Page 43 of Cheap Shot

I bent down to pick her up, and she stirred. Her eyes fluttered open. “Reid?”

“Haley.” I was so relieved. “We’re going to take you to the hospital, okay?”

She shook her head as her eyes flew open. “No! No hospitals.”

“You should get tested to find out if you were drugged,” I said.

Benjamin stepped forward. “We need to find out what’s in your system and make sure you’re okay.”

Panic filled her face. “No, they’ll tell my parents, and they’ll come and take me home. I can’t go.”

“No one will call your parents if you don’t want them to. You’re over eighteen,” Benjamin said.

Her eyes filled with tears. “No, please.”

I brushed away the tears on her cheeks. I wouldn’t force her. She was awake and talking. I could wait it out. “Okay.”

She relaxed just a bit. “Please. I just need to sleep.”

I nodded. “We’ll stay here. As long as you don’t get worse.”

She closed her eyes, and Benjamin moved around the room, appearing next to me again with a bottle of water. “Drink some of this.”

Her eyes peeked open, and her arms lifted a few inches but fell back to the bed, so I took it from him and held it to her lips. She drank a few sips before giving a small shake of her head. Her eyes fell closed again.

Her face went slack, and a few seconds later, her shoulders dropped onto Ethan’s bed and her breathing evened out.

“I really hope this isn’t a mistake,” Benjamin whispered.

Me too.

Chapter 15

Haley

Pain throbbed through my entire body. I could feel my heartbeat in my skull. I tried to lift my arm and nearly cried out from the shock of agony. I tried to open my eyes, but the dim light was too much. It stung and made my head feel like it was even closer to exploding. Okay, no moving. I would just lay here and die.

I focused on breathing and staying calm. The more my mind woke up, the clearer I was able to think. I pushed past the immediate discomfort and tried to assess the rest of my body. I wiggled my toes and bent my hands into fists. Everything was accounted for, and I could move. That was a good sign.

Where was I? I could feel a bed beneath me, but the sheets didn’t feel right and there was a masculine scent.

Oh no.

Was I in some guy’s bed?

I gently moved my hands to touch my legs and stomach. My clothes were on.

After counting to three to prepare myself, I opened my eyes a crack. A dorm room. Dark bedding and books on the desk next to me. I checked on the other bed and saw a sleeping figure. Male. Shirtless.

My breath caught.

Who was that?

I studied the bulging muscles along his back and along the dip of the spine. He was big. Trim. Wide at the shoulders but not too tapered like a swimmer.

I groaned.

I knew that body type all too well.