Chapter 5

Ryder brings home a local physician to check on Freddie and Joe.

The doctor looks over them and is told not to say a word. She is paid handsomely, of course.

Doctor Packard is exceptionally gorgeous. She looks like a model, actually, with her thick, long brown hair, skinny, with a height of almost six feet. She has beautiful green eyes and full lips.

One will say she's perfect.

"He suffered a mild concussion and should be fine. Just to warn you, it can take up to two months to recover fully."

Doctor Packard gets up from the bed, looking at Ryder. Freddie is sitting next to Joe, who is wide awake and sporting a migraine.

"Freddie, keep the curtains closed for Joe in the morning. The sunlight may bother him in the next couple of hours. For headaches, I want you to take Tylenol, Joe, okay? Just stay away from Motrin and Ibuprofen."

"Yes, ma'am! Thank you so much, Doc," Joe says, smiling.

"Get well soon! And it was nice to see you again, Freddie. Oh, and just keep applying ice to your nose. The swelling will go down in a couple of days. It's not broken or anything." Packard pats him on his arm and walks out. Ryder accompanies her.

The door is left open a little bit. I am standing near it when I hear the doctor whispering to Ryder. I inch to the door as Joe kisses Freddie and look thru the doorway.

"I've missed you! I didn't think I would ever see you again. How have you been?" Dr. Packard gently puts her hand on his arm. A look of great concern is on her face.

My heart leaps into my throat. Did she says she missed him?!

"I've been good, Maddison," Ryder says, rolling his head. He has a look of concern, agitation and is obviously very tired.

They walk down the staircase and continue to talk. I open the bedroom door slowly and tiptoe into the guest bedroom near the top of the stairs, opening that door and jumping inside the room. I leave the door open to hear Ryder and Dr. Packard.

"Why didn't you call me back? I thought we had an amazing night the last time we saw each other."

What?! Oh, God! When was this?!

I start to panic.

Is he cheating on me?!

I feel tears start to pool in my eyes. How dare Dr. Packard speak like this in my own home?

Ryder clears his throat. "We did. However, a lot has happened since then. For one, I'm getting married."

I scoff in amusement.

"To her? To Samantha?" Dr. Packard sneers and looks up the stairs. I quickly move my head against the wall, scared that she will see me. When I look back down at them, the would-be homewrecker doesn't seem convinced about me. She shakes her head and starts fishing for her keys in her purse.

"Yes to Samantha. Why do you say it like that?"

"No reason! She just doesn't seem like your type."

Ryder looks taken aback. "I have a type?"

Dr. Packard seductively squints her eyes and smiles.

"Well, I look forward to seeing you again. If you need me, of course, in more ways than one, " Dr. Packard says, taking a step towards Ryder. She tugs at his shirt.

The audacity! Man, I want to rip her hair clean off her head!

"Thank you, but I assure you that it will not be necessary. Good night, Maddison."

Ryder walks towards the front door and opens it. He ushers her out.

That bitch!

Ryder tells her we are engaged, and it doesn't even phase her.

And what the hell did she mean by I wasn't his type?! I can't believe Dr. Packard is more than willing to have an affair with my fiancé, knowing he is with me!

Is she one of those women he used for pleasure? He told me he never had a real relationship before us. Clearly, a relationship formed if she is still enamored by Ryder.

For pleasure, Ryder had women on standby in almost every continent.

Wait! Is this why he wanted to move here? Because he has a history in this city? History with her?

I yank the door open. I am so mad that I don't see Ryder and slam into him. He had his head tilted to the side, showing no emotion.

"It's that time, huh?" He asks as I compose myself.

I clear my throat and smooth out my shirt. "What do you mean?" I ask, playing stupid.

"...for you to be nosy. I saw you run in here."

Ryder smiles and shakes his head as he walks into the bedroom, looking around. This room is a guest bedroom.

I rake my hair away from my face and cross my arms.

