“Will you do it?” Ryan asked. “Will you stay with her for a while? If she wakes let her know…”

“I’ll handle it,” Devon said. “You just go so you can get your head on straight again. And rip his nuts off for me. The bastard deserves it.”

Seventeen

Jarrod’s expression was one of resignation when he opened the door to Ryan’s insistent knock. Ryan didn’t give him time to do or say anything. He grabbed his brother by the shirt and propelled him backward into the small studio apartment Jarrod lived in.

“What the—?”

Ryan silenced him with a fist. Jarrod went sprawling and Ryan and Cam both stood a few feet back waiting for him to pick himself up off the floor.

Jarrod wiped at the blood on his mouth as he stumbled to his feet. “What the hell, Ryan?”

“Why did you do it?” Ryan asked in a deadly quiet voice. “Why?”

An uneasy expression crawled across Jarrod’s face. His lips drooped and his eyes went dull. At least he wasn’t going to pretend he didn’t know what Ryan was talking about.

Jarrod dragged a hand across his mouth again, his hand coming away smeared with blood. “I know it won’t mean much, but I’m sorry.”

Ryan exploded at him. Jarrod didn’t even try to defend himself. He went down on the floor and this time he didn’t get up. “Sorry? You’re sorry? You tried to rape her. You lied to me about her. What the hell is wrong with you? She was the woman I was going to marry. Why would you do something like that?”

“Mom,” Jarrod said in a weary voice.

Ryan took a step back, stunned. “Mom? Mom put you up to this?”

Jarrod dragged himself only up enough to lean against the living room wall and he put a hand through his hair, his expression weary and defeated.

“Yeah. She went ballistic when she found out you proposed to Kelly. She was determined you weren’t going to marry some penniless upstart. Her words not mine. I thought she was crazy at first. I mean I figured she’d throw a fit and then get over it, but then she wanted me to go buy her off. She said that if Kelly refused the offer, I should frame her with the fake rape story. I swear to you I wouldn’t have raped her, Ryan. I just wanted to set it up so you’d think we slept together.”

“Jesus,” Cam muttered. “This is crazy.”

Ryan was numb from head to toe. His own mother had done something that sick? It didn’t seem possible. How could anyone hate someone else so much that they’d go to such lengths to get rid of them?

“She invited me to dinner last night. But I swear, Ryan, she told me that you wanted me there, that you and Kelly wanted to let the past go and start over. I wasn’t going to go, because I didn’t want to upset Kelly or make you angry, but Mom told me you specifically asked for me to come. And I hoped… I hoped that maybe you and Kelly could forgive the past and that we could be a family again. Like old times.”

Ryan dropped his hands to his sides, suddenly so sick at heart that he just wanted to walk away. “You’re no longer my family. Kelly and our child are my family. I don’t ever want to see you again. If I ever catch you near Kelly I swear to you that you’ll regret it.”

“Ryan, don’t. Please,” Jarrod called hoarsely.

Ryan stopped at the door and slowly turned around. “Did she beg you like you’re begging me, Jarrod? Did she ask you to stop?”

Jarrod’s face flushed a dull red and then he looked away, no longer able to meet his brother’s gaze.

“Come on,” Cam said quietly. “Let’s go, man.”

As they walked back out, Ryan nudged Cam toward the waiting car. “You go. I’ll take a cab. I’m going to see my mother.”

Cam hesitated. “Sure you don’t want me to go with you?”

“Yeah. This is something I have to do by myself.”

Ryan knocked tersely on the door to his mother’s home and issued a clipped demand to see her when one of the maids answered the door.

A moment later, as he paced the floor of the receiving room, his mother hurried in, her brow wrinkled in concern.

“Ryan? Is something wrong? You didn’t call to tell me you were coming.”

He stared at her, wondering how he could be so blind about the woman who’d given birth to him. There was no doubt she’d always been self-centered, but he’d never considered her malicious enough to harm an innocent woman.

