Barely Breathing (8 page)

He stood up and she automatically wrapped her arms around
his neck. No one had ever carried her before. Not as a grown, six-foot-tall
woman. He made her feel dainty, feminine.

“Feel like sex?” she whispered as he entered the bedroom and
nudged the door closed with his foot.

“No.” He sat her on the bed and stood to shove his jeans
down and off. His thick erection made her meet his eyes with a lifted brow.

“No?”

He smiled. “Honestly, I think we both could use a little
more sleep. And I really want to hold you.”

Her heart melted. Any thoughts of leaving were gone. She
didn’t know what she felt for him or what he felt for her. But she did know
there was something there, between them, with the potential to grow. She wanted
the chance to see what it led to. She would just have to spend the next
forty-eight hours convincing him of the same thing.

Griff was still sleeping when Honor awoke. She slipped
quietly from the bed. How could a person’s world change so drastically in such
a small window of time? Hers would never be the same. She glanced down at
Griff. There was no way she was walking away from this unscathed. She wasn’t
even sure it would be possible to walk away.

Being with him made her realize what her dad wanted for her.
It was frightening to realize how much she wanted it too. She wanted to go out,
to date and to explore relationship boundaries. She wanted the potential of a
happily-ever-after. Of living together, being part of a we instead of just a
me. She wanted it with Griff.

Right now, looking at him, she wanted nothing more than to
crawl back into bed with him and cuddle into his heat. Maybe he’d wake up and
feel frisky. She almost laughed. There was no maybe to it. She could already
see the length of his cock tenting the sheets and wondered what he was
dreaming. And if she was playing a starring role in it.

She snagged her key ring as well as Griff’s before heading
out of the apartment toward the lot and her car. She really needed to hear her
dad’s voice. And she wanted privacy. He’d be mad at her for trying to go around
him. She’d deal with it, and Jack’s part in selling her out. Later, when the
dust finally settled and she knew where she stood.

She couldn’t wait for her dad to meet Griff. It was so
important to her they like each other and get along. Her dad was the most
important man in her life. Griff had the potential to be just as important.
Would he want to? She nodded. She’d just have to make sure he did.

She glanced up as she exited the building but her mind was
too wrapped up in thought to relay what she was seeing fast enough. The hand
came out of nowhere. One second she was walking and the next her head was
slamming against the brick of the building. Pain exploded. Two hands tightened
around her throat and she clawed as dots began to appear before her eyes.

“Where is Vince?” The voice reeked of hate and violence.
Spittle sprayed her face and his rancid breath made her wonder how long he’d
been without the convenience of a toothbrush.

She gurgled and clawed but her fingers just slid over the
gloves he was wearing. Lack of oxygen was making her sluggish and weak. Her
legs kicked but even she could tell they were weak attempts. He was plastered
against her, holding her in place against the wall. She had no room to maneuver
and the will to try was fading along with her air supply.

“Where is he?” He cracked her head back against the wall again.

Why did he keep asking her questions? It wasn’t as if she
could answer him. Not when she was only seconds from passing out. Who was this
guy? And how had her dad missed him?

The hands let up and she gasped in air, struggling to fill
her lungs. She would have bruises, could already feel them forming.

“Who are you?” she managed to croak. Not the response he
wanted as his hands quickly began to cut off her oxygen supply again.

“I’m the one asking questions, you fucking cunt. Where is
Vince? Where are my brothers? What the fuck have you done with them?”

He really needed to quit asking her questions when he was
choking the life out of her. Lack of oxygen definitely had her brain struggling
to engage. He was obviously another cousin. How had he managed not to be with
the others? More importantly, how was it he’d found her instead of her dad
finding him? His hands finally eased up just enough to allow another gulp of
much-needed air.

“Can’t breathe.” She hated the burn of her throat as she
tried to suck the air in.

“I don’t care, you fucking bitch. I told them. Begged them
to leave it alone. Just let it go. But they couldn’t. Too pumped up by the old
man’s deathbed wish for revenge to walk away. I should have been with them.” He
was rambling and she wondered how far over the edge he was. It seemed he was
talking to himself. She didn’t care. It gave her time to breathe and plan. How
the fuck did she get out of this one?

