Eraser Amber

by Megan Keith

  Copyright © Megan Keith 2014

  All Rights Reserved

  Cover Design by Cover to Cover Designs

  Cover Photo – © iStock Photos/Getty Images

  Edited by Renee Kubisch

  This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people or real places are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  All song titles and lyrics quoted herein remain the property of the respective copyright holders.

  No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the written permission of the author, unless in quote form.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be resold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your retailer and purchase your own copy.

  Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This novella is for MATURE 18+ READERS ONLY! It contains explicit sex scenes with BDSM type scenarios.

  You must read the first four instalments BEFORE starting this!

  “Love is an untamed force.

  When we try to control it, it destroys us.

  When we try to imprison it, it enslaves us.

  When we try to understand it, it leaves us lost and confused.”

  ~ Paulo Coelho

  The sirens were loud. Lights flashing. People everywhere. Through blurred vision, Nate stood and watched as Greg was led to the police car. Complete with bloody nose and banged up eye, Greg had his head hung low. Nate hoped his guilt was setting in. He looked broken. And fucking deserved to be! Nate had punched the bastard in the face, repeatedly. He wanted to kill him. Probably would have if the police hadn’t intervened.

  “What happened?” He heard Tom’s voice from somewhere in the crowd. “Nate!” He lifted his head in time to see Tom pushing his way through. “Nate! Are you okay? What the fuck? Are you hurt?”

  “No.”

  Tom had his arms on Nate’s shoulders, shaking him. “Nate!”

  “I’m okay.” He half-heartedly assured his brother, while staring past him. “I’m not injured.”

  “What’s going on?”

  “Mackenzie, I need to get to her,” Nate mumbled. A burning sensation in his chest had him breathing hard. “I need to be …”

  “Nate!” Tom yelled, shaking him again. “What happened? Where’s Mackenzie?”

  Mackenzie!

  “Hospital.” His eyes snapped back to his brother. The concerned look on Tom’s face pulling him from his daze. “Paramedics took her … the car hit and they wouldn’t let me go … they stopped me from-” Nate rushed forward, Tom’s hands pressed to his chest, stopping him from going anywhere.

  “Which hospital?”

  “Northwestern. Take me to Northwestern!” Nate demanded in a sudden frenzy. His legs felt weak. “Mackenzie, oh god …” He ran his hands over his face and his shoulders slumped.

  “Simon! Where are you?” Tom shouted into his cell a split second later. “Okay.” He put his phone back into his jacket pocket and tugged on Nate’s arm. “This way!”

  They pushed their way through the throng of people. Nate stopped in his tracks when he saw the twisted metal bench seat that took the brunt of the force when the car hit. His eyes transfixed on the blood on the path. Mackenzie’s blood. The sickening sound … the flash of Greg’s blue car … Mackenzie’s body limp on the ground … he remembered it all in a flash of pain to his head and chest.

  He wanted to throw up.

  There were people cleaning her blood from the pavement. Other people walked by as they continued their day, oblivious to his heartache; walking the city streets as if nothing had happened, as if Mackenzie’s life hadn’t just come to a screeching halt.

  Tom was practically dragging him along the crowded path. He couldn’t get his legs to work correctly. He couldn’t stop shaking. He felt so damn lost.

  It’s all my fault!

  “Get in!” Tom shoved him into the waiting car, yelling instructions to Simon before sliding in after him.

  Nate felt Tom’s arm on his shoulder. He could tell by the soothing tone of his voice that Tom was trying to comfort him, but he couldn’t make out one word he was saying. He couldn’t comprehend, or even hear anything clearly over the sound of his own heartbeat thrumming in his ears.

  “Nate!” Tom shook him and forced Nate to focus. “You need to calm the hell down and tell me what happened.”

  “Mackenzie and I were on the pavement,” Nate took a shaky breath. “She fell.”

  “Onto the road?”

  “No.” He shook his head and swallowed roughly. “We were on the sidewalk. I tried to help but she kicked me.”

