“This isn’t up for discussion.” She placed her hands on either side of my face. “You are in no condition to be driving.”
And if anything badhadhappened, she didn’t want me to be alone. The thought sent an icy chill shooting through me.
I sniffed, wiping my fingers beneath my lashes. “You shouldn’t be worrying about me. This was your big night, and I messed it all up.”
Kia shook her head. “Stop. You didn’t mess up anything. This is what friends do, McKenzie. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. We sit with each other in the shit. We’ve all done it for each other. Now just happens to be your turn.”
“Thank you,” I whispered.
Kia dug in her pocket and pulled out a key, handing it to Jen. “Will you two stay and lock up? Make sure McKenzie’s friend doesn’t need any help cleaning up?”
“Of course,” Ravi said as he and Jen both pulled me into a hug.
Jen kissed the top of my head. “Let us know as soon as you hear something.”
I nodded as Kia reached for my hand.
“We will,” she answered for me before grabbing both our purses from the cabinet beside the door and leading me out the back to her car.
In a matter of seconds, we were on the road.
“Do you have a key to his place?” she asked, keeping her voice even. “In case we can’t get him to answer the door?”
“Yeah,” I rasped, my eyes glued to the blur of the street lights as they passed by.
The forty-minute drive to Leipers Fork from East Nashville was quiet, except for the hammering of my heartbeat and the directions I gave Kia.
We finally pulled in the mostly darkened driveway, and my heart sank when we found it empty.I jumped out of the car before Kia had fully put it into park, fumbling for the key.
“Wait a minute,” Kia called after me, but I’d already jammed the key into the lock and flung the door open.
“Luca,” I yelled into the darkness, slapping my hand against the wall as I felt for the light switch.
The stillness shouted back at me, the only noise coming from the ticking of the old grandfather clock in the living room.
Kia was right behind me as I tore through the house, turning on every light, searching through every room. Even though I already knew he wasn’t outside, I still checked the garden. I frantically called his name as though he might materialize out of thin air and ask what all the fuss was about. But Luca was nowhere to be found.
I walked back into the kitchen, and that was when my heart nearly stopped. There at the corner of the table sat Randy McNutt. I stepped closer, my bottom lip quivering as I realized Luca’s house key was right beside him.
Tears blurred my vision. Why would he have left his key here?
Unless he didn’t plan on coming back.
“Oh my God.” My chest felt heavy, like I’d been lifting hundred-pound weights without a spotter, and they’d come crashing down on me. My breaths ripped through me in sharp gasps.
“McKenzie, talk to me,” Kia said, putting a hand on my arm.
“His…key.” I barely managed to get the words out before the room started to spin. A cold sweat seeped through my skin as my knees buckled.
Kia caught my arm and eased me to the floor, crouching beside me.
“Have…to find him…” I wheezed. I reached for the table in an attempt to pull myself up, but my trembling arms fell limp at my sides. “He…needs help.”
“You’re not going anywhere right now.” Kia’s voice was gentle but firm.
Each breath was like a knife twisting in my chest, white-hot pain burning my lungs. There was a high-pitched scream in my ears. WasIscreaming? Were my ears ringing? Was I having a heart attack?
“It’s a panic attack,” Kia said as though she could hear my thoughts, or maybe I’d said it out loud. Her voice sounded far away, like I was in the deep end of the pool, and she was shouting at me from dry land.
