Fallen Crest Public (Fallen Crest High #3)(28)

Yep. I saw it coming. I figured it out, but it still didn’t curb the shock, and my mouth fell open. He just asked me out. A Broudou brother. Me. It all clicked with me now. He still had no idea who I was. I was just ‘that waitress’ who works at Manny’s. “Um.” I closed my mouth. I had no idea what to say.

“Oh.” He drew away from me even further. “I see.”

“No,” I started, but stopped. What the hell was I going to say? “Um … I have a boyfriend.”

“Oh.” He straightened, now filled with relief. His voice came out stronger, more confident. “I see. Who?”

“W-w-what?”

“OH!” His head flew up, and he slapped himself in the forehead. “I’m really sorry. It ain’t any of my business. I wasn’t going to beat him up or anything. Budd does that stuff. I don’t. I mean, he gets me in trouble too sometimes, but I wouldn’t do that. I think you’re really pretty. The guy’s lucky, whoever he is, and don’t tell me. I don’t want to know. I don’t want you to be scared. We have a reputation. I understand and all.”

He was rambling. I had rejected him, and I was beginning to feel sympathy for this Broudou brother. Hell had frozen over. The world had shifted on its axis.

“I’m going to go now.” He started to turn.

“Wait,” I stopped him.

He stopped.

Now I wanted to slap myself in the forehead. Why had I done that? I lowered my hand, hadn’t realized I even lifted it. “Nothing. Sorry.”

“Okay. Well, bye.”

“Bye …”

Awkward. The whole thing had been awkward, but lucky me. Brett left in the same manner he had appeared—he just disappeared. I had no idea where he’d gone.

Brett Broudou asked me out. Me, Samantha Strattan. I nodded to myself. There was something funny about that. Then I remembered Mason—my phone. Hurrying inside my car, I grabbed it and hit the screen. The first text stopped everything.

At the hospital. Car accident.

The phone fell from my fingers.

CHAPTER TEN

The drive to the hospital passed in a blur. I was on auto pilot and somehow found myself shoving through the doors to the emergency room without a clue how I got there. Taking two heart-stopping steps, my foot lifted for another when I spotted Logan in the corner. His head was down, his arms folded over his chest, leaning against a wall. His friends were around him—guys and girls I didn’t recognize—but no Mason.

My chest lifted and my lungs struggled to take a breath.

Then Logan lifted his head. It happened in slow motion, his eyes scanned the room and then he saw me. Surprise came over him before it clicked. Comprehension flared next. My foot came down hard. It was worse than I thought, but he shook his head and pushed off the wall. His movement drew attention, and everyone watched him cross to me.

“No, no, Sam. It’s not like that.”

I was too scared to say a word. For one split second, I considered running. If I didn’t know, I couldn’t lose him, but I had to know. “Is it bad?” Tell me he’s alive.

“He’s fine. The brakes were cut so he got blindsided by an oncoming car. He couldn’t stop when he was leaving the lot. I would’ve driven onto the grass or something, not out into an intersection.” Logan rolled his eyes. His arm came around my shoulder and he jerked me against him. I could feel the laughter reverberating through his chest. “He’s such an idiot, but it’s a good thing he drives like a grandpa sometimes.”

My eyes closed and I sagged under his arm. I couldn’t believe it. Mason is going to be fine. Mason is going to be fine. Mason is going to be fine. I could breathe, I tried telling myself over and over, but my brain and my body weren’t working together. My chest was still tight, stretched from fear.

“Sam?” Logan jostled me a little, hugging me tighter into his side. “You okay?”

Mason was going to be fine.

I opened my mouth to fill my lungs. Nothing.

“Sam?”

I heard him and my eyes flew open. Mason was at the end of a hallway, frowning at us, and a rush of relief came over me. My mouth dropped, but then he was heading towards me. As he drew near, he asked, “You okay?”

A buzzing sound was in my head. I shook it so I could hear him, but then his hand was on my arm, and he tugged me from Logan. Oh my god. My arms were numb, but I wrapped them around him and tried to hold tight.

He moved us and somehow we were in a private room. Looking around, I saw a small room with some clothes lying on a cot. There was also a computer and a small TV. It looked like we were in a room where the doctors slept when they were on-call. I closed my eyes when his head bent and I felt his breath on my neck. It felt good. It felt reassuring. I tried to hold him even tighter, but he asked, “What’s wrong? Nate’s going to be fine.”

Wait.

I leaned back. “Nate?” My voice was shaking.

He frowned at me. “Yeah.”

“Nate? Nate was in the car accident?”

“Yeah.”

He was still looking at me, frowning as his eyes roamed over my face. Then it all hit me and I shoved him away. “I thought it was you! I thought you’d been hurt and that I was going to lose you.” I threw my arm up, gesturing to the lobby. “Logan’s talking about what an idiot you are, but I thought someone had crashed into your car!”