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  What would he say to the rest of the world out there waiting for him, if he didn’t go back now? Questions would be asked, like why had he held off letting them know where he was and that he was alive, recuperating, and would return as soon as he could. Knowing he couldn’t delay this, he quickly redialed, and, when a voice came on the other end, he spoke. “Dave?”

  “Yes, who is this?”

  “It’s Bullard.”

  After a moment of shocked silence on the other end of the phone, then a roar ripped through it. “Bullard? Dear God, where are you?” he said, breathless. “I’m coming to get you right now.”

  “I’m not exactly sure where I am, but I am alive and getting better,” he said. “Recovery has been rough. My memory is finally coming back. I just got my hands on a cell phone now too,” he added. “I’m on one of the smaller islands somewhere in the South Pacific.”

  “I’m out here too,” Dave said, excitement and relief in his voice. “My God, after all this time …” He paused. “I’ve been going from place to place, looking for any man who had been picked up out of the water,” he said. “I had one more I was checking on, and I just hadn’t gotten there yet. We were trying to lock down a better location for him.”

  “Well, it’s probably me,” he said, with a note of humor.

  “I’m coming,” he said. “Can anybody there give me any directions?” As Bullard turned around, he saw Leia standing there, her bottom lip trembling. Immediately he closed his eyes and said, “I’ll get back to you on that. Just know that I’m getting better and that I’m alive. Hey, I still don’t know what happened, do you?”

  “There’s a hell of a lot to fill you in on,” Dave said, his tone deep and dark. “Don’t presume that you’re safe even now. Most of the team has been hit as they’ve been chasing leads, trying to figure out what the hell is going on and what happened to you.”

  “Well, nobody made it here.”

  “No, the team has focused their energies on trying to figure out who was trying to take you out in the first place,” he said. “I’m the one who’s been tracking you down.”

  “Ryland and Garret?”

  “They’re both alive,” Dave rushed to assure him. “They were also badly hurt in the plane crash, but they’re alive.”

  “Thank God for that,” Bullard said, pinching the bridge of his nose. “You can’t understand how good it is to hear your voice and to know those boys are okay. The team means a lot to me.”

  “And you to them,” Dave said. “You’re sure nobody there can give me information to help me find you?”

  Leia must have overheard because she stepped forward and held out her hand. He took a deep breath and spoke to her. “It’s Dave, my best man.”

  His wording was strange to her, but she accepted it and spoke into the phone. “My name is Leia,” she said, “and we’re on one of the islands outside of Thailand.”

  “Where exactly are you?” he asked.

  She gave him directions that gave Bullard a much better idea of where he was.

  “Did you find and rescue him?” Dave asked.

  She handed the phone back to Bullard, then turned and walked away, not answering Dave’s question.

  “It’s me again, Dave,” Bullard said.

  “I’ll be there tomorrow,” he said.

  “Make it the day after,” Bullard said. “I have a little bit of healing to do here yet.”

  “I still can’t believe it,” Dave said. “Jesus.”

  “I feel the same way, man. It feels like I’m connected to the world again.”

  “You are. I promise I’ll be there as soon as I can.” With that, he hung up.

  Bullard stood here for a long moment, the phone against his chest, realizing how momentous this one phone call was. Not only would he get his life back and be reunited with the people in the world he cared about, but he would also lose somebody he cared about here. Somebody he hadn’t expected to care for. He hadn’t realized how difficult this would be, until now that they were at this point in time.

  He looked over to find that Leia had disappeared. He winced at that. He couldn’t stay here forever though. And, as much as she said it was her world, he wasn’t sure that it was as much her world as it was the place she hid in. He was sorry for that too, because obviously a ton of pain and trauma of some kind held her back. He would like to do whatever he could to get her back into the real world, but, more than that, he wanted to take her with him and to show her that the rest of the world wasn’t all filled with assholes. In order to do that, he might have to dig a little deeper into who she was and what had gone on in her life.

  He called Dave back. “I don’t know anything about her,” he said, “but can you look into it quietly for me?”

  “I will,” he promised. “She’s a heart surgeon?”

  “Yes, and I got the impression that she’s from the US. I don’t know anything else about it. And I can’t confirm her last name. So that ads to the problem. But I’m sending a picture.”

  “Got it,” Dave said. “Ice’s father might know something.”

  “Right.” And Bullard realized that was who he should have called in the first place. But his feelings were a little mixed up in that quarter, and he wasn’t sure why. After hanging up with Dave, Bullard turned and headed toward Leia’s place. “I’ll go for a swim,” he called into the cabin.

  “Okay,” she said, “just don’t overdo it.”

  She was always watching out for him; that was one thing about her, how she never quite let up. “Will do,” he said, knowing that any other answer would just make her worry, and he didn’t want to do that. He headed to the river and slipped into the water, using the stronger current as a means to power up. He swam against it until he got too tired, and then he let it push him down toward the opening of the river. Around the corner, he hauled himself up onto the rocks and walked back across.

