by Zavarelli, A
As I looked around me, I could understand why. I was crushed into a tiny pocket of metal, with no way out. And judging by the pain, I was in bad shape.
I couldn’t get to Brayden. I couldn’t stop Ryland from whatever he was about to do. A sob escaped from my chest as I tried to push the metal away. It groaned, but didn’t move.
“What was that?” another man’s voice spoke.
Brayden cursed, followed by the sound of sploshing beside me. We must have been partially submerged, but I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t see my feet, but I felt the water.
A knife tore through the airbag followed by the face of a man I didn’t recognize.
“There’s a girl in here,” he said in confusion. “Shit, and she’s bleeding all over the place.”
When I looked back down at my leg, I realized he was right. I clutched the wound and tried to stem the bleeding, but it wasn’t any use. There was too much, and I was too weak.
The last thing I heard before the darkness swallowed me again was the sound of Ryland shouting my name.
***
I woke to the steady drone of beeping, and the brightness of fluorescent lights above me.
The smell of disinfectant told me I was in a hospital. I had tubes and wires attached to my body, and I felt like I’d been flattened by a steam roller. But it wasn’t like the movies. I didn’t have the luxury of temporary amnesia or confusion. I remembered exactly why I was there.
So when I caught a glimpse of Ryland’s face beside me, the first thing I did was try to scream.
“Get out!”
It came out like dry sand, scratchy and indecipherable.
“Brighton?” he tried to clutch my hand, and I pulled it away, searching desperately for the call button.
“Get out!” I tried again.
This time it came with more force, and much to my relief, the more I repeated it the louder my voice became.
Ryland stepped back as though I had slapped him and held up his hands in defeat.
“I won’t touch you…” he said softly. “Please just calm down.”
The nurse showed up a moment later, giving me a concerned expression as she stepped inside of the room.
“Miss. Valentine, are you okay? Are you in pain?”
“I want him out of here.” I pointed a shaky finger in Ryland’s direction. “I don’t want to see his face.”
She looked confused for a moment but nodded and pointed towards the door.
“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Ryland snapped. “She just woke up. She needs some time to come to terms…”
“I’ll call security,” the nurse threatened, reaching for the phone beside me.
Ryland clamped his jaw shut and gave me a pleading expression.
“Please, Brighton,” he begged. “Hear me out. Please… don’t kick me out. I need to be with you, to make sure you’re okay.”
I didn’t respond. The nurse looked at me for approval and I nodded before she started dialing.
Ryland sighed in defeat and walked towards the door slowly.
“I’ll be in the waiting room,” he declared. “I’m not going anywhere, Brighton. I’ll wait as long as it takes.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
“Your brother is fine,” the doctor explained. “He’s resting right now. He has a few cuts and bruises and a broken arm, but nothing too serious.”
“Are you sure?” I asked him again. “I want to see him.”
“You will,” he assured me. “But we had to give him a sedative when he came in. He won’t be awake for another few hours. In the meantime, I need to talk to you about your condition.”
The last thing I cared about was my condition, and I tuned him out while I plotted how I could get to Brayden’s room. But then something he said caught my attention, and all the blood drained from my face.
“Eight weeks pregnant, give or take…”
“I’m sorry,” I stopped him. “Could you repeat that?”
“I said are you aware that you’re eight weeks pregnant?” the doctor arched a brow.
“That’s not possible,” I stuttered. “I’m on the shot.”
The doctor frowned and flipped through his chart. “When was your last shot?”
I tried to tally up the months in my head when a sick feeling washed over me. I vaguely remembered getting a message from the doctor that Ryland had organized for me before Brayden had stormed into his office. That was two and a half months ago. Nearly six months total since I’d had the shot.
“It’s been six months,” I sobbed. “Oh my God… I’m such an idiot.”
“I’m afraid the shot only lasts for three,” the doctor replied. “But you do have options, Miss Valentine. I could send someone to discuss them with you if you’d like…”
“Is it… is my baby okay?” I blurted. “The accident…”
“The baby is okay.” He gave me a hopeful smile. “We managed to detect a heartbeat, and all looks well. You do have a rather large cut on your leg though, and a mild concussion, so we will need to keep you for observation.”
