That Second Chance (Getting Lucky #1)(90)

Ren.

I rush to her, jumping over some wood and making my way to the gurney, my heart beating a mile a minute. When I reach her, I can’t contain the desperation in my voice. “Ren, baby, are you okay?”

Her eyes are shut, but when she opens them, a small smile plays at her lips. “Hey, you.”

Hey, you? Is she serious right now? She’s going to say Hey, you so casually when I’m being ripped to shreds inside? I scan her body, taking her in. Straps hold her steady on the gurney. She has a bandage on her arm, and her head is bleeding once again, just like the first time I found her.

“Ren, what . . .” I catch my breath. “What the hell happened?”

“Not sure, honestly. I was walking home just as after-school activities got out.” She winces. “And I heard the crunching of metal right before I blacked out. One of the EMTs said a piece of wood hit me in the head as well as the arm.”

I drag my hand over my mouth, my mind racing. This is because of me.

She is hurt because of me.

“Are you okay?”

She takes my shaky hand in hers. “Yes, I’m okay.”

I lean down and cup her cheek, looking her in the eyes, checking to see if she’s lucid. “God, Ren. I’m . . . I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” Her brow creases for a second before she winces again.

“I . . .” I scan the area again, unable to voice the terrified thoughts filling my mind. “How come no one is taking care of you? Why aren’t you at the hospital yet?”

“I told them to take care of the kids first.” She grips my hand. “Hey, Griffin. Everything is okay.”

I shake my head, unable to look at the blood on her face any longer, at the pain I’ve caused her. “Uh, I’m going to go see if they need any help with cleanup.”

“Griffin, wait. Talk to me.”

“I can’t.” I bow my head forward. “I can’t.”



A few tests and three stitches above her eyebrow later, I’m pulling up in front of Ren’s house and helping her out of the car. She already has a black eye forming and some bruising on her arm. She’s sore and tired and concussed. Out of all the victims involved in the accident, she got the brunt of it. She already has the next few days off from work, and I volunteered to stay with her tonight.

Not that volunteering was much of a hardship; it’s a necessity at this point.

“Are you doing okay? Feeling queasy?” I ask as I open the front door.

“I’m doing okay right now, but I think I want to go straight up to bed, if that’s okay. I’m really tired.”

“I know, and you can sleep, but I’m going to be waking you up every hour to check on you like the doctor said,” I say, guiding her inside the house.

“As long as you’re next to me, that’s all I care about.”

I help her up the narrow staircase, holding her arm so she doesn’t fall. Her legs are unsteady, so I make sure to keep her as close to me as possible.

We make it to her bedroom, where I quickly change her clothes and then pull back the covers of her bed and help her onto her plush mattress, a mattress I’ve spent a few nights on already.

“I’m going to go get you some water and lock up the house,” I say once she’s settled. “Do you need anything else?”

“Just you.” She snuggles into my hand before letting it go and turning on her side.

With a heavy sigh, I make my way to her kitchen and pull my phone from my pocket. A slew of texts from my family lights up my phone. I don’t even bother reading them. Instead, I send them a quick update.

Griffin: Ren is back at her house. I’m staying here for the night to make sure she’s okay in the morning. Please cover for me. Thanks.

I turn my phone off and put it back in my pocket, not wanting to deal with any of their responses. I grip the edge of the counter for support as I bend my head forward in exhaustion.

I’m physically tired and mentally at my breaking point.

Torn between needing to make sure Ren is safe and needing to distance myself from her to keep her safe from me, I contemplate my next move.

She needs me now, she wants me now, and I need to be there for her. Even though there is a war raging inside of me, telling me to stay away, to keep my distance, that if I get any closer, something even worse is going to happen.

Nauseous and distraught, I rub both hands over my face before kicking off my shoes and filling up a glass of water for her.

For now, I will take care of her, but I can’t make any promises about tomorrow.

One day at a time.

One minute at a time.



I stir awake, Ren’s long brown hair tickling the underside of my chin. Rain is pelting the window, making the morning much darker than normal.

I spent the night waking up every hour and making sure Ren was recovering okay from her concussion. I barely got any sleep and must have forgotten to set my alarm for the last wake-up.

Slight panic hits me until I look down to find a light smile play across her lips as she peacefully sleeps.

She’s okay.

Still shaken, I pull at my hair.

A two-by-four hit Ren on the head, knocking her out clean. What were the chances of something like that happening to her? Or the chances of her having the worst injury yesterday?