  It was such a gorgeous location and such a beautiful place to be that he saw why she didn’t want to leave. It was sheltered and had been a home for her when she needed one. Obviously she hadn’t had anybody else here to help her and nobody who could get her where she needed to be at that time. He felt sorry for her for that, having to heal all on her own, and again letting him help her now was not something that she would accept from him. She was stubborn and prideful—something else he understood full well—but he wanted answers, and he wanted to find a solution to bring her home with him.

  At that, Ice’s face flashed before him. Dear beloved Ice, a woman like none other. A woman he cared about, who was so incredibly strong. If Levi wasn’t there for her, Bullard would have snatched her up in a heartbeat. But Levi was there, and something tugged in the corner of his memory. They were starting a family, which was another reason Bullard needed to walk away and to find a life without her. Because he couldn’t spend his whole lifetime sitting in Ice’s background because Bullard knew Ice would never walk away from Levi willingly.

  And for the first time Bullard realized how much of his life he’d been silently waiting for Ice. Not that he wished Levi ill; they were close friends, but Bullard knew he could never have more with Ice. But this time with Leia had shown him that it was time for something new and different. As he turned to stare back up at the cabin where Leia was, he knew exactly what he wanted, but he would have a hard time convincing her that he was what she wanted and needed too.

  Chapter 6

  The next morning Leia rose, dry-eyed, having not slept much during the night. She had gotten up several times to look into the bushes, realizing that his world had already infiltrated hers. She had gotten him a phone, and he had immediately contacted the outside world, and now everything was coming undone. She went for a swim, letting herself float down to the mouth of the river, before sitting on one of her favorite rocks, staring out at the world around her. Somehow it had all gone to hell, and she needed to just get through these next few days.

  Because she knew he’d be gone at that point. He would lea
ve so damn fast that it would make her head spin. But then why wouldn’t he? He had people out there, waiting and hoping that he had survived, and he had. She probably should have contacted people earlier, but she’d been selfish, keeping him to herself. She gave a broken laugh at that. What a fool. She had no excuse. She could have sent word to the world, but she thought it was wrong to do so and had followed that instinct, but even now it sounded foolish to her ears, like she was some dried-up old maid, pinning her hopes on this one person.

  And here he was leaving. Of course he was leaving; he had no reason to stay. This wasn’t his world. Giving herself a headshake and bolstering her confidence, she turned and headed back to the cabin. She had a quick cold shower and then shucked her bathing suit for a long flowing dress. She didn’t know if people would arrive today or not, but she figured that anybody trying to find him would be here as soon as possible. She set out breakfast as she always did, and, when there was no sign of him, she walked down to check on him, but he was gone. She frowned, calling out, “Bullard? Are you here?”

  But still no answer. She wondered if he’d already left, without saying goodbye. Her heart constricted at the thought—until she heard him call out behind her, and she spun to see him coming up from the water. Somehow they just missed each other. “Breakfast is ready,” she said.

  He nodded, his gaze searching. “Did you get any sleep?”

  “Not much,” she said quietly. “Did you?”

  “No,” he growled. “I don’t want to leave.”

  That stopped her in her tracks. She turned to look at him. “Then don’t.”

  “That won’t happen,” he said. “I have a life out there, several companies, property.”

  “Good for you.” She turned to get water from her place. “I’ll put on the coffee.” She half expected him to grab her and haul her around to talk to him because he had that kind of look on his face. But he didn’t. He let her go. She wasn’t sure if she was sad about that or not. Obviously they were at some impasse, and neither knew how to move forward. She was just as guilty—being like a robot, as she had for months, years even, feeling the pain inside that she couldn’t even begin to explore. She dared not verbalize it because she felt she would shatter as soon as it came to light. She set out coffee and breakfast.

  When he stepped up on her porch, he nodded and sat down beside her. “You could come with me.”

  “I don’t belong in your world,” she murmured. But her heart wondered if she could fit in. She didn’t really know him that well, and, given the circumstances with a man of his obvious means, she wasn’t sure she wanted to.

  “You could if you wanted to,” he said, reiterating her own thoughts.

  “Maybe,” she said, “but you have a life back there. I don’t. I haven’t got the means to make a living, and I’m not even sure I’m ready to go back to society.”

  “To the society that hurt you?”

  “To the society I chose not to live in,” she said quietly. “Judge me all you want, but that world I don’t particularly want to have anything to do with anymore.”

  “I get it,” he said. “Honestly I do. But, Leia, you can’t just hide away here forever.”

  “I have been doing it for a long time, so why can’t I?” she asked him curiously.

  “Because you became a surgeon for a reason. To help people.”

  “But not everybody wants to be helped,” she said, tilting her face to the sun and closing her eyes, searching for that sense of equilibrium she tried so hard to achieve and was so terrified to let go of now that she had found it.

  “I care about you,” he said abruptly.

  She opened her eyes, smiled at him. “I know,” she said, “and I care about you. But that doesn’t mean we move forward.”

  “That’s as damn good a reason as any,” he said, growling at her.

  She nodded. “You’ll have to go back to your world and see what matters.”

  “Exactly. And you need to try my world to see if it’s something you can live with. You can’t make a decision from here, any more than I can make a decision if I don’t go back there.”

