No, she told herself, breathing steadily. Not trapped. She was fine. She would be fine. She was tough. Compared to what Heidi had gone through, this was nothing.

Someone else rose and took her arm. She knew immediately it was Nick.

“You’re killing my great exit here,” she told him.

“You ready to stalk out on your own?”

“Not really.”

He led her out of the dining room, toward the stairs. They climbed slowly and when they reached her room, she was shaking.

“I’m trying,” she said as she sat on the bed and waited for the trembling to pass. “I’m just so damn scared.”

“I know.”

She heard the sound of movement, then felt him take both her hands in his. From the angle and the way he rested his forearms on her legs, she guessed he was kneeling.

“Usually guys who get in that position are proposing,” she teased. “Gee, Nick. This is so sudden.”

“Not bad. You’re getting it.”

“I’m not,” she admitted. “Every other second, I’m terrified. I can’t live like this. I can’t.”

“Yeah, you can. You’re strong, Izzy. Stronger than you know. It’s just the first day. Try to relax. I want you to lie down. I’m going to teach you some breathing techniques. When you’re feeling better, you can call your sisters.”

She didn’t think breathing was going to be a whole lot of help. “Or we could just have sex.”

Nick stilled. “As tempting as that is, I think you need to heal a little more.”

“Are you trying to say the right thing or get out of doing it with me?”

Instead of answering in words, he leaned in and kissed her. His mouth was hot and hungry, claiming hers. She met him stroke for stroke, enjoying the wave of need and desire that crashed through her. Horny was a whole lot better than afraid.

He cupped her cheek with his hand, then sucked on her lower lip. Only when she was breathing hard did he pull back.

“What was the question?” he asked.

“I have no idea.”

“Good. Now lie back on the bed and…Sorry. I was going to say close your eyes.”

“Already doing that,” she said, touching the bandage. “Next?”

“HOLLISTER,” Nick said into the phone, still studying the computer screen.

“You have a lot of explaining to do. What were you thinking? You didn’t call us? Do you remember meeting our friend Dana? I swear to God, I want to have you arrested and your ass thrown in jail.”

The voice was familiar, although he couldn’t place it. “Just my ass? Not the rest of me.”

“I see you’ve been hanging out with Izzy too much these days.”

The information clicked into place. “Hello, Skye.”

“She had the surgery.”

“I know.”

“She didn’t tell us she was going to do it and you knew. And don’t even think about saying it was her decision to make because even if I can’t come close to beating you up, I’m engaged to a former Navy SEAL. He could kill you with a Q-tip.”

Nick leaned back in his chair and smiled. While Izzy was his favorite, he liked all the Titan sisters. “Seems like a stupid plan to me. Why not use a gun?”

“Don’t think you can charm me, because you can’t. What were you thinking?”

“That it was Izzy’s decision to make. She didn’t want you to worry. She had the surgery and told you after. It happened and now you know.”

“Oh, I see. You’re going for rational. Tell me, Nick. Have you ever been in a relationship with a woman before? Did the rational approach ever work?”

“No.”

“Then try something else.”

“You’ve obviously spoken with her. You know she’s fine, but you’re always welcome to come to the ranch. You can see her for yourself.” He shifted the phone to his other hand. “Besides, if I remember correctly, getting Izzy to the point where she wanted the surgery was the entire reason for having her here.”

There was a long pause. “Okay. Yes. Maybe. Speaking of which, you need to bill me for the rest of her time there.”

“We’re good.”

“But all I gave you is a small deposit. You were going to bill me weekly.”

“I changed my mind.” He wasn’t taking money for having Izzy around. “She worked hard. She contributed.” She dazzled, he thought, then frowned. He had no idea where that idea had come from.

“But we owe you-”

“Nothing,” he said firmly. “Come by on Saturday. We’ll have a barbecue. Bring everybody. You’ll see your sister, you’ll feel better.”

“That sounds nice,” Skye said slowly. “Okay. We’ll be there.”

“I’ll tell Izzy.”

“Thanks for everything. See you soon.”

“Bye.”

He hung up and shook his head. Women were a constant complication. Speaking of which…

He glanced up at the ceiling and then checked his watch. It was after nine. Izzy had said she was tired and wanted to go to bed early. The doctor had told her to take it easy for a few days. No strenuous physical activity. No riding. And while he hadn’t specifically asked, Nick had already figured out that meant no sex.