“Your dad has them doesn’t he?” This time she felt the pinch
of his nails through the gloves as he tightened his grip on her neck. Her head
slammed back against the wall again. “You better hope they’re still alive.” His
face was right back in hers. She could feel the heat of his breath, the spit of
his saliva and was glad she couldn’t breathe at the moment. She was too close
to throwing up as it was.

Her lips moved but no sound came out. She thought she saw
movement to her left but she couldn’t be sure. The dots were getting connected
and blackness was taking over. She didn’t want to die. Not here. Not now. Not
like this. She wanted to go back upstairs and crawl into bed with Griff. Wanted
to wrap around him and never let go. She wanted to see her dad’s face. To hug
him and tell him she loved him one more time. She wanted a life. She wanted
everything.

She heard the smack of flesh on flesh but had no idea if he
was hitting her. She couldn’t feel anything. She embraced the dark and let the
world slip away.

* * * * *

Griff fumbled for the phone. “Hello.”

“Get your ass down to the parking lot now.” The voice was no
more than a whisper.

“Who is this?”

“It’s Tyler. Good thing I decided to keep an eye out for
Honor.”

Griff felt the emptiness in the bed beside him and sat up,
all traces of sleep gone.

“Where is she? What’s going on?”

“Currently pinned against the side of the building by
someone. I just took a minute to call you for backup.” Griff heard Tyler’s
infuriated hiss loud and clear through the phone. “Fuck. Hurry up. I’m going
in.”

Griff jumped out of bed. He grabbed his jeans and hurried
into them while he snagged his gun from the bedside table drawer. He hit the
living room on the fly and didn’t bother pulling the door shut as he raced for
the stairs. Someone had Honor pinned against the building. Griff didn’t feel
the need for stealth. He felt the need to hurry.

Honor. If something happened to her. His heart just stopped
and his mind refused to engage in the what-if game. How could a woman he’d
known for such a short frame of time mean so much to him? How had she managed
to get so far beneath his skin that she was even now worming her way into his
heart?

His heart did stop when he shoved out of the building and
saw Honor crumpled on the pavement. He could hear the harsh grunts and blows
and shifted his gaze just long enough to see Tyler was fighting with someone.
He knelt beside Honor and felt for a pulse. Thready but it was there. He let
his gaze scan the lot for another possible assailant.

Movement caught his eye and had him lifting his gun. He
would kill to protect her.

“Ambulance is on the way,” Chetan said as he jogged by
toward where Tyler still fought. “Guess I better make sure there’s someone left
to question.”

Griff didn’t care. Let Tyler kill the cocksucker. His eyes
saw nothing but red as he took in the swelling and bruising around Honor’s neck.
He smoothed her hair and felt a lump on the back of her head. On second
thought, he did want Tyler to let the other man live. Just long enough for
Griff to kill him.

“Honor. Hey, baby, it’s Griff. I’m here. I’m going to yell
at you later. I think we might have one hell of a fight about this. But you
have to wake up first. I need you to wake up and let me know you’re okay.
Please, Honor. Open those gorgeous eyes and look at me. Tell me to fuck off or
get the hell out of your face. Whisper those sweet words of yours to me. Just
wake up.”

He held her close. The bruising and swelling worried him. He
prayed as he hadn’t prayed in a long time. It was like being back with his dad
when Mick died. And that had him thinking about what Honor had said earlier. He
would be devastated if something happened to Honor. He could already feel his
heart aching at just the thought. And they’d only just met. They hadn’t had
nearly enough time together.

His mother and father had spent years together and lived a
lifetime within them. How must she have felt when he’d been taken from her?
Griff remembered a million little things, which maybe he’d let slip from his
thoughts in recent years. How he’d catch her praying to his dad sometimes. How
she’d cry when she thought no one was around to notice. And he remembered her
face the night at the hospital when they’d not been sure if Roman would make
it. Devastation.

She’d managed to find love a second time with Roman. And
Griff had been too selfish to be happy for her. Too selfish to give a great guy
like Roman a chance. His mother deserved better and Honor was right. His dad
wouldn’t be happy with him right now.

He heard the sirens and looked up to watch them pull in.
He’d make things right with his mom, with Roman. Just as soon as he knew Honor
was okay. He kissed her on the temple just before they eased her away and
lifted her onto the gurney. She was going to be okay. She had to be. Otherwise
he wouldn’t be able to convince her to stay. And he was going to convince her.
No wasn’t going to be an option.

