Theirs to Keep Read Free Page A

mountain of a man, solidly muscled, bulging arms and a massive chest. Both arms were tattooed, and his hair was long and unruly. Everything about him screamed dangerous, and yet his touch was gentle, his words were soothing, and he looked at her with kindness and compassion in his eyes.
    “What’s your name?” she found herself whispering.
    He stiffened. In surprise? Then he touched a strand of her hair, trailing his finger downward.
    “Merrick. What’s yours?”
    Pain flashed through her head. She raised a hand to press into her temple in an effort to alleviate the excruciating pressure.
    “I don’t know,” she said in agitation. “I don’t know!”
    “Shhh,” he soothed. “It’ll come back. You’re just scared and under an enormous amount of stress. You’re cold and hungry and in shock. I’d be surprised if you did know your name at this point.”
    Relief took hold. He was right, of course. Everything would be better after she recovered. Once she got warm and had something to eat. Maybe even some sleep. Then she’d know who she was and who had done this to her.

C H A P T E R     T H R E E
     
    DALLAS CARRINGTON STEPPED OUT OF the exam room, a grim expression on his face. Cade pushed off the wall where he and Merrick had been waiting. They’d put in the call to their friend, and he’d met them at his clinic in a matter of minutes.
    Though Dallas ran a walk-in clinic in a poorer neighborhood, he also acted as Merrick’s personal physician and often traveled to Merrick’s fights. He’d monitored Merrick’s recovery after his knee injury a year ago.
    Cade, Merrick and Dallas had gone to high school together and had remained steadfast friends since their childhood.
    “The son of a bitch who did this to her should be shot on sight,” Dallas bit out in a pissed-off tone.
    “Tell us,” Merrick growled.
    Dallas ran a hand through his hair and blew out his breath. “Hell, this is a mess. I probably shouldn’t tell you anything, but this is hardly an official medical visit. The problem is, she doesn’t have a clue who she is or what happened to her. She’s deeply traumatized, and since she consented for you two to bring her in, I’m considering you the closest things she has to relatives.”
    “She really doesn’t know who she is?” Cade asked skeptically.
    Dallas nodded. “It’s deeply upsetting to her, and it sets off another round of panic every time she tries to remember. Now, I don’t know a lot about amnesia. It’s mostly bullshit you find in fiction novels or movies. I’ve never actually seen a clinical case of it, though I’ve read a few case histories on the subject. I don’t know if hers is because of a head injury or if it was trauma-induced and her mind has shut down in order to protect her from the horror of what happened to her.”
    “What exactly happened?” Merrick demanded.
    Dallas held his hand up. “I’ll get to that. If it’s memory loss caused by an injury to the brain, then it could be permanent. Hard to say. If it’s trauma-induced, it could be temporary. Hard as hell to say since there really isn’t a medical diagnosis for not wanting to remember.”
    “It all sounds damn crazy,” Cade muttered.
    “Just get to the part where you tell us what happened to her and how badly she’s injured,” Merrick cut in impatiently.
    “Someone beat the hell out of her,” Dallas said bluntly. “That’s the least of it.”
    Cade shot him an incredulous look. “What the fuck? That’s the least of it?”
    “Your girl has been through the ringer,” Dallas said quietly. “This bastard beat the hell out of her. He raped her. And he shot her. Twice .”
    Merrick’s jaw dropped, and then his eyes narrowed to menacing slits. “He shot her? I didn’t see any sign of a gunshot, but then hell, she was a mess. It would have been hard to see over all the other blood.”
    “I had to sedate her to examine her,” Dallas said. “She was hysterical the minute I touched her.