be coming back any minute now to pick me up, so don’t worry.”

The door opened, and Jag returned. He looked positively sinful in the green scrubs, his black hair nearly to his shoulders, and those pale blue eyes against his dark tan were stunning. Yep, he was every nurse’s wet dream come to life. “I’ve got some ice water, but they said to just sip it at first. I think they’re worried about you getting sick.”