Stolen to Love Read online

  “Yeah, but you’re not this way,” I toss back over my shoulder.

  I’m not going to stand there and let someone question my being a doctor. Yes, I know a person needs to eat, but I also know my body forgets because it’s been trained to stand in an operating room for over twelve hours. I couldn’t even leave to take a piss! When I go into work mode it steals all of my focus. I don’t stop until the job is done because that’s how I was trained.

  “Why are you so mouthy?” he grunts.

  I scream as I suddenly feel him pick me up and lift me over his shoulder. I’m momentarily shocked as I lie draped over him staring at his very nice ass.

  “If I’m so annoyingly mouthy, why are you following me around?” I huff.

  I could fight him to put me down, but I don’t fight battles I know I’m going to lose. I let him carry me, which is fine because my feet hurt anyway. I spent the day getting the medical center organized. I want to be prepared for anything, especially with Collins being pregnant. Kade has given me free rein to order and redo anything I want to make sure we have everything we need. When it comes to his wife and the safety of his family, he isn’t messing around. He doesn't care how many millions it would cost to get some of the things I need here. I bet I’ll have them within days of giving him the list.

  “I’ve got to keep an eye on you. Do we really even know who you are?”

  My whole body stills for a moment. I try to release it as quickly as I tensed up, hoping he doesn't notice. No, they don’t really know who I am. Hell, I didn't even know over a year ago myself.

  “Kade checked me out.” My record is clean and no one can connect me with my father. Except for my father. I’m here because Kade needed a doctor on the island to watch over his wife. It wasn't until I was here that I realized the reason Kade’s sweet wife Collins was hurt in the first place was because of my father. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around that coincidence.

  “Sometimes people miss things.”

  I swallow hard but there’s no way Xander knows who I really am. I’m being overly sensitive to his comment, but how can I not be? If they found out who my father is, they’d have me off this island in two seconds. I really should start thinking of an exit strategy in case that does happen.

  “Like missing that you’re an asshole?” Now he’s the one who tenses for a moment.

  “Nope, I know I’m an asshole.”

  “Look at that. We both agree on something,” I say dryly as I try to not stare at his ass or think about how hard he feels under me. How much does he work out? How can he be so grumpy all the time if he spends so much time in the gym working out his aggression?

  We enter the main house and he goes straight for the kitchen. When he drags me over his shoulder he slides me down his body. I have to bite down on my tongue so I don’t gasp at the feel of his hard body rubbing all over mine. I never thought I had a type, but I’m starting to think maybe Xander is what I’m attracted to. I tried to date a few times in college but I was too busy. My roommate at the time told me I picked men knowing a relationship would go nowhere with them. She was right because it always fizzled out. They also weren’t smug like Xander, but I’m not sure what that means.

  His arms stay wrapped around me as I’m pressed against him. I stare up into his dark gaze and my eyes flick to his mouth. His bottom lip is still busted from when he and his brother got in a fist fight. I’m just glad they hugged it out not long after. This family fights hard but loves harder. I don't understand the chip on Xander’s shoulder and why he has so much anger. From the moment my feet touched down on the island he was pissed. Maybe I remind him of someone he used to date? Gross.

  “Are you on steroids?” I ask, wanting my mind as far away from him and other women as possible.

  “Are you fucking serious?”

  “The anger.” I poke his giant chest. “The muscle mass.” He steps back as if my finger actually assaulted him. “You know what that does to the body?” Against my better judgment I glance at his crotch. He turns before I can get a good look and I wonder if he’s hard. “Are you turned on?” Oh my God, why do these things keep popping out of my mouth? “It’s completely normal. If you’re a heterosexual man and the way you carried a woman over your shoulder, and well—”

  “Just stop.”

  “I’m a doctor. These—”

  “Doc. Sit. Down.” He cuts me off again. This time I manage to actually shut my mouth as I take a seat at one of the bar stools.

  “Wait.”

  “Oh God. She can’t help herself,” I hear him mumble. He’s still got his back to me, but I can see he’s running a hand down his face.

  “I was just going to ask who’s going to cook if Vaughn isn't here?” He’s the master chef and I can’t cook for shit. “If Berkley wasn't so sweet I’d be mad at her for stealing him away. I guess she didn’t steal him since he’s stalking after her. I’m really going to miss him.” My stomach growls in agreement.

  Xander turns around to look at me. I think he’s given me a hard look before, but this one is killer.

  “What did I do now?” I roll my eyes because I can’t win for losing with him.

  “Do you have a thing for my brother?” His eyebrows pull together as he glares at me.

  “Which one?” He’s got two, and though I’m not into either of them, I like being precise.

  “Which one?” he repeats.

  “Of course I don’t have a thing for Kade. Besides, he’s married,” I remind him. I reach for a grape from the bowl on the counter. I’m guessing Xander can’t cook and he probably just drinks protein powder or eats dry chicken.

  “Vaughn?”

  “Yes, I have a thing for Vaughn.” I nod. I reach for another grape but the bowl is swept off the counter and crashes to the floor. It bounces and I’m shocked it doesn't shatter. “I was eating those.” He stares at me as if I’m the one who’s lost their mind. “Roid rage?” I try and glare back at him but he’s fuming.