Not his first choice, he thought, remembering what it had been like to spend the night with Izzy. She was responsive, interested and adventurous. A perfect storm. One he wouldn’t be experiencing anytime soon.

Which was for the better, he told himself. He wasn’t going to get involved with her. Neither of them needed the complication. Still, she’d been quiet at dinner. He saved his work, then headed upstairs.

Izzy sat in a chair in the corner, her legs pulled up to her chest, her head resting on her knees. For one gutclenching second, he thought she was crying. Then she straightened and looked at him. There was tension in her face, but no tears that he could see. The bandage made it tough to be sure.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hi.”

Her mouth moved in what he guessed was an attempt to smile.

“You have all the lights on.”

She shrugged. “I feel better knowing they’re on. It’s not like I can see them. Or anything.”

He crossed to her and took her hand. “Come on. You need to rest.”

“I can’t. Every time I lie down I freak. It’s like I can’t breathe or something. I’m better here in the chair.”

“You need to rest so you can heal. Look, I’m bigger and stronger, so you can come quietly or I can force you. The forcing won’t be pretty. It’ll mess up your hair.”

Slowly she lowered her feet to the floor. “Do you see me laughing? I’m not. You know why? It’s not funny.”

“I know.”

She rose.

He drew her close and wrapped his arms around her. “I’m here. You’re safe. You can breathe.”

“You don’t know that.”

“I’m a guy. I know everything.”

When she didn’t respond to that, he knew she was more scared than he’d realized. He led her to the bed, then stretched out next to her.

“I’m going to stay right here,” he told her. “All night. I’ll keep you safe, Izzy. I promise.”

“I can’t cry. I keep reminding myself that. I’m not supposed to cry. Something about the tear ducts. But I want to. And I want to run so hard and so fast that there’s light. But it’s not possible, either.”

She was right next to him. He could feel her shaking and didn’t know what to do to make it better. Frustration made him want to hit something, but that wouldn’t help Izzy. Instead he kept his arm around her, moving his hand up and down her back.

“Remember the breathing we practiced earlier today?”

“It was stupid.”

“Maybe, but we’re going to try it again.”

“I can’t.”

“Yes, you can.”

“No. I can’t breathe.” She inhaled sharply. “Something’s wrong. I can’t breathe.”

“You’re breathing just fine. If you couldn’t breathe, you couldn’t talk. Now roll on your back.”

She didn’t move.

“I’m going to stay here all night. You’re not getting rid of me. But you need to relax and you need to sleep. Come on, Izzy. I’ve traveled the world and trained with professionals. I don’t get to practice this much. Give me a break.”

He waited, not sure which way it would go. Was she just on the edge of losing it or already falling?

She rolled onto her back and sighed. “Because it’s all about you?”

The relief was instant. She was coming back. “Sure.”

“You’re just like Aaron.”

“Hey. What does that mean?”

She managed a slight smile. “Nothing bad. I adore Aaron.”

“Good. Now we’re going to start breathing.”

“Where’s the we? I’m doing all the work.”

He bent down and kissed her.

“What was that for?” she asked.

“I wanted to.”

“Just so typical,” she muttered.

But her smile was bigger and the shaking had stopped. Once again she’d proven that she could be knocked around, but she couldn’t be broken. He could respect that. Maybe more than respect, but he wasn’t going there. Not now, not ever.

THE NEXT MORNING, Izzy made her way to the barn. It was difficult, walking out into darkness with nothing but her memory and other senses to guide her. She worried about tripping over something or falling in a big hole-not that there were any on the ranch. The use of a cane suddenly made sense.

But as she got close, she could smell the hay and the horses. The quality of the dirt changed. She could feel it in her steps and knew it had been trampled by countless hoofs. She put her arm up to find the building and bumped her fingers against the wall three steps later.

“How do you do it?” she asked Rita as soon as she got to the barn. “How do you figure out where stuff is and where you are?”

“Practice. My other senses come into play.”

“I’m scared nearly all the time,” Izzy admitted, sitting on the bench by the door. “I had my first panic attack last night.”

“How was it?”

“Not something I want to repeat.”

Rita joined her on the bench. “It’s a week, kid. You’ll be fine. Think of this as a character-building exercise.”

“I liked my character fine before.”

“But it will be better now.”