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“He was trying to save his brother from a gang that was forcing him to do illegal shit. He was only twelve, and when he refused to do what they asked, they threatened his siblings. Again, he was twelve and scared out of his fucking mind. If you ask me, Ben should have been rewarded for being so fucking noble.”
I wave my hand between them, shaking my head. My heart breaks for Lucca. He’s a kind soul and funny as hell. I can only imagine what that did to him. “It doesn’t matter what Ben did years ago. This has nothing to do with him. I’m not seeing him or anyone.”
“You expect me to believe that? You just happened to break up with me for no reason.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Hayden barks. “She’s always been too good for you. If you ask me, she’s a saint for putting up with your self-obsessed arse all these years. Ten minutes with you would make me commit murder.”
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” he retorts sharply.
“Be grateful she’s offering you friendship because I’d only give you a choice of where you want me to stab you. You are so self-absorbed you don’t even realise she isn’t responding to you during a conversation. You don’t see it when her face falls into a sad pout because you’ve spoken over her. You never notice when she’s had her hair done. And you’ve never once cottoned on to the fact she doesn’t love you back. If you ask me, you got a miracle when it comes to her, because if you were anyone else, she would have buried you a long time ago.”
“Well, it’s a good job no one is asking you,” he argues before turning to me. “Come back to mine. We can talk about this inprivate.”
“There’s nothing left to talk about,” I tell him, sadness pouring into my heart. “And I have to go to the hospital. The call you refused to let me take… that was my mum asking me to go to the hospital.”
He steps back, placing his hands behind his neck. “I didn’t know.”
“Because you never asked. Now, I’m done here,” I tell him. I take Hayden’s hand. “Take me to the hospital.”
He calls my name but I ignore him, steeling my spine so his pleas don’t crush my soul any more than they already have.
CHAPTER TWO
Ben
Every inch of my body aches. Sweat beads at my temples, running down the sides of my face as I try to shift into a comfier position.
When I took the job protecting a family of three from a serial killer—who happened to be the twin brother of the man I was protecting—I didn’t think it would end up like this. I didn’t assume it would be an easy assignment, but I never imagined I would end up in hospital with a severe concussion, recovering from a stab wound. I’ve lost so much blood, I’m lucky to be alive.
But I would do it all again. I’ve only known the couple and their daughter for a short amount of time, but during that time, I’ve grown close to them. They’re good people, and have huge hearts.
The one good thing to come out of this is that the serial killer is now back behind bars. All of his victims’ families will finally have closure, and no one else he planned to target will be hurt.
The sweet nurse who has been coming in to check my bandages and vitals, clucks her tongue. Her blonde hair is swept back into a tight bun near the nape of her neck. She has kind eyes and a sweet smile. She’s not as young as the other nurses, which I prefer. The first nurse to attend to me seemed unprofessional and shouldn’t have been in here. She asked a bunch of questions she had no right to ask, and flirted to the point I had second-hand embarrassment. I was glad when she got removed from the room. It gave me a chance to finally relax and let my guard down.
“I told you to stop moving before you pull a stitch,” the nurse softly scolds.
“Sorry.” I grimace. “It’s uncomfortable.”
She grabs a pillow from the chair, bringing it over to place behind me. She gives it a few taps to fluff it up before stepping back. “Is that better?”
I test it, and sigh with gratefulness. “Thank you.”
“You have a lot of visitors. Are you sure you don’t want me to let some come in and see you’re okay?”
“My mother worries. She’ll be the reason I pop my stitches,” I tease, wincing at the throbbing in my side. “She’s seen I’m okay.”
“Why don’t you really want them to come in and see you?”
I sigh, meeting the kind woman’s eyes. “Because I can’t take the pain I see in her eyes when she looks at me in this condition. She lost my dad to a knife attack. They owned a restaurant together, and one night, she didn’t come home on time. He went to check on her and found three men robbing the cash registers. One of them had a knife to my mum’s neck, and he tried to help her. He got stabbed and died in her arms before the paramedics arrived.”
She leans on the bed next to my feet. “I’m so sorry about your dad.”
“It was a long time ago.”
“Still, let me go get them. They’re worried, and the last time I looked, I think she had your siblings with her.”
I don’t know why I picture Imogen, but I do, and I have to ask: “Is there a girl with auburn hair with them? She has hazel eyes, and will have ridiculously high heels on.”