  “She kicked you? Nate you’re not making any sense. Why was Mackenzie kicking you?”

  “We were arguing. She was angry at me and trying to get away, she fell. She was on the ground because of me.” He squeezed his eyes shut, visions of the hurt in her beautiful jade eyes crushing him, making his insides ache and his stomach roll. “It’s all my fault. I could have got her out of the way if we hadn’t been fighting. She didn’t stand a chance because of me.”

  It felt like hours had passed by the time the car stopped outside the hospital. Nate suddenly found some strength, flinging himself from the vehicle when it was still rolling to a stop. He broke into a sprint.

  “Mackenzie!” he yelled loudly when he entered the emergency department. He thumped his hand on the reception desk. “Where is she?”

  “Sir, you need to calm down,” the woman behind the desk said.

  “Mackenzie Reed,” Tom interjected, squeezing Nate’s shoulder to still him and halt him from speaking. “She was hit by a car and brought in by paramedics,” he explained on Nate’s behalf.

  “Yes, she was taken straight through to the OR.” The woman focused on Nate and asked, “Are you hurt?”

  Nate squinted in confusion at the woman. Why is she asking me?

  “It’s not his blood,” Tom replied on Nate’s behalf and the woman nodded in understanding.

  Nate looked down at himself. He felt woozy at the sight. He hadn’t noticed he was covered in blood. Her blood. His no longer white business shirt was wet and clinging to his skin. He shivered. Holding his hands out in front of him, he shakily turned them over and over. Dazed. Dark red stained his hands, dried blood cracking on his knuckles and palms.

  “I’ll let you know as soon as I hear anything.”

  Tom pulled a grief-stricken Nate away from the desk and toward a row of seats in the waiting area. “Come on, sit down.”

  “I don’t want to fucking sit down!” Nate said, his eyes unfocused and wide. “I need to see her. I need to be with her.” He allowed Tom to push him into a seat regardless. “Fuck!” His wide eyes met Tom’s worried ones. “Ah fuck, Tom, it’s all my fault.” He buried his head in his hands. His vision blurred and his body swayed in his seat.

  “It was an accident,” Tom said from beside him.

  “It was no accident! She wasn’t on the road, he hit her on the pavement. He probably meant to run me down. Not her.” He scrubbed his hands over his face and turned his head to look at his brother.

  “Who? What are you talking about?”

  “Greg! He came from out of nowhere-”

  “Greg? Greg hit her?” Now it was Tom’s turn to go pale. “What the fuck?”

  “If I hadn’t provoked him. If I hadn’t fought with him the other week…”

  “No! You can’t
think like that.” Tom stood and started pacing. “That sick bastard! Where is he now? I’m gonna fucking kill him!”

  “The police took him. Don’t worry I got in a few good punches before they did.”

  Tom stilled. “I’m sorry Nate. If only I had of-”

  “If I hadn’t been arguing with Mackenzie … I shouldn’t have-oh god! What if she doesn’t make it?” He choked on his words, covering his face in his trembling hands, his fingers tugging on his dark hair. “It’s all my fault.”

  “How the fuck is that your fault? It’s not Nate, it’s not.”

  “Fuck! That should be me in there, not her.”

  “No, it should be Greg.” Tom focused on Nate’s shaky, bloodied hands. “C’mon, let’s get you cleaned up.”

  “It’s been more than two fucking hours! Surely you know something by now!” Nate was irate. He was going crazy, pacing the linoleum of the hospital waiting room.

  The woman behind the desk blinked up at him. “I’m sorry. I will tell you as soon as I hear. You need to be patient.”

  “Ugh!” He slammed his fist on her desk, causing her to jump.

  “Nate.” Tom tugged on his arm and Nate allowed him to pull him in the direction of the chairs, his body slumped in defeat. “They’ll let us know as-”

  He was interrupted by the sound of a corridor door swinging open. A man dressed in scrubs came out, heading directly for them. “Are you here for Mackenzie Reed?”

