I’m not sure it’ll ever feel like home again.
“Somebody hit us,” she whispers as her parents hurry into the room.
“Oh, honey. You’re awake.” Scarlet moves to the other side of Olivia’s bed. She brushes her hair away from her face and staresin awe at her daughter as Cade stands watch behind her. “You scared the hell out of us, Livvy.”
“Sorry,” Liv rasps. “What happened?”
She looks so damn fragile lying in that bed, bathed in the lights from the machines monitoring her.
I’d give anything to wrap my arms around her and just sleep until we woke up to a different world. One where today never happened. But our reality isn’t that easy.
“We were picking up Serena when a truck hit us head-on. Both vehicles spun out and went over the edge of the bridge into the river.” I press my lips against her knuckles, unwilling and unable to let go. “You hit your head. The doctors said we were lucky. It could have been so much worse.”
I rattle off the facts like I’ve already done a hundred times since the paramedics pulled Jasper’s body from my arms.
“Oh no. The other driver?—”
“Was Damien Voss,” I fill in for her. “According to the officers who came by an hour ago, he’d been stalking us. And not just me, but the entire family. He blamed us all for ruining his life. They found enough evidence at his apartment to put him away for twenty years.”
“Monica’s fiancé?” she asks, and I nod, so fucking tired.
“According to the officers,” Scarlet continues for me. “He was using her as a ploy to get closer to the Triple Crown. He had some serious issues. Monica is being interviewed at the station now.”
Cade’s grip tightens on his wife, and in that moment, I understand Olivia’s father more than I ever could have before. I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to let Liv go again.
As men, we’re told if we’re strong enough, we’ll be able to keep the people we love safe. But strength only goes so far.
“I swear to God if I have to pull in every favor I’ve ever earned, I’ll make sure he pays for this.” She squeezes my hand,her eyes begging me to stay with her. “We’ll make sure neither of them ever gets near Maggie again.”
“That won’t be a problem,” Cade tells Liv.
“What do you mean?” she asks, confused, and leans on me as she tries to sit up. “Did you already handle it?”
I’m not sure what she’s expecting, but when Scarlet looks at me for permission, I nod.
“Monica had gone to the police an hour before the accident. She told them what he’d been doing and what he planned to do. He was on his way to the Triple Crown when he saw the three of you.”
“So he’s been arrested?” she asks and turns her face to me, looking for an answer.
“No, Liv. He hasn’t been arrested. He died two hours ago from his injuries.” All of it still feels like a dream I’m going to wake up from. And I wish I’d just fucking wake the hell up already.
Scarlet runs her hand along the strands of Liv’s hair, careful not to touch her head. “But you’re okay, Livvy. You have to focus on that. You’re okay. A bump on your head. That’s all. You’ll be home tomorrow.”
“Be prepared.” Cade forces a tight smile. “After this, I think your mother is going to look at real estate in New Jersey.”
“Yeah. It’s definitely grown on me.”
My beautiful girl’s eyes close again, and Scarlet and Cade share a look before they both glance my way.
Cade drops a gentle kiss on Liv’s head. “We’ve got a hotel room for the night. We’ll just be around the corner if you need us.”
“I’m going to go tell Serena you’re awake.” Scarlet looks at me again. “We’ll run down to the cafeteria first, to buy you a few extra minutes.” She moves around the bed and cups my face in her hand. “Anything you need, Logan?”
“No, thank you.”
Cade squeezes my shoulder before wrapping an arm around Scarlet. “We’ll be back.”
I nod and watch as they walk out before climbing in bed with my wife and pulling her against my chest. My eyes burn, and my heart pounds as emotion clogs my fucking throat. “I love you, Olivia.”