Even now, after everything that had happened, he was at a loss for words. How could he possibly convey the depth of his hatred? It boiled in his veins like acid. His family. The people he should be able to count on. They were…evil.

The irony struck him hard. Kelly should have been able to count on him. But just as his family had betrayed him, he had betrayed Kelly. Maybe he was more like his mother and brother than he wanted to admit. The thought sickened him.

“Ryan?” she asked again.

She stopped in front of him and put her hand on his arm, her eyes worried.

He wiped her hand away and took a step back, choking on his disgust.

“Don’t touch me,” he said in a low voice. “I know what you did. I know what you and Jarrod did. I’ll never forgive you for it.”

Her face creased with consternation. She threw up her hand and turned away, her arms crossing over her chest.

“She’s not who you should be with, Ryan. If you weren’t so infatuated with her, so blinded by…lust, you’d see it too.”

“You’re not even going to deny it. My God. What did Kelly ever do to deserve what you did to her? She’s lying in a hospital right now. She carries my child, your grandchild. She was pregnant when you sent Jarrod to attack her. What kind of a psychopath does that kind of thing?”

“I don’t regret protecting my sons,” she said stiffly. “I’d do it again. You’ll understand when your son or daughter is born. You’ll understand why I did what I did. With parenthood comes the knowledge that you’ll do anything at all for your child. You’ll protect them with everything you have. You can’t just stand by and let your child make the worst mistake of their life and do nothing. Come talk to me in a few years. Then ask yourself if you still hate me so much.”

He was dumbfounded by the lengths she went to justify her actions. They weren’t simply morally reprehensible. They were criminal!

“I would hope that I never act as you have, that I’d never hurt an innocent woman just because I didn’t think she was good enough. Here’s what you don’t understand, Mother. She’s a better person than you’ll ever be. Not good enough? We aren’t good enough for her. We’ll never be. I just have to hope to hell she’ll accept and forgive me despite the worthless excuse for a family that I have.”

His mother’s eyes burned with outrage. “You’re a typical man. Thinking with the lower portion of your anatomy. You’re completely blinded by lust, but in a few years you won’t look at her with the same lovesick puppy eyes. Then you’ll thank me for trying to protect you. You can do better than her, Ryan. Why can’t I make you see that?”

Ryan shook his head, sadness and grief so thick in his chest he could barely breathe. “I’ll never thank you for this. You’re nothing to me anymore. I’ll never subject my wife or children to your poison.”

Her face whitened with shock. “You don’t mean that!”

“I mean it. You aren’t my mother. I have no mother. I have no family save Kelly and our child. I’ll never forgive you for this. Stay away from me. Stay away from Kelly. If you ever come within a hundred yards of my family, I’ll forget that you gave birth to me and I’ll have you hauled away in handcuffs. Are we understood?”

She stared wordlessly at him, suddenly looking every one of her sixty years. If she hadn’t so callously tried to destroy the woman he loved, he would have felt sorry for her. But she showed no remorse. No regret.

“I have nothing more to say to you,” he bit out.

He turned and walked away, his mother’s cries for him to stop ringing in his ears.

He walked out of her house, never looking back. He got into the waiting cab and directed the driver back to the hospital. Kelly needed him. Their child needed him.

Chances were she’d never forgive him, but he’d make sure she never wanted for another thing in her life. He’d provide for her and their child. He’d spend the rest of his life making it up to her if only she’d let him.

Kelly awoke to silence. She was so relieved to no longer hear the horrible ringing in her ears that she could weep. The vile headache was gone. It no longer felt like the top of her head was going to explode.

She was oddly free of pain.

It took her several moments of staring at her surroundings to discover that she was in a hospital room.

Then the events leading up to her collapse came back to her in a flash. Her hands flew automatically to her belly and she was only partially reassured to feel the tight ball there. Was her baby okay? Was she herself okay?

She blinked harder to bring the room more into focus. There was light shining through a crack in the bathroom door. A glance at the blinds told her that it was dark outside.

