Free Big Shot by Joanna Wayne

back to the penthouse to pick up his laptop and going over everything he’d heard over the last twelve hours. He tried to imagine the train of events that had led to the attack and the murder.
    Meghan was as daring and as indomitable as Mary Nell had said. He knew that as well as anybody. In most instances, it had paid off, but somehow she’d screwed up this time and allowed the killer to get the upper hand.
    But why go after her with a stun gun and then go after Ben with a loaded pistol? The fact that he’d worn a mask would indicate that he’d never intended to kill her. Was the attack meant to be a threat?
    But if the man had actually planned to kill her, what was to stop him from trying again?
    * * *
    M EGHAN WOKE SLOWLY , pushed through the lingering miasma and looked around. The first thing she saw was the cowboy sitting near her bed, working on his laptop. Reality gained a foothold.
    “You’re back,” she murmured.
    “Yes. I’ve been here for over an hour.”
    “Why didn’t you wake me?”
    “I was given an ultimatum by Patricia, the fire-breathing day nurse. Disturb you and I’m out of here.”
    “I’ve slept enough,” Meghan said. “I need to stop floating in the clouds and become grounded.”
    And to do that, she needed Durk. He was her only real bond with herself, the only person she’d communicated with since regaining consciousness who actually knew Meghan Sinclair.
    “Can I get you anything?” Durk asked.
    “A sip of water. My throat and my lips feel parched.”
    He stood and walked around the bed to get the water, but before he got the straw to her lips, the nurse came in and took over the task.
    “How are you feeling?” she asked as she returned the glass to the bed tray.
    “Stiff. Sore. And tired of this bed.”
    Patricia raised the head of her bed so that Meghan was in a sitting position. “The doctor left orders that you can take a short walk if you feel like it.”
    “That would be great.”
    “The key word is short, ” Patricia said. “Just a few doors down the hall and back again. But you’ll need someone with you to steady you if you get dizzy.”
    “I can take care of that,” Durk offered.
    “Okay, but take it slow with her. I don’t want my patient to exert herself too much.” She leaned over and fluffed Meghan’s pillows. “Is there anything else I can do for you?”
    “Can you tell me when I’ll be released from the hospital?”
    “That, I have no control over.”
    “But she has control over everything else that happens in this room,” Meghan said once Patricia was out of earshot.
    “You must be getting better. I sense a power struggle here.”
    “I have a feeling that when I’m not lost in la-la land, I must like being the one in control.”
    Durk smiled. “I’d say that’s a fair assessment.”
    He looked incredibly handsome when he smiled. It was hard to imagine she could have let him slip from her memory no matter how severe the concussion.
    “Tell me about me, Durk. Not what I did for a living. Patricia’s already told me that I’m a private investigator with my own agency. She also filled me in on my parents. My parents are dead. I have a sister named Lucy. She’s married and lives in Connecticut. She wants me to call her as soon as I feel like talking.”
    “Where did your nurse get all of that information?”
    “Apparently Lucy has called several times today to check on me. She and Patricia have pretty much shared my life history. Patricia can’t understand why I refuse to talk to Lucy when she calls.”
    “Why do you?”
    “I’m just not ready.”
    “Talking to her might help shake the amnesia,” Durk suggested.
    “Which makes the prospect sound tempting, but no. Not yet.” This was frustrating enough without bringing a family member into the mix, someone with whom she’d shared a lifetime of vanished memories.
    “Tell me some personal things about myself, Durk.”
    “I thought you wanted to go for a walk.”
    “That can wait