* * * * *

Her throat wasn’t as bad as he’d thought. The swelling was
completely gone, though the bruises were vivid and dark. Now, if she’d just
wake up. As if she had finally decided to listen to him, her eyes fluttered
open.

“Honor.” He leaned in close as she winced. One slim hand
rose to gingerly touch her neck.

“Burns.” Her voice was a rough croak but still the most
beautiful sound to him.

“I’ll get you a drink.” He turned and poured some water from
the pitcher into a glass and stuck a straw into it. “Slowly.” He felt violent
as he watched her struggle to swallow.

“Did you get him?”

“Yeah, he’s locked up.”

“Good. Was he alone?”

He nodded. “As far as they can tell.”

“He said something about, if he had been able to talk them
out of it or had been with them. I’m guessing the dad died recently and Vince
decided it was time for payback.”

“Shhh,” Griff urged her to stay quiet. He could tell what it
was costing her to keep talking. “I’m more worried about you right now. You
scared the hell out of me.”

“Sorry.”

He smiled and ran his hand through her hair. The lump had
already starting going down on her head as well, though the doctor said she’d
probably be tender there for a while. Griff didn’t question the relief that
rolled through him that she was awake. He’d deal with those emotions later.

“What were you doing, Honor? Why’d you leave bed to go to
your car?” He knew she hadn’t been sneaking out. The thought had nearly ripped
his gut in two but she hadn’t taken anything with her except their keys. Her
laptop was still with Chetan and he knew her well enough to know it wouldn’t
get left behind.

She blinked a few times and then he had to hold her down to
keep her from trying to leave the bed. “My dad! I was going to call him. Shit!
Please tell me no one has called him yet about this.”

He wouldn’t lie to her. “Jack already called him. He’s on
his way here.”

“Fuck! Jack Madigan is really on my shit list.”

Griff grinned. “From what I heard, your dad was mad as hell
you got hurt. He’s not happy with Jack either. Or any of us, for that matter.”

“I’ll do my best to make sure no one disappears without a
trace while he’s here.”

Griff was almost sure she was joking. Almost.

“So what’s the scoop on me?” She held her arms out and did a
quick up-and-down glance on her body. He watched her move everything and knew
she was taking inventory of what if anything hurt or just felt sore or wrong.
“I feel okay except for my throat and a slight headache.”

“Good. Your neck looks bad. He must have squeezed the hell
out of it.”

“Yeah. Thought for sure I was a goner there a few times.
Luckily, he wanted me to answer a question so he let me breathe in between
choking the life out of me.”

“Christ, you scared the shit out of me.”

“You already said that. I am sorry.” She reached up and
trailed her fingers over his cheek. “Do you think they’d let me go? I really
don’t want to be confined to this bed when my dad gets here. I’m betting ours
will be a reunion best held in private. Not sure the hospital can handle the
language that’s sure to fly around.”

“I’ll see what I can do. I’ll take you back to the
apartment.” He watched her and felt relief when she nodded. He had been afraid
for a moment she might want to hide whatever was going on between them from her
dad.

He was actually looking forward to meeting her dad. Call it
a death wish but he wanted to see the man Honor held so much love and respect
for. It might give him a little more insight into Honor as well. You could
learn a lot about a person just by looking at their family, where they came
from. Which reminded him of a promise he’d made to his dad while he sat beside
Honor’s bed waiting for her to wake up.

He slipped out the door and leaned back against the wall. He
took a deep breath and let his eyes shut. Relief and so much more poured
through him. She was okay. Banged up a little but, thankfully, still breathing.

He slid his phone from his pocket and punched in a familiar
number. He had an important call to make before hunting down a nurse to get
them started on having the doctor release Honor into his care.

“Griff? Is everything okay?”

His mom’s voice filled the line and soothed his nerves
instantly. How had he let anything come between them? Especially something, no
someone, who was obviously so good for his mom.

“I’m fine, Mom.” There were a million things he wanted to
say. A million others that probably needed to be said. But he couldn’t think of
any of them.

“Griff?” His mother’s voice prompted him over the phone.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I’m really sorry.”