  “Yes!” Nate exclaimed, rushing toward him.

  “Are you family?”

  “Yes, I’m her fiancé,” Nate quickly lied. The doctor looked back and forth between Nate and Tom with uncertainty. “I’m all she’s got,” he added for good measure.

  The doctor sighed before answering, “I’m Dr. Sm-”

  “Is she okay?” Nate interrupted.

  “Mackenzie has a gash to her arm and a graze on the back of her head. There was a deep laceration to her left thigh, but we managed to get the bleeding under control during surgery. She has a fractured tibia – her shin bone – which required plastering. CT scans are clear, no internal bleeding or other injuries, which would be typical for this type of accident. She’s very lucky. She’s unconscious, but stable.”

  “Can I see her?”

  “This way.”

  Nate and Tom followed the doctor down the corridor and into a room with three other patients. Nate froze on the spot, before Tom urged him forward, to her cubicle. She was so pale under the bright hospital lights. She had a bandage on her arm. A white sheet was draped over her but he could see the plaster on her leg that was uncovered. He stood at the end of the bed and took a shaky breath.

  “She’s yet to wake from the anaesthetic, but she’s also been heavily medicated for pain relief. It may take her a few hours to stir. She will be sore, bruised, probably disorientated and her head did hit the pavement so she-”

  “She has a head injury?” Nate butted in, the relief he felt at seeing her and hearing she was okay left him in an instant and was replaced by panic.

  “Initial scans were clear, though she will have a major headache. She may be a bit sluggish when she wakes but nothing to be concerned about. Her leg will need to be in plaster for six weeks.”

  “How long will she need to be in hospital?” Tom asked when Nate didn’t respond.

  “All going well, only a day or two.”

  Nate nodded.

  “We’ll need to get her moved to a private room as soon as possible,” Tom said to the doctor.

  “I’m not sure of her circumstances in that regard. You’ll have to speak to one of the nurses. I’ll leave you to it. Don’t try to wake her, she’ll come around when she’s ready.”

  “Thanks Doc,” Tom said on Nate’s behalf.

  As soon as the doctor had left the room Nate moved to Mackenzie’s side and took her hand. It was cold. Tom dragged a chair over for Nate to sit in.

  “I’ll go organize a transfer to a single room,” Tom whispered, giving Nate a pat on the back. Nate nodded and Tom started toward the door.

  Nate continued to stare at Mackenzie as he spoke. “I love her, Tom. She can’t leave me.”

  “You heard the doctor. She’s going to be okay,” his brother said, before he exited the room.

  Nate nodded. Though he had reason to believe she may leave him anyway – she was so angry and hurt when she found that file … and now this. When recovered, she might just walk away. And where would that leave me?

  “Mackenzie, I love you.” he said, placing a kiss on her hand. “I’m so, so sorry.”

  Nate wasn’t sure how much time had passed. They’d moved Mackenzie to a private room and he had moved with her. He was seated beside her, holding her hand when a nurse came in to check her vitals. He watched on in silence as the older woman went about her job. The nurse crinkled her brow and checked Mackenzie’s chart.

  “Shouldn’t she be awake by now?” he asked, concerned.

  She looked at her watch and then gave Nate a friendly, reassuring smile. “She’s in recovery mode. Sometimes the body just needs time to heal. I’m sure she’ll wake up soon.”

  Nate turned back to look at the sleeping beauty in front of him when the nurse had left. He flexed his hand around hers before tightly clasping it again. He hadn’t let go of her hand since he’d been with her and even though his own hand was cramping he had no intention of letting it go any time soon.

  “Please wake my papillon. Don’t leave me now. I need a chance to explain.” Using his free hand he ran his fingers through her hair and down the side of her cheek.

  He rested his head on the bed beside her and took a deep shaky breath. After the way I hurt her – the look on her face – what if she never forgives me?

