Kevin didn't leave Jamie's side for the rest of the day. If he got up to walk around the room, or use the bathroom, she woke up agitated until he came back into her line of sight. She calmed down only when he returned to her side and held her. Once, she even tried getting out of bed to look for him, but was too weak to do more than push the blankets away. Kevin found her crumpled over in pain and gasping for breath on one side of the bed. He ran and threw his arms around her as he frantically called for the nurse to help him. They got Jamie settled back in the bed and the nurse gave her something for the pain that coursed through her left shoulder and side.

Kevin wasn't really sure why Jamie was so fearful, although he believed she was just afraid of being attacked again. He used her reactions as the reason he needed to stay by her side, so that he could watch over her and protect her. She was slowly coming back to him and he wanted to make sure nothing else would happen to her.

Jamie was still in shock from the attack, but that wasn't the reason why she panicked whenever he left her. She was afraid that Kevin would be the one attacked next. Since she couldn't leave the bed, much less the room, the only way she could make sure he was safe was if he was with her constantly.

Detective Logan came in to see how she was and attempt to decipher what, if anything, she knew about the shooting. Unfortunately, Jamie remembered nothing about that morning. The only things she clearly remembered happened the night before. Kevin was grateful that she couldn't recall being shot, but at the same time he was angry that someone had stolen her memories of the first day of their life together. He held her close and whispered to her how they had spent that morning before leaving the hotel room, but it just wasn't the same thing.

She stayed in the ICU unit the rest of the week, spending most of the time resting. Kevin stayed with her the entire time, leaving her only when absolutely necessary. Her parents and brothers stayed for a couple of days to make sure she was alright, then they reluctantly returned home. While everyone else left the hospital and returned to their own lives, the other Boys stayed in Lexington, and visited with Jamie every day. Jamie had laughed and written a comment about how she should have known that she and Kevin couldn't go on their honeymoon without the other fellas along for the ride. They all read it sheepishly and apologized, but they didn't leave, and neither Kevin nor Jamie asked them to. By being around, the guys also helped to distract Kevin. Besides, Jamie liked having Leighanne around to talk to, as well as Amanda and Alissa, who were AJ and Howie's girlfriends.

Even with everyone around them, there was still someone missing, and Jamie wasn't the only one who felt the loss. She and Nick both desperately wished Taylor was with them. Jamie missed her best friend, more now than she had during this past year since Taylor's death. As a way to comfort them both through the grieving process, Nick and Jamie had grown much closer. People who didn't know either of them were convinced they were siblings. Nick came to the wedding by himself, and Jamie went out of her way to make sure he had a good time, and that he was alright. Kevin understood, but still had to cut in on his wife and Nick several times that night. Nick had merely smiled, and said even though Jamie was now Kevin's wife, she would always be Nick's "sister".

By the end of the week, Jamie had grown strong enough to only need an oxygen mask at night. She was very thankful for that, because she didn't feel like throwing up each time the doctor inserted and removed the breathing tubes. She was moved out of ICU and into a private room. The hospital staff had long since given up trying to kick Kevin out at night, and he made himself comfortable on the other bed in the private room by pushing it over next to Jamie's. The nurses all shook their heads, but were captivated by the way Kevin acted towards Jamie.

"Come on, Kev! It'll only be for a couple of hours, you need to get out of here," pleaded Howie. AJ and Howie were on a mission to get Kevin out of the hospital for a couple of hours to have dinner with them. Kevin hadn't been outside since the day Jamie had been admitted a week and a half earlier, and while it had been cute the first couple of days, his adamancy on staying with Jamie was wearing thin on everyone.

"I don't think so, D. I don't want to leave her."

"Yes, but she wants you to go," said a quiet voice from behind Kevin. He turned to see Jamie nodding her head. "Go on, be off with you, have a nice dinner."

He cocked his head, "I don't think you. . ."

"Kevin," she said, exasperated, "go have dinner with them."

"You shouldn't be alone."

"You shouldn't be driving me crazy. I'll be perfectly fine, now go!"

"But. . ."

"GO!" she said. He came over to her and sat down on the bed. He picked up her hand, and said quietly, "I don't feel right about this. Are you sure?"

She rolled her eyes, "Kevin, I love you. But I would like a couple of hours where I don't have to see you or talk to you. Please go have dinner with AJ and Howie, okay? I'll be fine." She pulled her hand out of his grasp, and pushed him off the bed. "Boys, take him will you? He's all yours."

"We are going to bring him back, you know," smiled AJ as he came up beside Kevin, putting a hand on Kevin's arm.

Jamie sighed theatrically, "Oh fine, if you have to, I guess I'll take him back. Maybe by then I'll be asleep, so I won't notice." The sarcasm dripped from her voice but her eyes twinkled with the love she felt for Kevin.

He shot her a look. "I get the hint, I give up. I'm going. But it'll only be for a couple of hours, and then I'm coming right back here."

"Fine, but in order to come back, you first need to leave," she said, pointing at the door. Kevin leaned over and kissed her. AJ and Howie also came over and kissed Jamie goodbye, causing Kevin to scowl and Jamie to giggle.

"All of you, shoo! Go someplace with very slow service," she laughed. The three of them left, and Jamie sighed. "Finally, some peace and quiet."

