Chapter Seven

No, your brother is not dead, I put him in WITSEC because he turned state’s evidence on Rafferty and I lied to you about it.

Of course, Jaxon didn’t say any of that out loud. He’d kept his mouth shut for five fucking years. Wyatt was hidden away by the Marshals and Hayden was free and clear from the shit Wyatt had been caught up in.

“Jaxon, what the fuck?”

“Give us a fucking minute,” Jaxon growled at the smug-looking Ice. He didn’t know what the guy was looking so smug about, it wasn’t like Ice knew shit about Wyatt.

The only two people on earth who knew besides Dave were the US Marshals, specifically Whiplash Tauber and Axel Bains, and maybe a handful of others.

Ice walked out, closing the hospital room door, and Jaxon took a deep breath.

“Look, Wyatt is dead. We went over this five years ago. You need to stop thinking it’s him every time something happens,” Jaxon said the lie to his best friend with a bitter taste in his mouth.

“Then why did you look so fucking guilty?”

“Because you got hurt looking into a job from one of my friends.” That part wasn’t a lie and Jaxon hung onto it.

“Was it really your friend who got us hurt?”

“No, Jesse is in a coma and his place is destroyed.”

“I’m sorry…And you think someone set us up?”

“What else could it be?” Hayden said, biting his bottom lip, a look of sadness washing through his whole body.

He shook off his desire to take the man in his arms and scowled instead. “So, are you getting dressed or do you need a rest, Princess?”

“You know what? Have a nice day, dumbass! Preferably somewhere else,” Hayden snapped at him all grumpily, but that fire was back in his blue eyes.

Jaxon flattened his lips to keep them from curving upward, but Hayden noticed.

“You’re the reason I’m on medication!”

Okay, that got his lips smiling wide. “You don’t take any.”

Hayden gave a rueful smile in return and pursed his lips.

Oh fuck. Jaxon stared at Hayden’s puckered mouth until the man cleared his throat. Jerking his eyes away, he clenched his teeth. Damn it. What the fuck was wrong with him?

He wouldn’t jeopardize anything he had with Hayden, but ever since he’d covered Hayden in the blown-out deli, he couldn’t stop every protective urge inside from rearing up.

But he knew from experience that dating a friend didn’t work. He’d tried once a long time ago, getting involved with a really close buddy of his and it had ended badly.

“Jax?

Hayden’s whispering voice jerked him from his chaotic thinking.

“Yeah?”

“How is Jesse, what do the doctors say?”

“Not too good. It’s a medically induced coma, just until they can assess everything.”

“I really am sorry.”

Jaxon nodded and then mentally shook himself. Stressing about Jesse wasn’t going to do his friend any good. They had a fucking bomber to catch.

“So…you ready to get out of this joint?” He kept his voice light.

“Hell yeah. Can I?”

“Yeah.” Jaxon lifted a set of papers on the hospital tray. “Logan signed these; the doctor signed off as long as you don’t over-exert yourself.”

Hayden nodded with a smile that sent Jaxon’s heart lurching and he couldn’t look away when the slender man slowly slid his long legs over the side of the bed.

Swallowing, Jaxon stepped forward to assist by pulling the clothes from the bag of stuff he’d brought. While the man finished getting dressed, Jaxon headed over to wait near the door, putting some distance between them.

“Ready!” Hayden said and approached.

He opened the door and poked his head out before letting Hayden walk through.

“Expecting trouble?”

“With you, always.”

Hayden rolled his eyes and smacked him on the arm. “I’m not the one with trouble as his middle name.”

“When have I ever been trouble?” Jaxon lifted both eyebrows.

“I see you two are in rare form,” Felix Acosta called out, interrupting them, and approached down the long hallway.

“Hey.” Hayden grinned and returned the gentle hug the fellow bodyguard gave him.

“How are you?” Felix placed him at arm’s length and looked him over.

“Aches and pains, nothing broken, slight concussion,” he answered, tossing a stern look at Jaxon, who looked ready to argue.

“And you?” Felix eyed Jaxon, who scowled.

“And him what?” Hayden smiled.

“Oooooh, Hayden wasn’t supposed to know that you passed out?”

“You have a big mouth.” Jaxon glared at the bodyguard.

Felix laughed. “That I do, my friend, that I do.”

“What happened!” Hayden turned on him, but the move was too fast and the younger man gasped and went pale. Jaxon slipped a protective arm around Hayden’s waist, pulling him close to prevent him from falling.

“Damn it, Felix.” Jaxon guided Hayden gently down the hospital hallway.

“Oops.” Felix looked contrite and fell into step beside them.

Felix Acosta was one of the biggest flirts and had the looks to back it up. Not only good-looking, like Felix could have stepped right out of a movie set kind of way, Felix was the prettiest of them all in Hayden’s opinion, with his dark curly hair and bright blue eyes.

Both Tyler Brick and Gunner Morgan stood from chairs and came around the line of waiting people in the lobby.

Brick held out his cell phone to Jaxon.

“Who is it?” He eyed the phone.

“It’s Ryder. Talk to him before he flies down here and kicks my ass for not putting you on the phone,” Brick said.

Jaxon snorted. Tyler Brick was the biggest son of a bitch he’d ever come across, and he lived up to his last name—hence the reason he went by Brick instead of Tyler. The big bodyguard had more tattoos than he’d seen in a long ass time. They covered Brick’s arms, chest, and neck.

Gunner was big, but not as tall or thick as Brick, yet the cowboy sure had the bulk and could give both him and Brick a run for their money. Jaxon regularly sparred with both men and none of them ever knew ahead of time who would come out the winner.

“Ryder?” Jaxon said, taking the phone, and watched as Brick stepped up to Hayden and looked him over.

