He might as well have just cut Piper right in the heart. She retreated another step. “I’m sorry you were hurt. By that guy out there…and by me. Very, very sorry.” She turned on her heel.

Before she could reach the door, Eric was there. He blocked her path and his dark eyes blazed at her.

They blazed even more when she had to quickly blink away tears.

“Piper?”

She shook her head. “He wants to talk to you. I’ll be in the hallway.” She needed to get out of that room right then.

“Simon is out there. I’ll have an agent staying round the clock to keep an eye on Ben.” Eric still didn’t get out of her way. His hands had balled into fists at his sides.

Since he wasn’t moving, she slipped around him. Piper made sure to keep her shoulders back and her head up. And the first tear didn’t slide down her cheek until the hospital room door closed behind her.

“Piper!” Simon’s worried voice. “Is something wrong? Is Ben okay?”

No, he wasn’t okay. She doubted things would be okay for him anytime soon. She swallowed. Turning from Simon so he wouldn’t see her tears, she demanded, “Tell me everything you know about the bastard who did this.”

***

Eric waited for the nurse to finish. She didn’t rush, but took her time as she checked on Ben. Ben was tense and angry beneath her ministrations, and his gaze kept whipping to Eric.

An eternity later, the nurse strolled from the room. “If you need me, just press the little red button.” The door closed with a soft click.

Ben balled his bedsheet into his fists. “You had to sleep with Piper.”

Actually, yes, he’d had to sleep with her. Having her had pretty much been more important than breathing. But he didn’t think Ben wanted to hear that particular fact.

“The world is full of women,” Ben gritted out. “And you took my Piper?”

The world was full of women. But… “There is only one Piper. She’s not yours, and she’s not mine. She’s a woman who chooses for herself what she wants.”

Bitter laughter. “And you think she wants you?”

He certainly wanted her.

“I’ve seen you with women. You never stay with them. It’s fleeting. Everything is fleeting with you.” Ben shook his head. “Piper isn’t like that. Don’t you see? She’s scared. She’s been scared ever since her dad left. She doesn’t know what it is to be with someone that she can truly trust. She needs that, more than anything. She needs a lover that she can count on to be there.”

“I will be there for her.”