Dean looked at me and I shrugged. I knew about as much as he did. We lingered, waiting, and minutes slipped past, when finally the elevator doors opened again and the crowd walked back the opposite way—but slower this time.
And at their head was Maria, with her hands behind her back, and cuffs around her wrists.
I laughed. I couldn’t help myself. Dean joined in after a second, and Maria looked right at us, her eyes empty and distant, but I saw a spark of recognition there, a little glint of anger. She might not have been sure how she got caught before, but she sure as hell knew now. Curt grinned at us then held up a hand.
“You’re welcome. Now, I’m going to go talk to those fine gentlemen, if you’ll excuse me.” He stepped toward the crowd.
“Curt, thanks,” Dean said. “I mean it. I owe you one.”
Curt shrugged. “Sure you do but, man, I sure hope I never have to call that favor in.” He grinned, waved, and fell into step with a tall fed bringing up the rear.
Marie was led out in cuffs, and for one beautiful moment, the hospital was dead silent.
Then conversation resumed. I knew the rumor mill would be going wild for the rest of the day, and I was one of the only people in the whole place that knew why she’d been arrested.
Dean put an arm around my shoulders. “Feels good, doesn’t it?”
I nodded, and leaned my head against his chest. “I didn’t think we’d see this.”
“I wasn’t sure myself.”
I laughed and kissed his cheek, getting up on my toes to reach it. “You sure acted like you did.”
“I kept it together.”
“Played it cool. What a guy.”
He kissed my hair. “Now she’s gone. So what do we do?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I’m guessing there will be trials. We’ll have to testify and all that.”
“Then we live our life.”
“That’s right. We live our life.”
He hesitated and pulled away from me. I looked at him as he tilted his head and stared into my eyes.
“I want you to stay,” he said.
“Stay?” I felt a flutter in my chest.
“With me, at the apartment. You can keep your place if you want, but stay with me.”
“You’re asking me to move in?”
“I guess so.”
“It’s a little fast, you know.”
“I know. But I don’t want you to leave.”
I laughed and shook my head. “Two weeks ago, I could barely bring myself to kiss you.”
“And now you can’t get enough.”
“It’s crazy, right?”
“No, it’s not.” He pulled me against him again. “I love you, Fiona. I knew it the second I saw you that day.”
I felt it then, the thing that had been growing for days, for weeks. It was like a balloon, blown to bursting, and it finally broke open. I blinked back tears and hugged him tight.
“I love you too.”
“So then you’ll stay?”
“Yeah. I’ll stay.”
“Good.” He tilted my chin up and kissed me, and we held that pose for a long moment.
Until someone said Dean’s name. It took me a second to register that someone spoke to him. I was so deep inside my own head, so head over heels in the moment, that the world around us had gone away.
But Dean pulled away from me and turned, and I felt him tense. I looked over and a man stood a few feet away, gray hair, nice smile, deep tan skin.
“Dr. Chen.” Dean sounded surprised. “I didn’t expect you.”
“My employers thought we should talk.” He gestured toward some chairs nearby in a small corner of the lobby. “Do you mind, just for a moment?”
“Fiona stays with me,” Dean said. “Whatever you say can be for her, too.”
“Ah, but I wouldn’t want her to leave. This affects her as well.” His smile was strange and somewhat aggressive.
Dean walked to a chair and sat. I lowered myself down next to him, and Dr. Chen took the seat opposite.
“To what do we owe the pleasure?” Dean asked.
“I’ve been sent to deliver a message, and to offer a deal.”
Dean frowned and gestured. “Go on.”
“The message is this: Vincent Leone is very unhappy about what you’ve done here. Do you know who that is, Dr. Coarse?”
“I don’t,” Dean said.
“Vincent Leone is the head of the Leone family. They’re my primary employers, though I sometimes freelance elsewhere.” He smiled again and ran a hand through his hair. I realized he was nervous, though I didn’t know why—he held all the power here.
“I wouldn’t want him to be unhappy with me then.”
“No, you wouldn’t. But there’s a deal he’s willing to make.”
“I’m listening.”
Dr. Chen glanced away, like he wanted to make sure nobody was listening, before he leaned closer. “Vincent’s been dealing with a health issue that I believe you can help with.”
Dean frowned slightly. “Health issue?”
“I haven’t been able to confirm it, but I believe it might be multiple sclerosis.”