Where before, there had been tension between Hayden and Brick, Jaxon detected none. He never did find out what had happened between the two men, but it had nothing to do with sexual tension and he knew that because he’d flat out asked Hayden. And even though Hayden had told him they weren’t hooking up or anything like that, Hayden never did tell him what their disagreement had been about.

“Thank fuck,” his best friend snarled into the phone, but Jaxon heard the relief in his best friend’s words. When Hayden tried to step away, Jaxon took hold of the man’s arm and when Hayden tried to wiggle away, Jaxon tightened his grip, sliding his arm around Hayden’s waist until the man settled against his side.

It wasn’t normal for them, this closeness, but Jaxon wanted…no, he needed Hayden close right then and he wasn’t going to question why that was at the moment.

“I’m okay,” he answered Ryder. “Hayden was banged up a bit, but we are both still breathing.”

“What the fuck happened?”

“I don’t know yet, but when I find out, I’ll let you know.”

“You need me there, you say the word.” Ryder lived close. The man was located in Colorado Springs half the time and the other half in Denver. Harrison, Ryder’s husband, was content with the arrangement, so it currently worked for both men.

“I will. I need to go, I have to get Hayden settled in,” he said.

“Give him our love,” Ryder said and ended the call.

“Ryder and Harrison send their love,” Jaxon murmured to Hayden and handed back the phone to Brick.

“Awww, I love them too,” Hayden said in a mushy voice, and he heard the fatigue.

“They didn’t get your phone yet.”

Hayden yawned and swayed. “I need my insurance card.”

Shaking his head, Jaxon gently sat Hayden in a nearby chair and went to the desk to check them out.

“I already took care of it,” Logan said, coming around from one of the other checkout stations.

“Thanks, boss,” Hayden said with a cheeky grin, causing Felix to snicker. “I knew your money would come in handy.”

Jaxon rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t argue. Logan Cobalt was one of the richest men in the world.

“We have insurance,” Felix piped up.

Jaxon noticed that Felix and Gunner were being cordial to each other. Not overly friendly, but Felix wasn’t glaring and Gunner wasn’t scowling.

There was hope.

Brick’s phone went off and the bodyguard frowned at the screen. “Damn nuisance,” the big man muttered and answered the call within earshot.

“What,” Brick growled into the phone and then glared at nothing. “That’s not a reason to call.” Without another word, the guy hung up his cell and tucked it away in his pocket before gazing at them. “What?”

“Nothing,” Jaxon murmured, helping Hayden up from the chair.

“Ooh la la,” Hayden laughingly told Brick, who flipped him off.

Logan broke the moment by stepping forward to cup Hayden’s face. All laughter faded from Hayden’s blue eyes at that moment and Jaxon’s mouth dried up.

“You sure you’re okay?” Logan asked, looking Hayden over.

“Yeah.” Hayden solemnly nodded.

“And you?” Logan released Hayden and turned to Jaxon.

“I’m fine, and if you cup my face like that, I’m going to punch you.” He squinted at Logan.

“You fucking wish,” Logan growled and Jaxon smirked.

He normally didn’t joke around with Logan, first, because he was their boss and second, he was one tough son of a bitch, but having Hayden in the hospital had them all a bit shaken and him the most.

Hayden giggled and the sound had the group of men laughing. They made their way to the front door and stepped out into the sunshine.

Tat, tat, tat!

The familiar spatter of gunfire filled the air and bullets hit the front of the hospital, shattering one of the doors and sending stucco and debris flying into the air.

Jaxon dropped to the concrete and took Hayden to the ground, covering the man with his own body. Hayden stayed still, stretched on his stomach, and covered the back of his own head with his hands. It might not stop a bullet, but it could protect him from flying objects.

Gunner, Brick, and Felix returned fire while diving for cover, and Logan crouched next to him and Hayden, gun drawn. People screamed and ran and Jaxon had a moment of horrifying deja vu.

Other than protecting his head, Hayden hadn’t moved a muscle beneath him.

“Cover me,” Jaxon told Logan and when his boss opened fire, Jaxon eased up, curled his arms around Hayden, and jumped to his feet. He picked up Hayden and ran back the way they’d come.

He made it through the shattered door and around the corner from the gun battle raging outside. The people who got caught in the waiting room were crouched, hiding behind waiting room chairs.

“Hayden!” He placed Hayden in one of the chairs.

“I’m okay,” Hayden said, blinking up at him.

“You weren’t talking.”

“You shouldn’t be surprised, you flattened me.”

“You never stop talking,” he grumbled and hid the shaking of his hands by stroking them through the light blond hair that spilled over Hayden’s shoulders.

“Think of this as the one moment in time that will never happen again.”

Jaxon groaned with a half laugh. There was his smart aleck. He brushed the hair away from Hayden’s face.

“I thought I hurt you when I slammed you to the ground.”

“I’m tougher than I look. I can take a licking and keep on…”

The bruised and battered beauty tipped his chin up and Jaxon had the crazy urge to kiss Hayden on the mouth.

Where the fuck had that come from?

Clearing his throat, Jaxon said, “Stay here,” before he was up and running back to the door, gun drawn in a low crouch.

Other than the sound of people crying and sirens wailing, the gunfire had stopped. Gunner was helping Felix to his feet, brushing glass from the man’s hair, and for once, Felix didn’t tell Gunner to fuck off. Brick was assisting a nurse who’d been caught outside with them, but escaped harm.

Logan stalked up to Jaxon and slapped a set of keys in his hand.

“Get on the road,” Logan ordered. “I’ll send you the address of a safe house. Take my SUV.”

Jaxon nodded, took the keys Logan held out, and then stepped toward the waiting room before he suddenly turned back.

“What are you going to do?” He held the man’s gaze.

“Make a few calls,” Logan growled.