  “Vaughn is halfway in love with Berkley.”

  “Nah, he’s full-on in love,” I correct. Vaughn was a goner the second he saw Berkley. He followed her for days like a love-sick puppy.

  “And you have a thing for him?”

  “Just his cooking.” I sigh dramatically. “I’m going to starve to death.”

  Xander drops his fist down onto the counter. “Yeah, well, you’re going to be the death of me.”

  Chapter Three

  Xander

  “I need to learn how to cook,” I spit out as I fall back on the couch in Kade’s living room.

  “You also need to learn how to knock. I’m married, remember?” He rolls his eyes as he walks in the room and flops down beside me.

  “I saw her leave.” I grab the remote and flip through channels without really looking at the television. “I’m surprised you weren’t hot on her tail.”

  “She’s going to the main house to get a pedicure with the doctor. I’m planning on giving her seven whole minutes of uninterrupted girl talk.” To make his point he looks at his watch and hits a button as if starting a timer.”

  “She’s really got you by the balls,” I huff and shake my head as I stop on a cooking channel and lean in closer. It can’t be that hard if Vaughn can do it.

  “And I’ll gladly place them in her hands. Now do you want to tell me why the fuck you’re watching someone make baked Alaska while you insult my marriage, or do you want me to just kick your ass again to get it out of you?” I glance over at him and he’s smiling as his eyes narrow. “You know how much I enjoyed it last time.”

  “Fuck off.” I toss the remote down thinking I can just watch YouTube videos to find out how to cook.

  “Don’t come in here like a sour asshole and expect me to keep the kid gloves on.” He sighs as he throws a pillow at me. “Has the doctor got you all worked up?”

  I grumble as he turns off the television, but I don’t look at him. “Are we sure she’s been given a proper background check? I�
��d like to run my own. I mean, do you really want some random person who may or may not have passed medical school caring for your pregnant wife?”

  Kade sighs as he shakes his head. “I’m not doing this again with you.”

  “Doing what?”

  He shakes his head as he checks his watch. “We’ve been over this. She’s more than qualified and I trust her with my wife’s life. That should tell you everything you need to know.” He gives me a hard look and I ignore it. “I’m not sending her away, X. Lula is here to stay.” When I don’t say anything else he lets out a long sigh. “I can show you how to make pancakes. Vaughn showed me and it seems to impress Collins.”

  “Okay,” I agree as I follow him into his kitchen area.

  “Tell me why you’re so desperate that I send her away, yet you want to impress her.” I open my mouth to deny it and he cuts me off. “Don’t tell me you decided you’re tired of your personal chef creating all your meals and you want to starve to death?”

  “No.” I make notes on my phone of the ingredients he’s getting out of the cupboard and setting next to the bowl. “Maybe I just don’t like Vaughn being better at something than me.”

  “Vaughn is better at a lot of shit than the both of us.” He raises an eyebrow and I don’t correct him.

  “I don’t like that she misses him.” I hate how the words feel on my tongue.

  “They became friends when you all but glared at her every second of every day. What else was she supposed to do with her time here?”

  “Keep to herself.” I look around as if that’s the logical answer. “This is paradise. Is it so hard just to be alone and be happy?”

  “For some people it is.” He chops strawberries and I make another note in my phone. “Like you, for instance.”

  “Me? I’m perfectly content to be alone.”

  “And yet here you are.” He cocks his head to the side and I ignore him.

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I know that she is a good person that is stuck on this island because I pay her an ungodly amount of money to stay. What other options does she have if she wants to make this place her home?”

  “Her home?” My brows furrow at the thought.

  “Have you not thought about the fact that even after the baby is born she may decide to stay, that I’ll pay her enough to keep her here?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t think I got that far.”

  I’ve thought about hardly anything else but her since Lula came to the island. I don’t know why the idea of her making this island her home never occurred to me. I was so busy going between not letting her go and packing her bags for her, I never really stopped to think about what this all must be like from her perspective.

  I’m suspicious as fuck of anyone who comes in contact with my family, but what if she has a family of her own and she’s giving them up to stay here because of the money? What kind of situation was she in before that caused her to pick up everything and leave?

  “Are you getting all this?” Kade asks as he pours the batter.

  “Ugh, yeah.” I make a few more notes and try not to let my thoughts distract me, but I can’t help but wonder what she’s doing now. If she’s happy here or if she’s just sticking this out because of the paycheck.

  “When I met Collins, I didn’t know my own name.” Kade has his back to me as he flips the pancakes. “She made me forget everything I knew all at once and I didn’t know which way was up. It was confusing, and if I was more like you, then maybe that might have made me angry.”

  I take in his words and though I don’t want to admit that he’s right, he’s definitely hitting the mark.

  “I know you, Xavier, and your reaction to change is to keep a cautious distance. I think your reaction to what you’re feeling for Doctor Lula right now is exactly what I would predict it to be.”

  “I never said I felt anything for her.”