  There was a certain craftiness to his voice, and she realized he’d been thinking about this as an argument for a long time. Smiling, she said, “We’ll see.”

  And, with that, he had to be content because she wasn’t willing to give him anymore. At least not yet. When a commotion came outside as they were finishing breakfast, he looked at her, and she sighed.

  “It sounds like your company has arrived.”

  His face lit up, and he bolted to his feet and raced around the corner. She watched from a few steps back as a stranger, looking like he’d been given a new lease on life, came around the corner. With open arms, the two men fell into each other’s arms. She was amazed to see such joy and love on their faces.

  Who was this man who brought Bullard such joy? She hadn’t known that he cared so much about someone, likely several someones, she realized, remembering his face when he talked about his team. But apparently he had a huge love of life and a love for others in that big frame of his.

  As soon as Bullard pulled back, he turned and motioned at Leia. “This is Leia,” he said. “She rescued me and kept me alive all this time. She brought me back from the brink of death. Leia, this is Dave. We served in the same unit in the military, and we’ve been working together ever since.”

  Dave immediately stepped closer and gave her the gentlest of hugs. “You have my undying thanks,” he said, “and, if we can do anything for you, please let us know. Bullard is a very special person, and our world was a much dimmer place when we began to lose hope of finding him after all this time.”

  “I probably should have contacted the outside world earlier,” she admitted. “But it seemed much easier to stay safe in this cocoon, than to face whatever forces sent his plane into the ocean.” Dave nodded, his gaze searching and gentle, and she felt as if he saw so much more than she wanted him to. But she smiled at him bravely instead. “He has asked me to return with him, just so you know.”

  “In that case, I would be extremely honored to have you come back with us,” he said, his gaze going from one to the other.

  “I haven’t said I will,” she said. “This is my world here.”

  “I understand that, but your old world could be yours again, if you wanted it to be.”

  She stiffened and glared at Bullard. “Yours is the world of danger and ugliness.”

  “But yours was just as ugly in another way,” he said, “and nobody was there to help you. I won’t let that happen again.”

  Shaking her head, she said, “You don’t know anything about it.”

  “No, I don’t,” he said, “but I trust Dave to find out.”

  She nodded stiffly and said, “In that case, you guys can go talk but don’t involve me.” With that, she spun on her heel and walked away.

  *

  “She’s a very interesting woman,” Dave said in admiration. “But trust you to find somebody out in the middle of nowhere.”

  “I didn’t know anything but her for the longest time,” Bullard said. “I had no memories, and she wouldn’t give me even a hint. She was very cautious about me trying to force them to return.”

  “As you well know,” Dave said, “you’re much better off to just let them fall back into place on their own.”

  “Yes, but it was frustrating,” he said.

  Dave looked at him. “Do you think she was keeping you here deliberately?”

  “No,” he said. “Things only just started to fall into place over the last couple weeks, after I turned a corner physically, able to move a bit on my own,” he said. “Leia did surgery on me right here.”

  At that, Dave grinned. “I hope you didn’t lose anything of importance.”

  Bullard howled with laughter. “Nope,” he said, “but I haven’t tested everything.”

  “You haven’t given it a test drive, huh?”

  “I’ve been trying to move
gently,” he said, turning to look where she’d gone. “She’s a very special woman, and she’s been badly hurt.”

  “Yeah, I can give you some details on part of her past. She’s Leia Montrose. Thirty-four years old. Her birthday is April 2nd. She was a surgeon, was up for a chief surgery position. Because of her age, there was significant opposition, but she was one of those super-talented surgeons.”

  “What happened?” Bullard asked, anxious to find out.

  “She was assisting the surgery of a high-profile patient. Long story short, the patient didn’t make it, and she was blamed. Her version was that the lead surgeon deliberately killed the patient on the table, while she tried hard to save him.”

  “Ouch,” he said. “And nobody else saw what he did?”

  “No, and he said she did it, while she said it was him. He was a senior surgeon, highly respected in his field, but vocal in his opposition to her advancement.”

  “And all that was enough for her to just walk away?”

  “It was highly publicized, and the public reviled her,” Dave said. “She was blamed for the death of a high-profile patient. The hospital canceled her surgical position, and somehow it was leaked to the media that there was talk of a murder charge. She was crucified,” he said simply. “The hospital turned on their own rising star to deflect attention away from them.”

  “Good Lord. No wonder she doesn’t want to go back. She’d have to face it all over again.”

  “Yes. Unless something could be done to prove her innocence and to expose that conspiracy against her,” Dave said, giving Bullard an encouraging look.

  “I don’t think she’s up for the fight,” Bullard said. “She hasn’t got the heart for it.”

  “No. Sometimes life is like that,” Dave said. “But maybe we should pick up her fight?”

  “I would love to, but I don’t want to alienate her either, getting her involved regardless, and you know she would have to be a party to the legal fight.”

  “We’ve seen injustice all over the world.”

  “Yeah, we sure have.” Bullard looked around and said, “Please tell me the rest of the team is okay. How bad has it been?”