Page 68 of One Quick Obsession

“And then he left.”

Isabella winced. “For a good reason.”

I wasn’t even sure she believed that.

Before I could say anything, the nurses and doctors were there, telling me that I was just fine, and I could go home. I listened to them and they explained things, and then I spoke with the sheriff, and knew I would have to talk with him again.

And it felt like I spoke to countless people, except for the one person I wanted to speak to.

Nearly ready to be checked out, nausea whirled, and I realized that I was going to have to go home.

Alone.

Because it wasn’t as if Hudson would be there for me.

Before I could say anything, there was a knock at the door, and it felt like the floor had fallen out from beneath my feet.

Hudson stood there, a scowl on his face, a storm in his eyes, but he wasn’t who had surprised me.

My mother walked towards me, her face deadly pale, eyes wide, but then her arms were around me, and I was holding her, and I broke into tears.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. But I’m here now. I’m out of the house and I’m here now. You are safe. And I love you so much.”

“Mom.” That was the only word I could say, my voice cracking.

And as we held each other, I looked up and met Hudson’s eyes and realized why he had left.

He had brought my mom to me.

The one person in the world who would understand.

And I knew right then and there I loved Hudson Cage with all of my heart.

And I would never get over him.

Chapter Fifteen

Hudson

“We shouldn’t have come. We should have just stayed at the house, so you could have your feet up, and you didn’t have to deal with the stress. My family is more than enough for anyone, and after everything you just went through, you seriously don’t need this right now.”

Scarlett merely turned to me while we sat in the cab of my truck, idling in front of Aston’s lake house, and blinked slowly. “I’m fine. If I have to sit down and keep my feet up, I will be bored out of my mind and will wallow in everything that just happened. I would rather move on. Can we please just move on?”

“You can’t even turn to me fully without wincing, Scarlett.”

She set her hand on her side over where I knew her bandage lay and shook her head. “Yes, that’s true. But I didn’t get stitches, and I’m perfectly fine.”

“Don’t lie to me.” I gripped the steering wheel tighter, the whites of my knuckles showing. “You were hurt. And if I hadn’t been there in time, you could have been hurt even more.”

“Everything worked out, and I’m already stressed out your entire family knows the fact that my father is a terrible person. So I would rather put this past us and not think about it. Okay?”

“Considering we’re going to a family dinner that’s going to continue to go over all the bullshit that my jerk and adulterer of a father has put us through, you don’t need to be worried about standing out with father issues.”

Scarlett’s lips twitched, even as her eyes softened. “That’s true. We can do shots later about who has the worst daddy issues, and I honestly don’t know who would win right now.”

I leaned forward and brushed her hair back from her face.

“Let’s just go inside, to this huge dinner with people that I should know all of their names and I haven’t figured them out, and then go home.”