“Make a list,” he reiterated. “Be thorough. Pen and paper are on the nightstand. I’ll be back in a few minutes. I want to make certain our team is fully in place.”

Siena watched him leave the room, her heart pounding. She glanced at the phone on the nightstand. She could call a taxi, but if she did, how would it get through the gates? Elijah would never let a taxi through. So all right. She was going to have to stay for a few days, at least until she felt stronger and her leg and hip didn’t hurt so much.

She tried to figure out Elijah’s motives. If he was really a good man as Drake had tried to convince her in the car, then none of this made sense. She knew better than to think he was attracted to her, no matter what he said. Her world had been turned upside down. She knew Paolo had tried to come to the hospital on several occasions, ostensibly to talk to her about her grandfather’s memorial service. She hadn’t been able to go. She had a raging fever, the infection spreading through her body like a wildfire. She knew her grandfather’s body had disappeared and why.

Leopard. She moistened her dry lips and pushed off the bed. She was leopard. A shifter. Instead of being upset by the news, she was grateful. Her leopard was company. Part of her, yes, but still company, and she’d felt very, very alone most of the time.

She found an enormous closet through double doors. The closet was so large it appeared to be a room all in itself. Just to the left of that was the master bathroom. An apartment could fit into the bathroom. It was a room one would indulge themselves in. An open shower with beautifully appointed gold hardware and a long marble sink with double faucets, a makeup mirror and a beautiful, deep bathtub-Jacuzzi took up one side of the room. On the other was a deep, inviting pool. The cover appeared to be thick glass. Steam fogged the glass on the inside so she was certain she was looking at very large hot tub.

She couldn’t imagine Elijah living here. He was just too—rough. She swallowed hard and forced herself to walk over to the bank of full-length mirrors behind the pool of steaming hot water. Her hands shook as she stopped and slowly raised her eyes to her image. In the hospital, she had felt the bandage, but no one had given her a mirror and she hadn’t asked for one. She didn’t want to see herself with anyone around.