My heart thundered. He was getting help. Thank God. But why had he fainted?

“The therapist, Dr. Carmichael, isn’t exactly sure what happened. He had already left her office and was in the waiting room when he fainted.”

“Is he okay?” Marj asked.

Jonah nodded. “Yeah, he’ll be fine. It was nothing serious, and luckily he didn’t hit his head very hard when he fell. No concussion or anything. We’ll be taking him home with us in a little while.”

My heart thundered again a mile a minute. Taking him home with us… I shouldn’t be here. I would only make things worse for Talon, and I couldn’t bear that.

“Marj?”

She looked to me, her eyes sad. “Yeah?”

“I…think I’ll go ahead home now.”

“Just how do you think you’re going to get home? We all came together.”

What a moron. I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I just knew I had to get the hell out of there before Talon came out—

Too late. He walked toward us, two women flanking him. One was clearly a doctor by her white coat. The other was blond and dressed in black slacks and a red satin blouse.

The doctor held out her hand to Jonah. “Mr. Steel, I’m Dr. Morgan, your brother’s neurologist. And this is Dr. Melanie Carmichael.” Dr. Morgan gestured to the other woman.

Dr. Carmichael held out her hand. “Mr. Steel, nice to meet you. I’m so sorry about what happened at my office.”

“Oh, come on, Doc. It’s not your fault. I’m fine,” Talon said.

“Your brother is fine,” Dr. Morgan agreed. “We did some neurological testing. He hasn’t suffered a concussion or any other significant injuries. This was just a simple fainting spell.”

Talon’s cheeks blazed a rosy red when he looked at me. I couldn’t help a small smile. He was embarrassed that I was seeing him like this.

“Jesus, Joe, you didn’t have to bring the cavalry.”

“Tal, the phone call we got said you were in the emergency room. That was all I knew. So of course Marj and Jade came along.” Jonah gestured to the doctors. “I’m sorry. This is my sister, Marjorie, and her friend Jade.”

We all shook hands while Talon stood, his hands in the pockets of his jeans, looking as handsome and yummy as ever except for the pure exhaustion weighing down his features.

Talon was tired.

Of course he was. He never slept. His beautiful eyes were always just a little bit sunken, and dark circles shadowed them. He was so damned good-looking I hadn’t noticed before, but they were there.

They always had been.

Dr. Morgan turned to Talon. “Mr. Steel, get some sleep.” She handed him a slip of paper. “I’ve written you a prescription for Ambien. It’s a common sleeping pill, and it’s not habit-forming. Use it. Life is a lot easier when you’re well rested.”

Talon took the prescription and shoved it in his pocket.

“Here’s my card also.” She handed it to him. “I want to see you again in a week.”

“That’s ridiculous. I don’t need to see a neurologist.”

“Have you fainted before, Mr. Steel?”

Talon shook his head. “Of course not.”

“All right. But if this happens again, I want to see you. In the meantime, I suggest you continue seeing Dr. Carmichael.”

If possible, Talon’s cheeks reddened even further. “I don’t need therapy.”

Dr. Morgan sighed. “Well, you can lead a horse to water… It’s been very nice meeting you, Mr. Steel. Please, take the Ambien. Get some rest. Physically, you’re fine. All of your test results were great. Your blood counts are normal. Everything looks good. It was nice meeting all of you.” Dr. Morgan turned and headed back down the corridor.

“Talon,” Dr. Carmichael said, “I’m so glad you’re feeling better. You have my number if you need anything. It was nice meeting all of you.” She left as well.

“I don’t see what all the fuss is about,” Talon said.

“You fainted,” Jonah said. “That’s what all the fuss is about.”

“I’m not sure I even fainted. Probably just stumbled.”

“Talon—”

“Do we have to discuss this right now, Joe?” Talon darted his gaze toward me.

Jonah let out a heavy sigh. “Let’s just get you home. You need a good meal. And then you need a good night’s sleep. You’ve obviously been working too hard.”

“That’s right,” Talon said. “I’ve been working too hard. That’s all.”

Good save. But Talon wasn’t telling us everything. As much as I wanted to know what it was, and as much as I longed to help him get through whatever was torturing him, I could not.

I would be leaving—this evening if possible.

Chapter Sixteen

Talon

“The last thing you need to do is leave, Tal. You have to work through this. We all do.”

I shook my head at Jonah. He and Ryan had joined me in the den at the main house the day after I fainted. I didn’t know where the girls were. I was just glad Jade wasn’t anywhere near. She hadn’t left yet, and now she wouldn’t have to.

I was leaving.

“I’ve thought about this a lot. You need to get on with your lives, both of you. So does Marjorie. And so does her friend. All I do is disrupt everything.”

“Where you think you’re going to go?”

“Does it matter? Maybe I’ll reenlist.”

“Please,” Ryan said. “Don’t do that. We need you here. Nothing was the same when you were gone last time.”

“No one needs me. I destroy everything I touch. I can’t stay here and do what I’ve done to the two of you to our little sister. Or to Jade.”

God, no, not to Jade. Jade was sunshine, rainbows, the fresh air of the Colorado Rockies. She was everything that was good in the world, and if I stayed, I would destroy her.

I could not live with that. As much as I wanted her, I had to let her go.

“You haven’t done anything to us,” Jonah said.

I shook my head. “Do you think I can’t see it? What happened to me lives in the two of you. Maybe not in the same way, but you’re just as affected by it as I am.”