"So," I say, annoyed. "Who is Dr. Packard?"

I begin to tap my foot on the floor.

Ryder turns to me and sighs. "She is a doctor who specializes in keeping quiet about patients under her care. That's why I called her here."

He knows what I mean. What he just fed me was nonsense.

It's obvious she's not to speak about what she sees.

If that is the case, we would have taken Joe to the hospital.

I rake my hand through my hair again, growing annoyed by the second. "I don't care about that! I want to know who she is to you."

"Well," he begins as he takes a seat on the bed.

"Anytime I was hurt, she was the person I called. It didn't matter where I was. She always flew in to take care of me. It then turned into her taking care of me in many ways."

A little vomit rises in my throat. Nausea creeps up as I swallow it back down.

I don't understand why I am so jealous.

Maybe because she touched him on the arm?

Or the fact that he explained to her that we were getting married, and she disregarded it. Or maybe it was because they slept together!

"I don't want her here! I heard her remark when you told her we were getting married. That was so disrespectful, especially in my own home! This isn't up for discussion either!"

I hope he's taking me seriously because I am!

My thoughts have me beyond livid! I know he will say something stupid, so I don't want to see his reaction. I look at the floor as I clear my throat.

He smiles and gets up from the bed. He then walks towards me, grabbing my chin up to look up at his beautiful emerald eyes.

"As you wish, Miss Hallowell."

I furrow my brows. "What?"

"I have to say; I love this jealous side of you. It tends to come out now and then, and I like it," Ryder says as he lets go of my chin and runs a finger down my arm.

I instantly get goosebumps.

"I'm not joking, Ryder!" I push his hands away and walk closer to the bed—my back to him.

"I know you aren't. I'm just stating how I feel. I'll email Maddison and let her know her services are no longer required."

I nod and turn to him. He wraps his hands around my hips.

"Don't doubt my love and obsession over you, Sam. I strive every day to make sure you know that you are the center of my universe. No one will ever take that away."

I press my face against his chest. He always smells fantastic. I bought him the cologne 'Obsession' by Calvin Klein months ago, and he wears it every day, faithfully.

I close my eyes and start to daydream about when we first purchased this house. This house wasn't even ours when we christened this exact bedroom.

The realtor let both Ryder and I give ourselves the tour and had been waiting for us downstairs. Of course, there wasn't any furniture in this room at that time. You can use your imagination as to what happened then.

I am still upset about his doctor friend when I look up at him. Ryder lifts me by my behind. I wrap my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck, and I kiss him.

He uses one hand to hold me up and the other to deepen our kiss. Running my hand through his hair, I whisper into his lips, "I love you."

He continues to kiss me when I feel a smile on his lips. He stops and looks up at me.

"I love you too."

Ryder is about to kiss me again when I suddenly remember something.

"How did you know to come through the alleyway earlier?"

The image of his black Mercedes Benz zooming down the alley popped into my head.

"Well, I promised you and Freddie, I would meet Joe today. So when I arrived, the café door was locked. I was about to call your phone when I heard a gun go off. It came from outside."

"The parking lot was empty, so I knew it must've come from the back. I panicked when I saw the blonde holding a gun up to you and Freddie on the ground. I chased her inside, but she went through the glass front door and disappeared into the parking lot."

So that's the noise I heard when I ran to help Freddie.

"What else did you find out?" I ask him as he puts me down. He never lets me go.

"I'm going to get my laptop. We need to question Joe now. I need to know what exactly is going on if I'm going to protect him. Go to Freddie. I'll be there in a minute."

I nod as I let go of him.

"But Dr. Packard said his memory would be hazy for a while. You think he'll be fine to answer questions?" I ask him.

"I don't care. If Joe is staying under our roof, I want to know everything about him, and I need to know tonight."

I nod as I wrap my arms around myself and leave the room.

This is bad!

We just left a crazy city and ended up in a crazier town. This means I have to learn how to defend myself.