She loved the constant attention she got from Kevin, but she wasn't used to it at all. It was a strange transition for her. At first, she wanted it because she was concerned about him. But as she got better, he seemed to get even more protective. Being an independent person, she didn't take well to it. She was at the point where if AJ hadn't suggested dinner, she would have asked the two of them to take him when they left. Jamie reached over for the book lying on the stand, and soon got engrossed in Melanie Rawn's latest Sunrunner tale.

The door opened slowly. Jamie was fast asleep, a book lying face down on her stomach. Perfect. It had taken a lot of watching and waiting. She knew Kevin was gone; he had finally escaped with AJ and Howie an hour earlier. She felt sorry for Kevin since the little tramp never let him out of her sight.

She slowly walked over to Jamie's bedside, and looked at the IV hanging from the stand next to the bed. She regarded her silently for a moment, then smiling, she reached into her pocket and pulled out an empty syringe. This is going to be so easy, she thought. Just inject the syringe directly in the IV line, let the little air bubble work its way through the system, and once it got to Jamie's heart, she would be with Kevin once again.

AJ, Howie, and Kevin returned to the room a half-hour later to find everyone in a state of uproar. Two uniformed policemen stood in the doorway, refusing to let the three of them in. Detective Logan was in the room, questioning Jamie, when Kevin barged past the officers into the room.

"What the hell is going on?" he demanded. One of the policemen followed Kevin in and had him firmly by the arm, fully intending to drag him out of the room. Logan shook his head, and Kevin was released. AJ and Howie quickly came into the room, both bewildered.

"Well?" Kevin saw that Jamie looked very pale, and slightly shell-shocked.

Detective Logan spoke up, "There was another attempt on your wife's life, Mr. Richardson."

"WHAT? What happened?" he asked. Detective Logan gave Kevin a quick explanation.

The stalker, for lack of a better term, entered Jamie's room, intending to try again. But as she started to depress the plunger of the syringe, the stalker chuckled or made some other noise which had awakened Jamie. Jamie wanted to know what was going on, and apparently the stalker panicked at that point. She dropped the syringe and left the room and the hospital.

Jamie called the nurses' station, wanting to know who had come into the room and why she left suddenly. A nurse answered and came into the room, but before Jamie could say anything, the nurse noticed the empty syringe still dangling from the IV line where it had been left. The nurse acted quickly, removing the syringe, and calling for the doctor as well as security.

Because she was not fully awake and the room was darkened, Jamie hadn't gotten a very good look at the intruder. The only description she could give was that the person was wearing a nurse's uniform, and had long blonde hair. She had asked what the nurse had been doing, since every other time a nurse or doctor came in to see her, they had always been good about telling her what they were doing and why.

No one had seen the intruder come in or leave the room, and after a quick search, neither the police nor security found the woman. There was a nurse's cap lying on the floor by one of the stairwells, but that was the only sign of the woman.

"She must have been wearing rubber gloves or something, because there were no fingerprints on the syringe at all. I really can't tell you anymore," concluded Logan.

Kevin turned to see AJ and Howie standing behind him. "I knew I shouldn't have listened to either of you! If I hadn't left, this never would have happened, this is your fault!" he said angrily, pointing at the two of them.

"Our fault?" asked Howie, taking offense at Kevin's accusation and tone of voice. "How can you say that?"

"I would have been here, I would have been able. . ."

"You wouldn't have been able to do anything, Kevin," put in AJ, trying to calm Kevin down.

"She would have been safe! I can make sure of that," said Kevin.

"In all honesty, Mr. Richardson, there's nothing you could have done to prevent this. The suspect would have gotten to your wife somehow, she appears to be that determined," said the detective. Kevin rounded on him, sparks snapping from his green eyes.

"If that's true, it's because you aren't doing your job correctly! Your whole department is lacking, Detective. If you can't or won't protect my wife, then I will!"

"And how do you plan on doing that?"

"Apparently our security team is better than the entire Lexington police force. Carlos and the others will protect Jamie, the same way they've been protecting me for years! I trust them with my life, they'll keep Jamie safe from now on. Maybe that will free you up a bit more to actually go catch this woman!"

Startled by Kevin's vehemence, the room fell silent. Then AJ spoke up quietly, "And if Carlos is watching Jamie, who will be watching you? In case you didn't notice, when we left for dinner, Carlos and Marcus came with us."

"He'll be watching me as well. I'm not making the same mistake again. I'm not leaving Jamie alone this time, ever." Kevin stayed in the room, but walked over to where his bodyguard was lounging in the doorway. Keeping an eye on Jamie, Kevin quietly outlined what he wanted to Carlos, who nodded as he listened.

"There, it's all settled. Logan, you can take the officers and go do whatever it is you're doing to find this woman. We'll be fine here," said Kevin. Logan raised an eyebrow, and started to speak when Jamie decided she had had enough.

"No, it's not all settled. Could everyone else please leave? There are a few things that need to be straightened out." Jamie never raised her voice, but the effect was the same as if she had barked out the orders. Everyone took one look at the frail figure in bed, with her arms crossed in front of her and a distinctly angry look on her face, then headed for the doorway.

Once the room contained only Kevin and Jamie, he calmly turned back to face her. "All right, now that you got everyone to leave, why don't you get some sleep? I'm here, so you don't have to worry anymore."

If anything, Jamie looked angrier. "Kevin, there are a few things we need to discuss first."

"There's nothing to discuss. I've taken care of everything."

"That is exactly what we need to talk about."