He continued to talk, but I didn’t hear a word. I was going to be a mother. To Ryland’s baby. Another sob escaped my chest and the doctor clutched his chart before checking my IV.
“I think perhaps you should get some rest,” he said gently. “You’ve been through quite an ordeal tonight. Everything will feel better in the morning.”
There was hope in his voice, and I didn’t want to dash his optimistic attitude. Because it wasn’t going to be alright. But either way, I would be a mother, and my whole world was going to have to change.
***
Brayden came to see me in the middle of the night, followed by an angry nurse in his wake.
“Sir, I told you, you can’t be in here right now.”
“It’s okay,” I told her. “Please, let him stay. He just wants to make sure I’m alright.”
She gave him another stern expression before handing him some paperwork.
“Fine, but you still need to sign the discharge papers.”
She walked out and closed the door behind her, and Brayden reached down to clutch me in his arms.
“I’m so sorry,” he rasped. “I’m so sorry, Brighton. Are you okay? God you were bleeding all over the place. I thought I’d lost you.”
“I’m okay,” I assured him. “What about you?”
“I’m fine.” He collapsed into the seat beside me where Ryland had been earlier.
He looked exhausted, and his clothes still had blood on them.
“Why did you discharge yourself?” I asked. “You should be resting.”
“I’m fine,” he replied. “And I can’t stay here, Brighton. Now that I know you’re okay…”
He trailed off, but I knew exactly what he was thinking.
“Brayden, please…”
“He tricked me just to get me here. I played right into his hands. Frankie’s wife has known about us all along. She doesn’t give a shit.”
“How do you know that?” I asked.
“Norma-Jean spoke to her,” he explained. “She called to try to reason with her. It turned out, Frankie had been lying to us all along. He never had any ties to the mob. He was a hired gun for some sort of loan shark, but he told us that so he wouldn’t have to be responsible for us.”
“So we’re not in danger then?” I asked in confusion.
“Not from Frankie’s family. It’s why he’s dead. He paid for his sins, but it doesn’t change anything. I have to end this, Brighton,” he said calmly. “I know you think you love Ryland, but this is never going to stop.”
“No.” My lip quivered, and I looked away. “It isn’t ever going to stop. Because you both keep trying to kill each other. I can’t fucking handle this anymore, Brayden.”
My voice rose, and I was becoming hysterical, but I didn’t care.
&nb
sp; The door burst open a moment later, with Ryland and the same angry nurse.
“That’s it,” she growled. “I’m calling security.”
“I want them both gone,” I snapped. “I don’t want to see either of you again.”
They both looked at me with pained expressions while the nurse made the call.
“Brighton…” they pleaded simultaneously.
“You can both keep playing this twisted game,” I cried. “But I’m done. I’m out. I have nothing left to give anymore. ”
An eery silence fell over the room while they both processed my words. I meant what I said, and they could see that.
I was done. I wouldn’t be like Norma. I wouldn’t raise my child living in fear and holing myself away.
Security arrived a few minutes later, and neither one of them said another word as they were dragged from the room. It was the first peaceful feeling I’d had in six months.
***
Thank you so much for reading part one of Brighton and Ryland’s story. If you enjoyed it, please consider leaving an honest review on Amazon or Goodreads.
Want to keep up to date on my new book releases and special offers? You can sign up for my newsletter at my Newsletter Signup Page.
Your email will be kept confidential and secure and never redistributed for any purposes. You can also find more information on my upcoming work at my Website, or on Twitter.
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to the lovely Dani Kermon and Amy Halter for all of your wonderful feedback and help with getting this book off the ground.
Works by A. Zavarelli
Falling into Temptation
Falling into Exposure
Falling into Surrender
Falling Series Boxed Set
Coming Soon:
An Escort for Christmas
One Last Gift
Stutter: A Bleeding Hearts Novel Volume Two