He rolled her beneath him and hovered over her, his expression troubled. “I guarantee you’re not asexual, and you’re beautiful and responsive. The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. I have no idea why you’ve never wanted to explore your sexuality before, but I’m greedy and selfish. I want you to do it with me. Only me.”
I’ve never wanted to do it with anyone else.
After her one bad experience, she’d never met a man who moved her to explore the sensual side of herself. And after she’d become scarred, she’d put the thought out of her mind altogether.
Dante was definitely an inspiration, but he’d had no business doing the things he’d done in his condition. “No more fooling around until you’re healed. I’ve waited this long, I can wait a little longer. You need to completely heal,” she lectured, knowing that if he touched her again, she’d cave in. The man was like a highly addictive drug.
“I told you that you’re not my doctor anymore,” he reminded her ferociously.
“I’m still a doctor, and I know what you did tonight could have set back your recovery,” she told him sternly.
“Baby, I guarantee it didn’t hurt a bit.” He shot her a shit-eating grin that nearly melted her.
Stay strong. You know he was hurting earlier. You could see it. He’s trying to charm you into forgetting that you saw him in pain.
“No,” she told him adamantly.
Flopping onto his back again, he groaned. “It will kill me.”
Sarah bit back a smile. Honestly, his ferocious appetite for her delighted her as much as it concerned her. “You lived without my body for thirty-one years,” she reminded him.
“Yeah. And it sucked,” he told her sulkily.
Sarah had to bite her lower lip to keep from smiling. At the moment, he resembled a pouty boy. “I want to be with you, too. But not if I have to wonder every minute if you’re hurting yourself.” Really, he was the most stubborn man alive. He should still be down and resting with his injuries, and he was already trying to pretend they didn’t exist anymore. “It has to stop.” She was already afraid he was going to get hurt protecting her. She intentionally changed the subject. “Will I be able to get into my house for some of my personal belongings? My clothes and stuff like that?”
“No.” His low voice was hesitant and reluctant. “Sarah, there’s nothing there anymore. Even your clothing was hacked up. I’m sorry.”
Sarah shuddered. “He really does want me dead.”
“We’ll catch him, sweetheart. I swear.”
She didn’t doubt Dante. She’d never seen a man who was more dedicated to righting a wrong, which made him an excellent detective. With his determined stubbornness, Sarah knew he’d do everything in his power to finally apprehend John Thompson.
“Seeing Trey die was hard. I was a new doctor, and I got too close. I guess learning how to lose a patient wasn’t something I was really going to understand in medical school. It was like losing a friend. I guess John never came to terms with losing both his wife and only child, and really did go over the edge. I don’t know if he was psychotic before this happened, or if it really was the accident that caused his radical behavior.”
Dante wrapped his arm around her and pulled her flush against his side. “If a man or woman has the capability to murder, it’s already there. What happened was just the excuse he needed to play out his rage. This isn’t your fault, Sarah.”
“I was hoping he’d just go away, find another life somewhere, and get over his grief, since he was never caught. Maybe somewhere in the back of my mind, I realized that he could end up coming after me. But I never really looked at it as a reality. I thought it was over.” She’d wanted to start over again, forget the past. But the past had finally caught up to her with a vengeance.
“Once we find him, you can really start over again. You’ll never have that niggling doubt or have to live with the fear that he’ll find you. Judging by the brutal job he did on your personal possessions, his rage has just increased over the last year,” Dante said soberly.
“It looks like it has,” Sarah agreed, snuggling into the warmth of Dante’s body.
“He’s still here somewhere. Joe seems like a competent chief, and I’m sure he’s making this a top priority.”
“He’s a good man,” Sarah agreed. “He’s really devoted to his family and his job.”
“Do you still have the panic attacks?” Dante reached for her hand and rested their entwined fingers on his hip.
“No. Not unless I get near a hospital. I’ve tried to desensitize myself, but I can’t seem to even get close to the entrance of a hospital without getting palpitations and dizziness.” Sarah hated it. It was a weakness she couldn’t overcome.
“You’ve managed to practice medicine anyway,” he observed, his fingers tightening on hers. “You’re a brave woman, sweetheart.”
She didn’t always feel very brave. She was just a survivor. “I’m an internal medicine doctor. Not being able to admit a patient to the hospital and follow their care doesn’t feel right to me.”
“I understand. It would be a little like me developing a fear of guns or something. I’d be screwed,” he answered hoarsely. “But you’ve made the best out of it.” He paused before asking, “How often do you talk to your mother? Did she take good care of you while you were injured?”