Be with Me (Wait for You #2)(103)

Suddenly the unbearable pressure was off my throat and air rushed in as a pained grunt filled the room. Something broke—-snapped like old, dry twigs and it sounded far away, like it was outside.

Hands pressed against my cheeks and then arms lifted me. My head felt too heavy, floppy. Like there was something wrong with my neck. “Oh God, open your eyes. Come on baby, open your eyes.” There was a pause, and his large body shuddered. “I’m sorry. Fuck. Open your eyes. Please.”

It felt like my lids had been glued shut, but I pried them open. All I saw was Jase’s deep gray eyes, darker than I’d ever seen them.

“There you are,” he said, cradling me closer. “Stay with me. Tess! Oh God, don’t leave me. Please. I . . .”

His lips were moving, but the words didn’t make sense, and I couldn’t keep my eyes open. There was nothing but darkness.





UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

AVON BOOKS

An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

....................................





Twenty-nine


The steady sound of beeping slowly, insistently drilled through the layers of haze and sleep until I felt my chest rise with a deep, shuddering breath.

“Teresa.” What I was lying on shifted as weight settled beside me. A hand pressed against my cheek, cool and comforting. “Are you there?”

Was I? I thought so. My surroundings slowly came into play. I was in a stiff bed, and it was my brother’s voice I was hearing. My head felt weighted down, though, like I was glued to the mattress.

I slowly blinked my eyes open and winced at the bright overhead lights. Once my vision cleared, it was obvious I was in a hospital room. The white walls, mounted TV, and pea green curtain were a dead giveaway.

“Hey,” Cam said gently. “How are you feeling?”

Turning my head to him slightly, I ran my tongue over my the roof of my mouth. “I feel . . . strange.” My voice was hoarse, and my jaw ached from speaking those three words.

“You’ve been sleeping for a little while, long enough for the parents to get down here and then some.” Cam smiled wearily as he reached for a pitcher and poured water into a small, plastic cup. “Mom and Dad are down the hall talking to the police.”

The police? I stared at him dumbly as he played Mr. Nurse, carefully reaching around to the back of my neck and helping me take a drink. The cool water was like jumping into a pool on a hot, sweltering day.

He placed the cup on the bedside table. A sudden look of understanding crept across his face. “You don’t remember, do you?”

I shook my head and then grimaced as a sharp pain arced between my temples. Cam glanced at the door as if he wanted to run out and get someone, but he placed his hand over mine, drawing my gaze to my knuckles.

They were red, scratched, and swollen.

I jerked up halfway, muscles and skin protesting the unexpected movement as the fog cleared from my head. “Oh my God . . .”

Concern flared in Cam’s eyes “You remember?”

“Erik. He—-”

“I know. We all know. You don’t have to worry about him anymore,” Cam said, gently pressing his hand down on my shoulder so I was lying down. “You need to stay still. You have a concussion—-a minor one but you can’t be moving around a lot. Okay?”

My heart was pounding as I took in the IV hooked to the center of my arm, pumping clear fluids in. That horrible snapping sound came back to me, reminding me of bones breaking. “Is he dead?”

“Fuck. I wish.” Anger stormed across his face. “Jase broke his jaw and knocked him into next week, but the f*cker’s alive. He’s going to jail, though. He woke up when the police and EMTs got there, blabbering what he did to Debbie to anyone who’d listen. He kept saying it was . . .” He trailed off, his mouth pressing down in a hard line.

“He said it was my fault,” I finished for him, closing my eyes as the memories of Erik’s rage and flat--out madness resurfaced, but a different worry took hold. “Where . . . where is Jase?”

Cam looked away when I opened my eyes. “The last I saw him he was with the police.”

“What?” I started to sit up again, but he stopped me. “What do you mean?”

“He’s not in trouble. He had to talk to them, like I’m sure you’ll have to now that they know you’re awake.” He paused. “They needed a statement.”

“How long ago was that?”

Cam shifted like he was uncomfortable. “They held him back when they took you to the hospital. I haven’t seen him. I came straight here when I found out.”

He hadn’t seen Jase at all? Meaning he hadn’t checked on me? I closed my eyes and smacked at the useless emotions. Jase said he’d wanted to talk. He’d come and he’d saved my life. Just because he wasn’t here didn’t mean I needed to throw a fit. Besides, I had bigger things to deal with.

When I opened my eyes, Cam was staring at me. Several seconds passed. “You’re really in love with him, aren’t you?”

I sighed. “Yeah.”

He shifted and then cursed under his breath. “I know you didn’t want to hear this before, but you’re going to listen now. The f*cker is stupid, but the f*cker loves you.”