  He looks over his shoulder as he puts the pancakes on the plate. “I would ask you if I look stupid but we both know I’m the handsome one in the family.” I shake my head as he places strawberries on the stack of pancakes and pushes the plate to me. “Try them.”

  I cut a wedge and take a bite. They’re pretty damn wonderful but I would never give him that much credit. “Passable,” I say around a mouthful as I go in for another bite.

  “Sure.” He sees right through my bullshit but doesn’t call me on it. Instead he looks at his watch, then starts to clean up the kitchen. “My wife is going to thank you for the extra alone time with Lula. Do you want to go with me to break up their good time?”

  I think again about Lula being stuck here and trying to make friends. I think about how I’ve been with her, and how hard I’m making it for her to stay. What are her reasons for coming here, and am I standing in the way of her happiness?

  The thoughts that swirl in my head don’t paint me in the best light. Maybe it’s time I try another approach, but the thought of her getting close to me makes my body tense. Is it because I want to push her away or because I want to pull her to me?

  “Right behind you,” I agree as I decide it’s time to find out.

  Chapter Four

  Lula

  “I love that color on you.” I pull my hand away from the fan to look at my blue nails that have finished drying.

  “Thanks.” I smile at Collins, thinking it was sweet of her to ask me to come with her, but I think it might have been a sympathy invite. “You miss your sister?” I ask.

  That’s who she really wants to get her nails done with. I could see their bond while they were on the island together. They could share a whole conversation in one look, and I was so envious of it. I wonder if that’s a sister thing or if it’s a bond that comes over time. I’ve never had either so I wouldn't know.

  “Yeah.” She drops back in her chair. “It’s bittersweet getting to see her for a few days, but I know she’s in good hands with Vaughn.” She lets out a long sigh as her hand comes to rest over her stomach. “Berkley needs to finish what she started.”

  “She’ll be back soon,” I reassure her. The last thing Collins needs is stressing over her sister so early in her pregnancy. “We can try the ultrasound machine. I’m sure it will be here by the time she gets back.”

  “How soon can we tell the sex of the baby?” She perks up at my idea.

  “Early, I’m sure. We have the luxury of playing with the ultrasound machine as much as we want. Not to mention your husband wasn't messing around when he bought the best.” I don’t want to know what all the machines cost. I only told him what I would need and what would be nice to have on hand. He got it all.

  “He’s protective.” She rubs her hand over the baby bump that isn't really there yet.

  I understand it because he almost lost her. Kade is pulling out all the stops when it comes to keeping his family safe. That’s another thing I long for in my life but something I’ll never have. The threat of my father will always loom over me as long as he’s alive. Hell, even dead it would because if people knew I was related to him I’d never get a job. He will forever haunt me.

  “Protective. Sure, we can call it that,” I laugh. It’s more than protective but it’s also sweet and I’d be a liar if I said I didn't find the way Kade worried over his wife endearing. I’m surprised he’s left her alone this long as it is.

  “You want to get something to eat?” Collins pushes to her feet and I nod my head. I’m starving and I’m always down to eat.

  “We don’t have to if you’re busy,” I offer, not wanting her to ask me because she’s just being polite.

  “Are you playing hard to get or something?” She smirks at me.

  “What?” I ask, confused by her question.

  “I’m trying to make friends with you and you’re running away.” She reaches out and grabs my hand. She’s got one of those smiles that lights up a room and you can’t help but return it. “You’ve been hanging out with X too long.” She squeezes my hand.

&
nbsp; “What? No!” I panic for a moment wondering why she would she ask me that. It feels like I’ve been caught with my hand in the cookie jar. “He can’t stand me. He stomps from the room when I enter or stares a hole into me if he has to be in the same place I am. You haven't noticed?”

  “I’ve noticed,” she laughs. “He’s like a bear with a thorn in his paw. You can’t miss him.”

  Isn't that the truth? He’s always lingering somewhere close but he can’t get away from me fast enough. He’s never far and it’s weird.

  She gives my hand another squeeze, “That’s what I mean though. You’re always running from me so I wondered if you picked up Xander’s bad habits.”

  I snort a laugh, understanding what she’s saying. “I’ll be honest with you. I’m an only child and I’ve spent my life invested in school and work. My social skills aren’t always on point.”

  “Ahh, finally an imperfection. I dig it.” She loops her arm with mine. “I didn't think you had a single flaw.”

  “I have tons of them.”

  “Me too. I’m a clinger, although Kade enjoys that one. At least when I’m the one doing it to him.” She winks at me. Yeah, they cling to each other all day every day which is still kind of adorable.

  “So not an imperfection?” I tease her back as she leads us down the hallway.

  “You’ll have to let me know.” She nudges me.

  “I don’t think your clinginess will bother me either,” I admit. “If you’re okay with someone who often gets lost in their own head and will forget someone is talking to them.”

  “Is that why X’s staring doesn’t bother you? You’re lost in your head and don’t notice him.” I don’t know if she’s joking or being serious. “Because I would have smacked him by now if I was you.”

  “I’m a healer.” I lace my tone to be extra sweet, making her throw her head back and laugh. I’ve thought about smacking him a few times, but he stays out of reach.