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“You’re not fine. Let’s get it checked out.” I gesture to a chair, and she reluctantly sits. An EMT comes over and when she extends her arm for him to look over her wrist, her hand is shaking. Her whole body is shaking. I squat down next to her and take her free hand into mine.
“You’re safe now.” I squeeze her hand.
She looks at me and tears are welled up in her eyes, but I can tell she’s fighting to not let them fall. I lean in and lightly press my lips against hers. “I’m right here with you. I’m not going to leave you. I promise.”
She releases a shuddering breath and leans into my soft kiss.
I hold her free hand the whole time the EMT examines her then splints her wrist and bandages it. We’ll need to get X-rays to find out if she fractured it. Autumn doesn’t want to go to the hospital, but I’m not hearing it. It’s a flurry of activity after that and my phone has been blowing up, but I’ve ignored it, wanting to give Autumn all my attention. It isn’t until she’s taken to get X-rayed and they refuse to let me go with her that I have a moment alone. I look at my notifications, I have missed calls from Autumn’s publicist and Gage, plus countless texts.
I’m not in the mood to talk, but I swipe on Gage’s name.
He answers on one ring. “What the fuck, man!? Where have you been? Is she okay?”
“Been a little busy. I’m at the hospital. She’s fine, but she fell and hurt her wrist. Thankfully, it isn’t worse than that. She’s getting it X-rayed now.”
“Damn. What were you even doing at a concert?!”
“Technically, it wasn’t a concert.”
“Yeah, I’m worried about technicalities right now. The hell, Jackson!?”
“You think that I don’t know it was a bad idea? You think I’m not kicking myself for giving in? I tried to talk her out of it, but it was a PR move. I wasn’t expecting the DJ to make a fucking song out of her voicemail.”
“He’s already released a statement apologizing for the stir it caused.”
“Fuck him! D, she could have been trampled. People were calling her names. It was horrible.”
I run a hand through my hair and it’s shaking. My hands don’t shake. Ever. But I don’t think I’ll ever get the image of her body disappearing in the cluster of people out of my mind.
“It’s my fault. I let my guard down.”
Gage sighs, his voice calmer. “J, I don’t think anyone would have predicted this. Don’t beat yourself up. Her publicist is blowing up my phone since she’s not answering hers.”
“Yeah, mine too. Tell her she’s fine and we’ll update her later. I just want to get Autumn out of here as soon as possible.”
“You want me to come in?”
“No. We’re good.”
“Everleigh’s worried so…”
I don’t hear another word because they wheel Autumn back into the room. “Hey, she’s back. I gotta go. I’ll be in touch.”
I hang up before he can respond. Autumn gives me a small smile and it hits me right in the gut. She’s put on a brave face since we left the festival, but I know the situation shook her up.
“Hey there, wildcat.”
She doesn’t say anything, but she takes my hand. The nurses are still fussing around her when the doctor comes in to examine her. We learn her wrist isn’t broken, but there’s some minor torn ligaments and they give her a brace to wear for a couple of weeks.
This would have never happened if I hadn’t left her to go to the bathroom alone. She never would have posted that picture. I should have gotten her out then. Instead, I danced with her. More than that, I lost myself in her. I forgot about my job. I forgot about the danger.
Not again. Never again.
9
AUTUMN
Whore.
