When We Met (Fool's Gold #13)(59)

She pressed her lips together and nodded, then started to cry again. He hugged her close. Taryn surprised him by moving to Bailey and holding on to the other woman. Consuelo shook her head and walked toward the doorway.

“No one is hugging me,” she said firmly before ducking out into the corridor.

* * *

TARYN GLARED AT Jack, who sat in one of her visitor chairs. He showed no sign of budging, which meant he was planning to stay through her meeting with Larissa.

“This has nothing to do with you,” she told him.

“Sure it does. You’re going to get mad. You don’t get mad often, so people forget what you’re like. But I know what’s going to happen. You’ll get verbal and eviscerate Larissa, who already feels bad enough. Then she’ll cry and run off.”

“You’re protecting her?” Taryn asked, putting her hands on her hips. “You know what happened.”

“I do. She was wrong. It’s okay to say she’s wrong. It’s not okay to make her feel worse than she does. I don’t want her quitting.”

“Which is really what this is about. How you’d be put out if she were gone.”

“You’d miss her, too.”

Something Taryn could grudgingly admit. “I’m not going to fire her or try to get her to quit. But she has to stop, Jack. At least this part of it.”

“I know.” The words came from the doorway.

Taryn glanced up and saw Larissa walking into the office. She looked as pale as Chloe had the day before, but without the freckles. She’d pulled her long blond hair back into a ponytail and had on jeans and a T-shirt. There were shadows under her eyes, and her mouth was down-turned.

She walked into Taryn’s office and sat next to Jack. She swallowed before speaking. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I never wanted anyone to get hurt. You have to know that.”

“I do,” Taryn said, finding it difficult to stay angry now that she saw how upset Larissa was. “But you can’t keep doing this.”

Larissa nodded. “You’re right. It’s one thing to rescue butterflies, but dangerous or venomous animals are different. I don’t have the training.” Tears filled her eyes. “It’s just when they called, they made the situation sound desperate.”

“They always do,” Taryn grumbled.

Jack shot her a look, then rubbed Larissa’s back. “You were trying to help. It’s your thing.”

“She didn’t help Angel,” Taryn snapped. “And it’s not the first time. Remember those fighting dogs she kept at your place? You had to move to a hotel. This is more of the same.”

Jack started to speak, but Larissa shook her head. “She’s right. I put Angel in the hospital. If we’d been farther away from a doctor, he might have died and it’s my fault.” She swallowed again, then straightened. “I have to look at what I’m doing and be more responsible. I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted,” Taryn said, not wanting to torture her friend. “Please tell me you get it.”

“I do. I promise. I can’t say I’ll stop helping, but I’ll be more careful in the future.”

Jack shot Taryn a warning glance, as if to say they’d gone far enough. Taryn nodded.

“That’s what I needed to hear,” she said, then stood. “I’m not mad.”

“You were,” Larissa told her, rising to her feet.

“Just a little.”

The two women hugged.

“I really am sorry,” Larissa told her.

“I know.”

Jack led Larissa from the room.

Taryn crossed to the window in her office and stared out. She was pretty sure she looked normal on the outside, but she was still shaking on the inside. Being mad at Larissa had helped her keep her worries at bay, but now she didn’t have a distraction. She’d been reveling in the afterglow of her unexpected morning encounter with Angel when she’d gotten the call that he was in the hospital, suffering from a snakebite. Talk about a random event.

She hadn’t liked knowing he was in danger and she’d been shocked by the intensity of her concern. Her relationship with Angel was supposed to be fun. A couple of adults having a good time together. No strings, no promises. She didn’t want it to be different. There was no win there. Because neither of them wanted a happily ever after. He’d already had his and there was no way she was trusting anyone with her heart.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

TARYN’S ASSISTANT WALKED into her office. Taryn glanced up and saw the worry on the other woman’s face.

“What?” she asked, instantly coming to her feet. “What happened?”

She knew Angel was okay. He’d been released from the hospital a good three days ago and was better every time she saw him. He’d been cleared to resume normal activities and had planned to go to work today. Which left the boys. Knowing them, there was no way to guess what disaster one of them had gotten into.

“You have a visitor,” Jude said. “She doesn’t have an appointment.” She gave a little shrug. “To be honest, I’m a little nervous about telling her she has to make one.”

Taryn relaxed. “I have to see who has flapped the usually unflappable you.”

She followed her assistant out into the waiting area and saw Consuelo pacing there. The petite brunette wore her usual tank top and cargo pants. She looked like a caged animal waiting to pounce.