Then her gaze fell on the chair beside her bed and she found Ryan staring at her, his gaze intense. She flinched away from the raw emotion shining in his blue eyes.

“Hey,” he said quietly. “How are you feeling?”

“Numb,” she answered before she could think better of it. “Kind of blank. My head doesn’t hurt anymore. Are my feet still swollen?”

He carefully picked up the sheet and pushed it over her feet. “Maybe a little. Not as bad as they were. They’ve been giving you meds and they’re monitoring the baby.”

“How is she?” Kelly asked, a knot of fear in her throat.

“For now, she’s doing fine. Your blood pressure stabilized, but they might have to do a C-section if it goes back up or if the baby starts showing signs of distress.”

Kelly closed her eyes and then suddenly Ryan was close to her, holding her, his lips pressed against her temple.

“Don’t worry, love,” he murmured. “You’re supposed to stay calm. You’re getting the best possible care. I’ve made sure of it. They’re monitoring you round-the-clock. And the doctor said the baby has an excellent prognosis at thirty-four weeks’ gestation.”

She sagged against the pillow and closed her eyes. Relief pulsed through her but she was so tired she couldn’t muster the energy to do anything more than lie there thanking God that her baby was okay.

“I’m going to take care of you, Kell,” Ryan said softly against her temple. “You and our baby. Nothing will ever hurt you again. I swear it.”

Tears burned her eyelids. She was emotionally and physically exhausted and didn’t have the strength to argue. Something inside her was broken and she had no idea how to fix it. She felt so…disconnected.

Ryan drew away, but his eyes were bright with concern…and love. But was it enough? What was love without trust? He wanted her. He felt guilty. He wasn’t a jerk. He had feelings and it would destroy him now that he knew the truth. But he hadn’t trusted her, and Kelly wasn’t sure if they could even forge a relationship when this much hurt and betrayal was involved. Maybe they’d been stupid to even attempt it.

“What’s going to happen?” she whispered. “Do I have to stay here? Do I go home?” She bit her lip because she wasn’t sure where she’d go. Her relationship with Ryan was a big question mark, but she had no place to go except home with him. And her baby’s health came first.

He took her hand—the one that she wore his ring on—and thumbed it absently.

“You’ll stay here until a decision is made about your health. But the doctor said that if you go home, you’ll be on strict bed rest for the rest of your pregnancy.”

Her expression must have reflected her horror and her fear, because Ryan leaned over to kiss her forehead again. He held her hand and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles.

“I don’t want you to worry, honey, okay? I’ll handle everything. We’ll go someplace warm and beautiful and all you’ll have to do is lie on the beach or in a comfortable chair and watch the sun set. I’ll hire a personal physician to oversee every part of your care.”

Her brow furrowed and she could feel the pain creep back into her head.

“Ryan, we can’t just go off to some island paradise somewhere. Ignoring our problems won’t fix them.”

He stroked a hand over her forehead, smoothing her hair back. “Right now, all you need to concentrate on is feeling better and carrying our child for as long as you can. And what I need to concentrate on is removing as much stress from your life as possible.”

She opened her mouth to respond, but he kissed her lightly, silencing her.

“I know we have a lot to work out, Kell. I had no idea how much when I said this before. But right now let’s put our differences aside and concentrate on our baby and your health. Can we do that?”

Her resistance slid away. She nodded slowly, not withdrawing her hand from his.

Despite what had happened in the past, she didn’t doubt for a moment that he cared deeply about her and their baby. And he was right. No matter what had to be worked out between them, their child came first.

Eighteen

“I’m reluctant to release Miss Christian from the hospital,” Kelly’s doctor said grimly as he stood outside her hospital room. “She’s shown marked improvement. Her blood pressure is normal. The baby is showing no signs of fetal distress. I’d say she has a good chance of carrying the child the full forty weeks. But I’m not comfortable releasing her yet.”