Simply Sinful (Simply 1)

“What the hell are you doing here?” Catherine asked.

Kayla winced at her sister’s harsh tone. She never should have told Catherine even sketchy information about last night with Kane.

Kayla glanced at him. He stood in the entryway to the back room looking angry and dangerous, displaying the side she’d only glimpsed before. He ignored Catherine but when his gaze lit on hers, his expression softened.

He stepped toward her and held out his arms. She slid into his embrace. A comforting arm settled around her waist while the wall supported her back. “Well, Officer? Since when does the Boston P.D. grill injured victims?” he asked the junior cop.

The young officer flushed red. “I’m sorry, Detective, but…”

“Detective?” Kayla’s body went rigid as shock washed over her.

Kane let out a groan. This wasn’t the way he’d wanted her to find out. He hadn’t planned on her discovering his identity at all. But nothing had gone as planned since he’d laid eyes on Kayla Luck.

He’d been halfway to the station house door when the 911 call had come in and the captain had waylaid him in the hall. Concern for Kayla had blocked out common sense, so here he was—with a job to do.

He took in her pale skin, glassy eyes, and the red bruise on her forehead. He’d botched this case but no more. He took her arm despite her token resistance.

“Where are you taking her?” Catherine asked.

Kane glanced at the blonde he’d met briefly last night, the one with flashing green eyes who’d just given the junior officer a tongue-lashing. “To the nearest chair. What are you, her sister or her guard dog?”

She opened her mouth but Kayla interrupted first. “Catherine, don’t. He’s right. If I don’t sit I’ll be sick.”

He muttered a curse, then led her into the outer room.

With her leaning against him for support, Kane was reminded of last night. His body reacted with instant and urgent need. Ignoring her wasn’t an option, but acknowledging and distancing himself was.

Kayla accepted his help only until she reached the chair, then jerked out of his grasp and collapsed into the high-backed cushioned seat.

He knelt beside her. “Kayla…”

“What is it, Detective?” She spat the word like a curse. Her eyes remained closed, an effective physical barrier. He’d obviously added to the damage he’d already done. Her emotional walls were in place—just like his.

The paramedics came barging through the door, saving him from having to answer. As they examined her, he had time to reflect. He didn’t like what he concluded.

He’d put his emotions before his case. Worse, he put this woman at risk. He glanced at Kayla. Bad enough he’d slept with her, but believing for an instant he could have more than one night had been insanity. Foolishness that could only lead to destruction. He’d broken his cardinal rule: he’d gotten involved.

If he’d maintained a distance, he would have been thinking more clearly. He would never have let her walk out the door this morning. Kayla’s ignorance about illegal activities at Charmed! didn’t mean those activities didn’t exist. The captain was right. Kayla had gotten to him, and in the process, he’d compromised not only the case but her safety.

“Okay.” The paramedic in the blue jacket stood. “Looks like a concussion and some bruising in the neck area.”

A quick glance told him Kayla was still leaning back with her eyes closed in the large office chair. Red fingerprints marred the white skin on her throat, and Kane’s gut clenc

hed in anger so strong it blinded him. No one had the right to touch her. Forcing his mind to clear, he let his gaze travel downward. She hadn’t changed out of last night’s clothes. She hadn’t yet been home.

Behind her, Kane saw Captain Reid enter the storefront. Kane turned to the paramedic first. “Hospitalization?” he asked.

“She refused, which is fine as long as someone’s around to watch over her and bring her in if necessary.”

“Someone is,” the sister chimed in.

For the moment, Kane ignored her. “Restrictions?” he asked the younger man.

“Complete bed rest, wake her every two hours, check coherence, understanding, pupil dilation…you know the drill.”

“Got it,” Kane said.

“No problem,” the sister retorted, eyeing Kane with a scowl.