  “Still nothing?” Tom asked, entering the room a few minutes later. Nate shook his head against the mattress but didn’t look up. “I got hold of Andrea, like you asked. She said she’d be here as soon as she can. I’ve got you some clean clothes and I’ve also got your iPod and dock here.”

  “Huh? Why?” Nate asked, finally lifting his head.

  “Music is supposed to help.” Tom shrugged.

  “She’s not in a fucking coma!” Nate said angrily.

  Tom lifted his hands in surrender. “I’m only trying to help!”

  “I know. I’m sorry.”

  “Maybe the music will help you relax.” Tom fished the dock out of the duffle bag at his feet before picking the bag up and thrusting it at Nate. “Here, go get changed.” When Nate didn’t budge, he prompted, “The bathroom is right over there. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll call out if she stirs. Go!”

  Nate lifted Mackenzie’s limp hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her skin before reluctantly standing. Taking the bag from Tom, he made his way to the bathroom. Once inside, Nate inhaled a deep breath and splashed his face with water. Leaning over the vanity he looked at his reflection in the small mirror. You’ve been nothing but a shit tonne of trouble since you met her; she’d be better off without you, he thought as he dragged a wet hand across his face.

  He exhaled and let out a growl of frustration. Whether she was better off or not, Nate wasn’t about to give up. He was too damn selfish for that. He needed her. He loved her. He could only hope that she loved him too, that she could forgive him, yet again, for another of his mistakes.

  He kicked off his shoes. Then peeled the scrubs from his body, his bloodied clothes tossed in the bin hours ago. He replaced them with a pair of track pants and a hooded sweater from the duffle bag, before putting on a pair of runners.

  “Better?” Tom asked when Nate exited the bathroom.

  “Much. Thanks, Tom. I appreciate everything you’ve done today.”

  “Fuck, it’s the least I could do. I’m going to get myself a coffee and you something to eat from the cafeteria. I’ll be back soon.”

  Nate nodded, his eyes trained on Mackenzie. He knew he needed something to settle his empty stomach but he wasn’t so sure he’d be able to keep it
down. He returned to his earlier position on the chair beside her. He noticed Tom had set up the iPod and dock on the small bedside table. He hit play. Turning the music down low he once again took hold of Mackenzie’s hand.

  “How is she?” a muddled Andrea asked, bursting through the door.

  “They say the worst she has is a broken leg, but I’m not so sure – she still hasn’t woken,” Nate answered.

  Andrea dragged a chair to the opposite side of Mackenzie’s bed. She sat, dropped her bag on the floor by her feet and gave Mackenzie the once over.

  “What happened? Did she not look where she was going?”

  “It was my fault. We were arguing-”

  “Stop saying that,” Tom interrupted, from where he was positioned in the darkened corner of the room. Andrea turned her head in fright. She obviously hadn’t realized anyone else was with them. “It wasn’t your fault. It was Greg!”

  “Greg?” Andrea asked. “Who’s Greg?”

  “My ex. If anyone’s to blame it’s me, for bringing that scumbag into all our lives.”

  “So what happened?” Andrea asked.

  “Greg hit her with his car. We think he was trying to hurt Nate, or maybe he meant to hurt him through Mackenzie. I don’t know. But he’s been arrested.”

  “I should hope so.” Andrea caught Nate’s eye and the disgust rolling off her was unmistakeable. Nate shuddered.

  “I’m Tom, by the way,” Tom said, taking the couple of steps required to reach Andrea. He held out his hand, “I’m the one who called you.”

  “Oh, hi Tom. Nathaniel’s brother, right?” Andrea shook his proffered hand.

  “That’s right.” Tom’s cell rang. “I better answer this, excuse me,” he said, looking at the screen and quickly leaving the room.

  “It should be me in this bed, not her,” Nate mumbled.

  He avoided looking at the blonde across from him but he could feel her eyes on him. The silence in the room was unbearable and Nate was relieved when Andrea finally opened her mouth. He’d readied himself for her tirade, he expected the blame for putting her friend in here. He wasn’t ready for what came out instead.