Page 195 of A Vicious Love

“In.”

She obeyed, barely.

“Out.”

Her breath stuttered, but it came.

“Again,” I said. “That’s it. Just like that.”

She followed me for three breaths.

Then five.

The whole time, I held the back of her neck. My other hand stayed flat against her spine beneath the soaked jacket, keeping her upright. I had watched blood leave bodies and felt nothing but impatience if the mess complicated logistics.

But watching Sienna fall⁠—

No.

Fear was too small a word.

She blinked at me, still breathing too fast, but present now. Her hand moved weakly, touching my chest as if she needed to check whether I was real.

“Jamison?”

I closed my eyes for half a second.

God.

Her voice.

“I’m here.”

“What happened?”

“You fell.”

Her brows pulled together, dazed. “I fell? Oh, I thought…” She swallowed, then winced. “I thought something happened.”

She had looked at me and thought disaster.

“Nothing happened. Emmie is fine. Marcel is fine. Harrison is fine. Everyone is fine.”

Her body sagged at that. I held her tighter before she could slip.

“You scared the fucking life out of me,” I said.

Her eyes lifted again, confused by the words. Like she didn’t understand I had one to scare out.

A small scrape marked one shoulder where stone must have caught her. Another red line crossed the side of her thigh. Nothing life-threatening.

“I’m okay,” she whispered.

“You don’t get to decide that after falling off a cliff.”

“It wasn’t a cliff.”

“It was high enough to ruin my day.”