Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 108531 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 543(@200wpm)___ 434(@250wpm)___ 362(@300wpm)
He stepped away and picked up his pants.
She stood there feeling like she’d missed some chance she hadn’t even known she’d wanted, something infinitely precious slipping through her fingers but she couldn’t quite make it stop. There should be something she could say that would make this all better.
But there wasn’t and she didn’t understand why. Why couldn’t she accept that he knew what he wanted? Because it was too soon? What was the right amount of time? Was there some countdown clock she could check that would tell her okay, now it’s all right to think the man knows his mind? Was there an alarm that would go off that let her know it was now time for her to accept the feelings she knew she had?
A knock on the door brought her out of those inner questions, making her remember that they’d basically told the whole town they were going to skip dinner in favor of having sex in an upstairs room.
It would be a story they would talk about forever. Her kids would hear the story of how their dad . . .
She’d just thought about having kids with Quaid Havery. Tears pierced her eyes because it wouldn’t work. How could they have kids when their families were in such disarray? When her own mom wouldn’t talk to her? When his mom thought she wasn’t good enough?
“Hey, you must have turned off your cell,” Remy was saying. Quaid stood at the door, a crack letting him hear what his friend had to say. “The sheriff’s office called and there’s been an accident. It’s Paul and your mom. You should get to the clinic fast. Lila is calling in a CareFlight.”
She heard Quaid curse softly and then she dropped every worry she had along with that sheet as she dressed as quickly as she could.
It didn’t matter that the town would know what they’d been doing or that his mother wouldn’t want her there.
All that mattered was supporting him.
* * *
• • •
Quaid slammed the car into park in front of Lila LaVigne’s tiny clinic that served as the only medical care for miles around. The Papillon Parish Clinic’s lights were all on, a beacon on the darkened street. It was only nine thirty, but Papillon closed early on a night like this. Only places like Guidry’s were still open. The town square was dark, the clinic’s lights punctuating the fact that there was an emergency.
Jayna opened the door and slid out of the passenger seat.
When Remy had first told him the news, he’d thought she would want to stay out of it. He’d done a number on her by trying to keep her out of his family business, and now he realized how dumb an idea that had been. When the chips were suddenly down, he didn’t want her to go back home and leave him to deal with the fallout, no matter how bad it was. The minute he’d heard his brother and mother were in trouble, he’d wanted Jayna to hold his damn hand and come with him.
And that was exactly what she’d done, no questions asked. No arguments or maybe I should stay behinds. She’d dressed as quickly as she could and put her hand in his. She’d hustled out of Guidry’s, and now she was moving to get inside the clinic as fast as he needed her to.
“Hey, Quaid.” Armie stood outside the clinic’s automatic doors wearing his uniform and there was . . .
He couldn’t mistake that brown stain for anything but exactly what it was. Blood. Armie’s shirt was stained with it, and it definitely did not appear to be his.
What was he about to walk into? Anxiety rose hard and fast, making his chest tight. He wasn’t happy with either of the people in that clinic, but he also wasn’t ready for either of them to no longer be here. God, he wasn’t ready for any of this.
Jayna’s hand found his. “What’s happening, Sheriff? Remy didn’t say much.”
Quaid took a long breath, her solid presence beside him giving him the strength he needed. “All we know is a CareFlight is on its way.”
“I’m sorry to scare you like that,” Armie replied, leading them inside. “There wasn’t much time to explain. I couldn’t get your cell, and I don’t know Jayna’s number. I found out you were at Guidry’s earlier so I called Remy on the off chance you were still there.”
The lights inside seemed too bright, the walls a clinical white that bounced that light all around. “What happened?”
“Paul had taken your mom out to dinner at Lucille’s. When they came out after they finished, he was mugged in the parking lot. The attacker used a knife,” Armie explained. “Roxie is still out there trying to find a witness and Landon is checking any and all cameras in the area, but you know how that goes.”