Can't Tie Me Down! (Sinclair Sisters 1)

The guy flushed a deep red when he glanced at her, then answered the bedding instead of Mairi. “They’ve given me drugs. I feel okay. Maybe a little dumb.”

“They’re moving you to Glasgow,” Mairi said as Keir came to stand beside her. “I don’t know how long you’ll be in hospital, but we’ll visit you there. Should we contact your family?”

“I already did,” Sebastian said from the other side of the bed. “They’re waiting for word on whether they should come over from Canada. They want to know what Jonas wants them to do.”

Keir reeled at the thought of being in hospital and his family not rushing to his bedside.

Jonas glanced up at Sebastian. “Can you tell them to wait? And thank them for asking. I know it’s hard on Mom.”

“Sure thing.” Sebastian pulled out his phone and started texting. “Your mom was upset. She said she can be here the minute you say the word.”

“I know,” Jonas said, but you could tell it would be too much for him. Which made Keir feel bad for the family who obviously wanted to be with their son.

“Jonas,” Mairi said, “I can’t shout at you right now, because I’m too happy you’re going to be okay. But I want you to know, I’m saving it up for when you’re better.”

Jonas’ lips quirked and a small smile broke free as he stared at the bedding. “I didn’t get an answer to my question, Mairi.”

Mairi stilled, and for the first time since the geeks arrived in town determined to make her marry one of them, Keir realized rejecting the men hurt her. They were her friends, people she’d come to know through years of interacting online and hurting them was making her suffer. He put a hand on her shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze. If he ever got his hands on the hacker who started this, he was going to pummel them into the dirt.

“The answer’s no, Jonas,” Mairi said softly. “But I promise you this—if it’s the last thing I do, I will find you—and Sebastian—lovely women for you to marry.”

“You don’t need to do that,” Jonas mumbled.

Sebastian’s head snapped up from his phone. “Yes, she does. She totally does. Can I put in an order? I’d like someone blonde, with blue eyes and freckles. She has to understand Star Trek and anime and have a good sense of humor.”

“Dude,” Jonas said, “you as

ked a redhead who doesn’t like anime to marry you.”

“Oh.” Sebastian’s head went red. “Of course, you will always be the standard by which I measure other women. That’s why I want a blonde. No bad memories associated with the hair color.”

Mairi threw back her head and laughed. “I’ll see what I can do.”

The nurse poked her head into the room. “You about done? There’s a whole crowd out here itching to get to our boy.”

“Yes, we’re done for now.” Mairi leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on Jonas’ cheek, and, for a second, Keir thought the guy was going to pass out.

“You coming?” Keir said to Sebastian.

“No. I’ll stay with Jonas and go with him to Glasgow. We’re in the middle of a game of Dungeons & Dragons that should keep us busy while he recovers.”

Keir just shook his head.

“You get better, okay? You mean a lot to me,” Mairi said over her shoulder. “Both of you do.”

Keir put his hand on the small of her back, feeling the ridiculous pleather cat suit under his touch and noting that Mairi was still wearing the matching ears. They said goodnight to the rest of her men and headed out to the carpark. When Keir lifted the helmet to put it on her head, Mairi stilled him with a touch. Big blue eyes peered up at him, filled to overflowing with weariness.

“I don’t want to go back to the flat tonight,” she said. “There will still be a crowd, and maybe TV people too. I need space to think.”

“Where do you want to go, Rusty?” He’d take her anywhere she wanted to be.

“Can we go to your place?” There was a vulnerability in the question that he never would have expected from his Rusty. The events of the evening had knocked her usual sparkle right out of her.

“Course we can.”

When she relaxed, he realized she’d been expecting him to say no, and that made his heart clench tight. He fitted the helmet over her crazy headband, climbed on his bike and waited for Mairi to climb on behind him. She snuggled up close, the way he’d taught her to years earlier, wrapped her arms around his middle and held on tight.

As soon as she’d settled, Keir started the bike and headed for his house on the outskirts of Campbeltown. The house he’d bought two years earlier with the hope that, one day, Mairi would live in it with him.