I felt hands touch my face and looked up to see Gemma crying as she stroked my forehead. I opened my mouth to tell her it was okay and she shouldn’t cry, but the words didn’t come out, instead trapped with all of Kane’s words in my mind.
I had the sensation of going fast one minute and then being still the next. I thought I was in Kane’s Mustang, but I couldn’t be sure. From somewhere far away, I heard voices and turned to see a woman and a man looking down at me. I recognized Cash, but I didn’t know the woman. She reminded me of my mother, her dark eyes staring down at me with sadness.
Slowly, the words around me became clearer. Someone was dead. Who? I frantically searched the faces around me for Kane’s, but I couldn’t find him. He’d just told me everything would be okay. Had I dreamed that? Or was I dreaming this?
Struggling to speak, I croaked out the only word I knew to say. “Kane?”
I watched the looks on the faces around me for any sign he’d been hurt. They didn’t seem to react to his name. Did that mean he was okay?
Gemma kissed my cheek. “Kane’s right here, honey.”
And then he appeared, smiling down at me with one of those genuine smiles that went all the way to his eyes. Everything would be okay if he was happy. He cradled my face in his hands and brushed the pads of his thumbs over the tender skin of my cheeks. I winced and saw the happiness leave his eyes as he moved his hands away.
“No,” I pleaded as I raised my hands to cover his. “Don’t move them. I don’t care if it hurts. As long as you’re holding me, I’m okay.”
“I have to go now, Abbi. It’s too risky for me to stay here with you. Gemma and Alexandria will make sure you’re safe and taken care of for a while.”
Terror raced through me as the memory of Kane being taken away in handcuffs flooded my mind. “No! Don’t go, Kane. Please don’t go.”
He kissed me softly on the lips and then placed a kiss on the tip of my nose, finally looking down into my eyes with a look so full of pain my heart felt like it was being broken in two. “I have to, angel. Just for a little while. As soon as everything’s cleared up, I’ll come get you. Until then, don’t forget how much I love you.”
Tears filled my eyes. “How long will you be gone?”
“I don’t know, but as soon as I can get back to you, I’ll be here. I promise.”
“Promise me you’ll come back? You won’t forget me because of all the trouble I’ve been?”
“Oh, baby, you’ve never been trouble. As soon as I can, I’ll come get you and we can go back to living in that little house of ours. You, me, and Angel.”
Somebody warned him that he needed to leave and he kissed me one last time. Pulling away, he tried to smile, to put on a good face for me, but I saw the sadness in those dark blue eyes.
“I love you, Kane.”
“I love you, my angel.”
He stood and hurried away, leaving me feeling lost and alone. I closed my eyes, wishing I could shut out the rest of the world until he came back to me.
The sound of purring next to my ear woke me up, and I slowly opened my eyes to see Angel sitting on my chest and nuzzling my neck. Her adorable little face made me smile, and as soon as I did I felt the all too familiar pain of a beating shoot up through my cheek. Rubbing my nose on hers, I felt the cold wetness on my skin.
“Good morning, Angel.”
She licked my cheek and bounded off the bed to scamper away through the doorway out to the hall. Fully awake, I looked around at the room I was in and realized I wasn’t at home. Where was I?
“Kane? Kane!”
I heard footsteps coming quickly down the hall and then saw Gemma standing in front of me. But I wasn’t in her apartment either. Where was I?
“Where’s Kane?”
“Good morning, honey. How are you feeling?”
“I’d be feeling a whole lot better if you’d answer my question. Where’s Kane? Why isn’t he here? Where am I?”
Gemma sat down on the bed next to me and took my hand in hers. I knew by her expression that what she was about to say wouldn’t be good. “I’m glad you’re awake. You’ve been asleep for a while, honey.”
“Please tell me what’s going on.”
“Okay. You’re at Cassian and Stefan’s mother’s house on Anna Maria Island. We brought you here after what happened with Mason. Kane’s not here, though. He’s in Tampa.”
“Why? Why isn’t he here with me? Gemma, what aren’t you telling me?”
“Honey, he can’t be here right now. But when he can, he’ll come for you. Don’t worry.”
I sat up in bed and swung my legs off the side. “If he can’t be here with me, I’m going to him. Get me my clothes, please.”
“No, you can’t go to him now, Abbi. It’s not safe. Olivia!”
“What do you mean it’s not safe and why is Olivia here too?” I asked as I looked around the room for any of my clothes.
Olivia appeared in the doorway full of smiles like she was happy to see me. Since we’d never really spoken, I couldn’t imagine why.
“Hey, you. I’m glad to see you’re up. Are you hungry?”
“I want to know where Kane is. Gemma doesn’t seem to want to tell me, so I need you to right now.”
“Okay, I’ll tell you, but I need you to get back into bed. You’re still pretty banged up and the doctor said you might have a concussion, so you need to rest.”
I didn’t want to get back into bed, but if that’s what I was going to take to get some answers, I’d do it. To be honest, my head was beginning to feel like the room was spinning. “Fine. Just tell me where Kane is and what’s going on.”
As Gemma made sure the sheets and blanket were neatly tucked in against me, Olivia sat in a chair on the other side of the bed and began to explain everything. I lay there staring at the pale pink walls all around me trying to absorb the story she told.
“Kane is still in Tampa, Abbi. He’s back living in his rooms at the club. He’s been there since the night we brought you here.”
“How long ago was that?” I asked as I watched the white ceiling fan above me slowly turn.
“Four days ago. You’ve been in and out for that time, but Alexandria’s doctor says you’re going to be okay.”
I turned to look at Olivia, confused. “Who is Alexandria?”