"Do you trust Eric completely?"
Kane almost nodded and then stopped himself. Did he trust the doctor the same way he trusted Lily? Eric was the official GhostWalker surgeon, and he always came through when needed. Why hesitate? What was the difference between Eric and Lily? Was he prejudiced simply because Eric wasn't a GhostWalker and had no real idea of what they went through? Kane didn't like the idea that he might in any way be prejudiced, but the truth was, there was a hesitation for whatever reason.
"I don't know. He's so intense about research. Maybe that creeps me out a little."
"That's all he's really interested in," Rose said. "I didn't leave him alone with Sebastian. The doctor was so insistent about taking his blood, and I knew once it was out of here, at a laboratory, it would be vulnerable. Whitney would pay a fortunate for Sebastian's blood. I told the doctor that, but it was obvious he didn't care. Taking his blood from this house clearly wasn't in Sebastian's best interests, but for the doctor the research came first. I just don't trust that, Kane."
He nuzzled the top of her head. "I can understand, Rose. You've been an experiment your entire life. You don't want that for Sebastian."
"Exactly, but the doctor can't see beyond what he might learn from studying Sebastian's blood." She sighed, her small teeth biting at her lower lip. "I know a doctor should examine him more fully just to make certain he really is as healthy as we believe, but it isn't safe."
"We happen to have just the man that will help you," Jaimie said, glancing at Kane for permission.
Kane nodded in agreement. "I was going to suggest you meet him, sweetheart. His name is Paul. He joined our team recently, so I didn't grow up with him as I did all the others, but he's got an amazing talent when it comes to healing skills. I trust him."
Rose swallowed hard, but she nodded. "If you're certain, Kane. But his blood can't leave our home."
"It won't have to," Kane assured. "Paul doesn't work like other doctors."
"You can't ever talk about him to anyone," Jaimie cautioned. "If Eric comes back, you can't tell him that Paul examined the baby."
"We have to protect one another's abilities. Whitney would take Sebastian apart to study him," Kane said. "He would Paul as well. Do you understand?"
Rose jumped up and paced across the room. "You've had what? Five years, seven years, maybe ten years of experience with Whitney? I've had my entire life. You don't need to tell me what he's like. We all protected one another from him, and we learned very fast to keep our abilities hidden."
"I know, sweetheart," Kane soothed. "It's just that Paul is ..." He broke off, unable to explain.
"Has a rare talent," Jaimie supplied. "He's sent out into the field a lot. Whitney would find a way. You're part of our family now, Rose. Paul is family; that's all we're saying."
Rose nodded. Kane could feel her agitation, although there was little expression on her face. The idea that anyone would study her son was abhorrent to her, but she was trying to be accepting. She knew Sebastian needed a doctor and that they would need help with him. The only thing he could figure to do to help ease her mind was to introduce his family to her, one member at a time.
"Who have you met so far?" He kept his voice gentle.
"One they call Gideon and, of course, Javier. Jaimie and Mack." A faint smile touched her mouth, but failed to light her eyes. "They hover over you."
"I'll bet Mack did his fair share of swearing."
"You must have heard him," Jaimie said, astonished. "He's been here every day. A few times you were awake."
"I must have been doped up. I don't remember much." Other than Rose's warm body snuggled next to his. He remembered her kisses, along his mouth and throat, her soft murmurs of reassurance. He remembered feeling safe because she was there. At times he'd woken to the sound of Sebastian crying, and he could pry his eyes open just enough to see her moving around the room, changing and then breast-feeding the baby, singing softly to him. He'd felt--complete.
Jaimie grinned at him. "You were doped up, all right. We'd get you to sit up and you'd just slide down again and go to sleep."
Rose regarded him with troubled eyes. "You scared me. You nearly died, Kane."
He was weak, although he didn't want to acknowledge it. Bits and pieces of the last couple of weeks were coming back to him now. Jaimie crying. Mack gruff as hell, always a bad sign. Javier and Gideon standing over him. Always, Rose watching them all, one hand free, obviously ready to defend him.
"I'm sorry, honey, I won't do it again."
"Damn right you won't," Rose said, flashing him a fierce look.
His body hardened, a brutal punch of need. She was sexy as hell when she went all commando on him with her little pixie face, so fragile and beautiful. Her eyes too big and her hair all tousled as if they'd just spent hours between the sheets. He knew his gaze went all hungry and predatory by the way her face flushed. Her eyes met his steadily. A soft consent in them that shook him. She'd just had a baby and she'd made love with him; she had to be sore, but she was willing to give herself to him again because his body demanded her.
I can behave myself, he assured.
You don't have to. You never have to. I love your hands on me. Your mouth. I love your body inside mine.
If she meant to soothe him, her words had the opposite effect. He wanted her with every single cell in his body. He took a breath, and pain flashed through him, reminding him he was flesh and blood, not a machine.
Well, maybe not a sex machine, she'd caught his last thought. Laugh lines appeared around her eyes, and her dimples flashed at him, taking the ache in his groin up another notch.
He glared at her, one hand pressed to his aching side. That's not funny.
"If you two need to be alone," Jaimie said, "I could always leave."
He threw the couch pillow at her. "You don't need to be putting in your two cents. You and Mack are disgusting."
She laughed at him. "So true. He's magic."
Kane groaned. "You're my sister, Jaimie. You can't put those kinds of thoughts in my head."
"I see. You have that double standard going. It's okay for you and the boys, but not me."
"Exactly. There are rules, girl. Rules. Follow them." He held out his coffee cup. "I wouldn't mind another."
She took it. "Not a chance, bro. You're on sick leave, which means you eat and drink nutritiously. One cup limit."
He gave a fierce scowl. "You are not going to boss me around, Jaimie."
"No"--she smiled sweetly at him and handed Rose the empty mug--"but Rose is."
Kane studied Rose's fine-boned features. That same determined expression she got, stubborn as hell and so appealing to him he knew he was a lost man, was right there on her face. Whenever she got that look, he knew he wasn't going to win. He kept his mouth shut. There were other ways to get around his woman, and he was going to find every one of them.
"By the way, Rose. I have put all your necessary papers into the system. Social. Birth certificate. Concealed weapons permit. Driver's license. Everything you'll need here on the outside. The baby's birth certificate states he was born in a military hospital. I'm establishing his records there now. Everything should be coming in the mail soon. Mack's talking to Sergeant Major about compensation for being on the team."
"Wait a minute," Kane said. "You're moving a little too fast. What the hell does that mean?"
"I'm a soldier, Kane," Rose pointed out. "That's all I'm trained for. I'm good at it, just as you are. You don't want out. If I'm part of this team, they can't break us up."
He shook his head. "You can wait a little while. We haven't even discussed this."
"Would you discuss this with me?" Rose asked quietly. "If your time was up?"
"It's not the same thing."
She smiled at him, that serene, sweet smile he was coming to know meant really bad things for him. "You know better. And it's added protection for Sebastian. I'm serving our country just as Whitney wanted. I'm more apt to bring up our
son as a soldier, another thing he wants. He knows I'll teach Sebastian everything I know, just as you and every member of this team will, and he's more apt to leave us alone to see how Sebastian does under a full team's tutelage."
Kane bared his teeth at her. He hated that it was sound reasoning. His dream of the little woman sitting at home waiting for him was about to shatter. "We'll talk this out before you commit."
She arched an eyebrow at him. "Does that mean you'll talk until I agree with you?"