Their Blue-Collar Girl (The American Soldier Collection 4)

“Relax, sweetie, just relax,” Dante said as he helped Lori sit up. She wanted to tell the doctor to keep the men there. She didn’t want to be away from them.

“Stay…stay,” she blurted out in between trying to catch her breath and remain calm.

Do not have a panic attack. Remain calm. They’re here with me. The driver can’t get me.

“We stay and that’s final,” Charlie stated firmly as he took position on Lori’s other side. He placed his hands against her cheeks and stared into her eyes.

“Focus on me, Lori. Calm your breathing and just focus on me.”

She stared into his hazel eyes. She absorbed the firm tilt of his chin and the way his eyes crinkled when he gave a calm, yet stern order. She blinked a few times, felt the tear roll down her cheek and then the second set of hands on her back. They were caressing her, and as Charlie brushed his thumb lightly back and forth across her lower lip, she closed her eyes and just breathed. In and out, her chest opened up and the airway felt less constricted.

“Stay with me,” she told him and he smiled.

“Not going anywhere without you.” He leaned forward and kissed her.

* * * *

Once the doctor checked her over, he was preparing to release her. She didn’t have a concussion, nothing was broken, and Lori was insistent that she would be better off at home with her family.

Trevor wasn’t sure if she were minimizing the pain she was in out of fear of him, Dante, and Charlie leaving her here at the hospital. The doctor prescribed some painkillers that would help the bruising he said she had on her shoulder and ribs. Plus it would help her to sleep. As he stared at the cut on her forehead, he felt his own blood pressure rise. Someone was really trying to hurt her on purpose to get them to stop building on the land with Tom Cantrell.

“Excuse me, can we come in?”

Trevor turned toward the door and saw Sheriff Morgan. His chest tightened immediately. They had heard about Sylvia’s body being found in some piece-of-shit motel outside of town. She had been raped, beaten, and murdered. Trevor swallowed the sour taste in his stomach.

Could that have been Lori?

Then Gunner McCallister entered, too, shocking Trevor and his brothers.

“Sheriff, Gunner, what are you doing here, buddy?” Charlie asked as he reached out to shake Gunner’s hand. Gunner gave a small smile then glanced at Lori.

“I came to help. How’s the patient?” Gunner asked as he moved closer to the bed.

Trevor looked at Lori as she held on to Dante’s arm. Dante was sitting there caressing her hair.

Trevor looked at Gunner and saw his concerned expression.

He touched Lori’s hand as he bent lower.

“You doing okay, sweetheart? These men taking good care of you?”

“Yes, Gunner,” she said with tear-filled eyes, and he smiled.

The sheriff cleared his throat and Gunner moved out of the way. The sheriff approached, holding his Stetson in his hands an

d caressing the rim.

“Hey, gorgeous. I don’t want you to worry about a thing now except for healing up. You let your men take care of you and leave this to me to find the man responsible.”

Lori gave a small smile.

“Thank you, J.R. Have you heard from Sylvia yet? Carl is so worried, just like the rest of us. It’s not like her to do something like this.”

Trevor noticed everyone’s expression change. Did they seriously think that Lori, a person who cared for everyone she met, would not ask about Sylvia? Shit.

“What is it?” Lori asked as she looked at all their faces.

“What happened?” she asked then tried sitting up and cringed from the pain. The sheriff placed his hand on her leg as Dante placed his hand on her chest.