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Husband by Choice

Page 83

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“Wayne alerted his captain to the situation, Max, and they’re putting an extra watch out. She’ll be protected as long as she stays where she is.”

Okay. His muscles relaxed enough for him to draw a deep breath. “If she knows he’s out there, she’ll stay put,” he said. That was one thing he could be sure of: Meredith always put safety first.

“I talked to my captain and got personal leave for the weekend,” she said. “I told her about the case and asked for permission to come down to Santa Raquel and help Wayne for the weekend, since he’s on shift and has regular duties requiring his attention. She called and made the arrangements.”

A whole lot of people were taking Meri’s plight seriously. The knowledge scared the hell out him.

And he was thankful, too.

“You’re staying at my place,” he said. It was the least he could do.

“I planned on it.”

So. Good. For the next few days everyone had a job to do. Meri was keeping herself safe. Wayne, Diane and Chantel were going to get Steve. And Max....

His job was to remain calm.

* * *

“YOU DIN HA uh ca.” You didn’t have to come.

Tears filled Jenna’s eyes as she sat at Yvonne’s bedside and watched her friend’s distorted lips try to form words.

“Of course I had to come,” she said. Lifting a hand to cover Yvonne’s. Careful not to touch any other part of the woman’s bruised and battered body, she said, “Now, don’t talk anymore. There’ll be time for that later. I just want you to know I’m here.”

Because she’d been where Yvonne was, too. Not in a hospital, but in an all-too-familiar physical state. More than once.

When a tear dripped from the side of Yvonne’s one open eye, she brushed it away.

“Stop that,” she said, with a tender smile softening the command. “You’ll get your sheet wet.”

There were no words to take away the pain. Sometimes all battered women had was each other. Being with others who understood all of it as much as anyone understood any of it.

Yvonne’s good eye closed and Jenna sat quietly, still touching her hand, not caring as the minutes passed, that her hand ached, or that her arm had fallen asleep. She’d cut off her arm if it would help ease the suffering of her battered sisters.

“He uhs ee.” He loves me. Yvonne’s eye didn’t open, but if the injured woman had been asleep over the past half an hour, she’d reawoken.

“That doesn’t give him the right to do this to you.”

“I o.” I know.

But knowing didn’t always change things.

“You love him, too.” Jenna tried to speak for Yvonne so she didn’t have to. She’d been there. She’d loved Steve, too, in the beginning. Or thought she had. What she remembered feeling for him, even early on, didn’t begin to compare with how bowled over she’d been by Max, on their very first date. Nothing would ever compare to the way she felt about him. Her connection with Max was soul deep.

And she was going to honor, with her life, her promise to love and care for and protect him.

Yvonne was crying again. Harder this time. Grabbing a tissue, Jenna dabbed at her eyes and nose when necessary. She tried to make out what words she could and just be there for the other woman.

“He egged e ot to ell.” He’d begged her not to tell?

“Tell what?”

“at he it e.”

“That he hit you?”

Yvonne’s head moved in the affirmative. Once.



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