Still Jaded (Jaded #2)(72)

He was right. Everything he said and made me say was true. I hadn't wanted to see any of it. Life was easier when nothing changed. We worked before.

I whispered, "Why did it have to change?"

Corrigan laughed softly. His voice was a little farther away. "I don't know, but things change. If nothing changed, we'd never grow. Shit. Anyways, that's for a whole other battle. Right now, I'm going to go and pick up Matt. I'll be back in a little bit with your car." He pressed a kiss to my forehead. "Lock the gate behind me."

As he left, I keyed in the code and locked the gate. Then I stood there. I'd never felt so alone before and for the first time, maybe ever, I didn't like it.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

I went numb after Corrigan left. He knew the pass-codes. He could let himself into the house with his key, and I wouldn't need to see him until morning, but I was awake. When I lifted my glass, the clock's big red numbers glared at me. It was nearing four in the morning. He'd been gone for five hours. It didn't take that long to get Matt and head to the hotel for my car.

When I walked into the kitchen, still with the lights off, I took out my phone, but the gate buzzed at that same second. Relief rushed through me. It was dizzying. When I pressed it open, I never stopped to make sure it was Corrigan. As I neared the door, the flashing red lights stopped me in my tracks. A different sense of numbness flooded my body and I opened the door. My heart started to race.

Officer Patterson got out of her car. Her body was rigid. When I saw the pain in her eyes, I knew she wasn't there with good news.

"Don't tell me he's dead. Don't say those words," I pleaded.

Regret flashed over her face. She looked older than her thirty-six years. Her blonde hair looked darker than normal. It had been pulled back into a haphazard ponytail, and she smoothed back some strands in front of her face and crossed to meet me on the porch. Dressed in casual clothes, a pair of wrinkly jeans and a white tee shirt, I figured she'd come from her home.

"There was an accident a block away from the Wilshire Hotel. We thought it was you, Sheldon." Sheila paused and took a breath. "The fraternity boy told us what happened. Corrigan was driving your car and the brakes went out. It rolled through a traffic light. It was a head-on collision. Corrigan is—"

I stopped breathing.

She nodded, grave. "He's in surgery. I can't tell you what's all wrong with him, but I know he's being treated right now. The doctors aren't saying anything."

He's alive.

She stepped closer and wiped a tear from my face, then pulled me in for a hug. Her voice was muffled against me. "That son of a bitch is strong. He's the strongest of all you guys. He'll pull through. If anyone pulls through, it'll be him."

Wrapping my arms around her, I held on. She felt so sturdy. "Can you give me a ride there? I can go right now."

"That's why I came. The other boy told us you were probably here alone."

"Corrigan's parents?"

"Have already been contacted. They're there, right now." She hesitated a second. "Bryce too. I called him, but he already knew. He was on his way to the hospital when I talked to him."

I couldn't react to Bryce. My insides were a mess. Everything was on full-blast. When I sat in Sheila's passenger side, she started the car and then waited for me to lock the gate once more. When I got back inside, I saw that three other cop cars had accompanied her.

"What happened to my car? You said the brakes went out?"

Sheila grimaced. "You can find out how Corrigan is first and then we can talk about that stuff. I'll need to contact my department for more details. They're looking over your car."

"You think it was the stalker? Whoever is after me did something to my car? That should've been me, not Corrigan. They intended that for me, didn't they?!" I heard my voice rising, but quieted. I couldn't get crazy, not now. "Corrigan was gutted because of me. Now he's in surgery because of me." My voice broke. "I am going to kill whoever did this."

Sheila reached for my hand. "Corrigan will be fine. As a cop, I'm not supposed to tell you that, but that's how I feel. You three have been through some tough stuff. This is just one more tough situation. He'll pull through."

Her face closed off, and she looked away. It was like she thought better of what she'd been saying to me and shut up before she said anything else. That's when I asked, "You don't believe any of that, do you? Is he going to die?"

She blinked a few times and watched the street. I watched her face as the streetlights passed over. Her face was illuminated and then cast in shadow, over and over again. There was a raw strength there, but there was also the truth.

Corrigan might die.

She didn't want to say those words to me.

When we went through the emergency doors, conversations halted. A waiting lounge of chairs was full of Corrigan's fraternity brothers. I recognized both Leah's and Grace's sorority sisters. All of them watched me as I crossed the room and headed straight to the front desk. Sheila went with me to explain my relationship with Corrigan. The nurse sent someone to retrieve a doctor and then gave Sheila directions to another waiting lounge.

When we got there, Corrigan's parents held their arms out for me. Katrice caught me first and hugged my head to her bosom. She swayed back and forth, her coat swished with the movements.