When that woman approached me, I froze. That is something that could've gotten us easily killed.

LeAnn was teaching me hand-to-hand combat, but after a while, I got bored with it. I didn't think I'd ever need to apply it again. I guess now would be a good time for refresher courses, just in case that bimbo came back. I'd call her first thing in the morning!

I knock on the door and make my way into Freddie's room. He is sitting up holding Freddie's hand.

"Hey!" I whisper. "How are you feeling?"

I sit on the chair next to his bed.

"If anything, I am embarrassed. I am so sorry for the trouble I've caused. This is never how I meant to meet everyone."

"No, it's okay! Truly!" Freddie says worriedly. He squeezes Joe's hand.

"Listen," I say to Freddie. "Ryder is going to grill him. Just prepare yourselves."

I look at Joe. "I don't know if Fred told you, but my fiancé specializes in murders and mysteries. Sort of above the FBI. He distrusts everyone. He wants to help, but he will need your full cooperation. He may come off as a dick, but he's only looking out for your best interest. Please, don't omit anything. Tell him what you know."

Freddie looks from me to Joe. They both share the same worried expression.

"Of course! I will tell him everything I know. I've caused enough of a headache," Joe says sadly as he squeezes Freddie's hand.

Just then, Ryder walks into the room with his MacBook and puts it on the table.

"Alright, so I was able to download all the footage from the cafe. I'm guessing it records one month at a time?"

Joe nods.

"Do you know the woman that attacked you?" Ryder asks. He then stands straight up and crosses his arms over his chest. I guess it's to intimidate Joe.

However, it leaves me salivating at the mouth. His arms are threatening to rip through the black button-up shirt he's wearing.

"No, I don't! Well, I sort of do. It's not what you think, though. She's been coming to the café for the past couple of months. First, it was harmless flirting on her end until she started becoming obsessed with me. A couple of months ago, she vandalized my car. I knew it was her due to the surveillance footage I had. I got a restraining order and everything. I never thought it would escalate like this."

Ryder nods. "Okay. I saw the restraining order on file. Filed under Jo Worthington for Arin Yenroff. Dated months ago."

Ryder sits on the table and grabs his laptop, looking through everything.

"She had given me a card with her name and telephone number. That's how the police were able to grab her," he states, looking from Freddie to me.

Ryder nods as he continues to look through the laptop.

"Everything seems in order. The woman may be obsessed with you. It looks like an isolated attack, too," Ryder says as he closes his laptop and stands.

"What about the fact that she knew our names and knew how to fight?"

Freddie is so on edge. His voice cracks as he speaks.

"Well, she's been in and out of the cafe, Fred. She sat right behind you a couple of times. I saw it on the surveillance video. You both didn't notice. She could've heard your conversation with Joesph." Ryder walks closer to Freddie as he speaks.

"You've been excited about wanting us to meet him. Joe's attacker probably got all our names. Her obsession had her digging further. It not uncommon. As for the way she hit both of you, I don't know. She probably studies combat. Anyone can fight. It's not far-fetched."

I breathe a sigh of relief to know that crazy blonde is probably just a weirdo with a screw loose.

Ryder continues, "As for the time being, Joe can stay with us. I have no problem with that. Show him around as soon as he feels better, but he cannot enter any blue rooms. Sweetheart..." Ryder finishes and turns to me.

"I'll be there in a minute," I tell him as I stand.

Ryder smiles and wishes the guys goodnight. As he opens the door, Bell walks in.

"There you are, furball. Let's go to bed."

I smile as Ryder reaches down and grabs the puppy, shutting the door behind him.

"Blue rooms?" Joe asks us both in confusion.

Freddie still looks nervous. "Oh, it's any door without a door handle. It'll have a palm scanner. Black with neon blue lights."

Joe still has the same look of confusion. "Am I staying with James Bond or something?"

"No," I say, approaching the bed. "Ryder is much worse than Bond. Good night, guys!"

I leave them both laughing at my joke.