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Jaxon left me alone in the living room and I sat down on the couch, not sure my legs would hold me up during the phone call. I listened to the message left by a nurse quickly and punched in the number she left. When I reached the automated system, I impatiently clicked through the options, just needing to get to a live person. When a woman’s voice came across the line, I was almost breathless, my heart thumping in my chest.
“This is Brooklyn Reeves. I was calling for my test results.”
“Oh, Ms. Reeves, thanks for calling back so quickly. I still have your file in front of me. Your doctor made sure to flag these results. She understood that it was highly sensitive information that you needed immediately,”the nurse said.
“Thank you. All I need to know is if the test was positive or negative, for fluids…”I trailed off with the last word, feeling bile rise in my throat. I took a few deep breaths to control my physical reaction before I even knew the results.
“Yes. The test came back negative for any fluids…”
I didn’t hear anything the nurse said beyond that. Her voice became a drowned out sound that I didn’t register or consciously respond to. I knew I said thank you at some point and hung up the phone. I went completely lightheaded and bent to put my head between my knees. My breathing was ragged and I couldn’t seem to process.
“Brooklyn?!”
Ash’s alarmed voice broke through the haze and suddenly my best friend was on the ground in front of where I sat on the couch. I looked up and her face was stricken with worry. I rubbed my face and my hands came away wet, making me realize I was bawling. I wasn’t sure I could form the words to tell Ash the news. I was on the verge of hyperventilating, as I wasbombarded with thoughts and memories of the nightmare I had been through.
“Are you ok? What can I do?”She asked.
The back French doors opened and suddenly I was yanked to my feet. The shock of the move made me look around wildly, only find Cain with a serious look on his face, his hands under my arms, keeping me upright.
“Breathe with me, princess.”His voice was rough and demanding.
He grabbed one of my hands and pressed it against his chest, which was thankfully clothed. Taking a deep breath, he allowed his chest to rise and fall with my hand, feeling the movement.
“Cain, I don’t think—”Ash started to say, but Cain’s eyes cut to her and she quickly closed her mouth.
His hazel eyes flashed back to mine, and he took another deep breath. This time I tried to follow his lead, take a shaky breath of my own.
“Good, now again,”he said, his voice flowing over me like a caress.
I followed him through three more deep breaths before I started to find a normal rhythm again. However, Cain didn’t release my hand, or remove the hand that was now on my waist, holding me closer to him than necessary. As I calmed down, my senses started to come back, and I blushed, feeling exposed and in the wrong place immediately. I stepped back, forcing Cain to release me.
“Have you had panic attacks before, princess?”He asked.
“I haven’t in a long time,”I replied, my voice barely a whisper.
“Are you ok?”Ash asked, moving to my side.
I looked at her and took another calming breath. I leaned over to her ear, wanting to tell her what had happened without Cain hearing. He didn’t seem annoyed or put out with the secret,just watched calmly as Ash burst into tears herself and turned to hug me tightly. I returned her embrace, so thankful for her and the support she had provided me when it had put her out so greatly.
Movement behind Ash caught my attention, and I found Jaxon standing outside of the living room. I had to wonder how long he had been standing there. He didn’t approach, just watched me carefully. I released Ash and rushed to him, throwing myself into his arms. He took a small step back to keep us from tumbling, before hugging me and burying his face in my neck.
“I need to talk to you guys, privately,”I whispered to him.
Jaxon nodded and looked up at Cain.
“Thank you for helping her through that. Dinner is served in the kitchen. If you could send the guys in here, I’d appreciate it.”
Cain nodded, no argument as he left the living room. Ash slid out as well, squeezing my shoulder as she made her way to the kitchen. A few moments later Aiden, Gideon and Oliver appeared. I released Jaxon and motioned for them to all sit down. I stood in the middle of the room, their eyes all on me and suddenly all words seemed to have disappeared from my mind.
Chapter
Forty-Four
Brooklyn
“Sweetheart, are you ok?”
Aiden’s voice cut through the static in my mind. I looked at him and for a moment, it felt like it was the first time I had seen him in ages. He looked disheveled, which for Aiden was a huge red flag. Bags were settled under his eyes, indicating hewasn’t sleeping. Despite all of that, he took my breath away, and I wanted to go to him.
