“Wait. You can’t—” The words froze in my throat.
She stumbled over the cat that made its way in through the door. As if in slow motion, I watched her hit the floor with a thud and then roll down the stairs, head first.
Fuck. No!
No. No. No.
I raced down the stairs, two at a time, screaming her name at the top of my lungs. This couldn’t be happening. Fuck.
A car had stopped in the driveway. The look of horror on my mother’s face as she sat behind the wheel, witnessing her daughter’s fall down the stairs, would haunt my dreams forever.
Chapter Thirty-One — Jade
Not since I was a child did I find it so difficult to breathe. Harrison’s words cut through me, slicing into my heart.
I had to get away. Pain shot through my abdomen and my lungs battled for air. My head was swimming and my chest tightened—I needed to breathe fresh air.
I jerked the door open to flee outside. The warm furry body of Minx brushed between my calves as she greeted me with a meow.
The last thing I remembered was Harrison’s voice as I hit the ground . . .
When I opened my eyes again, I was in an ambulance, sirens wailing, and an oxygen mask over my face. I sucked the pure cold air into my lungs, breathing for me and for Peanut.
The paramedics wiped blood from my legs. Warm, sticky blood. Peanut.
Oh dear God, please no.
Ryder. Where the hell was Ryder?
I wanted him here.
I wanted him to hold my hand and kiss my brow.
I wanted him to tell me everything was going to be okay.
The blackness stole my consciousness again, pulling me under a thick, heavy blanket.
Chapter Thirty-Two — Ryder
It must have been several hours later, because it was dark outside when I opened my eyes again. The curtains hadn’t been drawn and the moonlight was bathing the room in an eerie light. I sat upright, bewildered. The big clock in the living room chimed. It was nine o’clock.
Jade. She still wasn’t home. Fuck.
Panic gripped my heart, causing it to beat erratically in my chest. Jade should have been home more than two hours ago. She never stayed out this late without me. Since she’d fallen pregnant she got tired easily, and often fell asleep quite early in the evenings. My throat tightened. Was she okay? Had she been in an accident? Where the fuck was she? I grabbed my phone to see if there were any messages.
Nothing.
This wasn’t like Jade. Maybe she’d decided to stay the night at her parents’ house. She hadn’t done it in months, not since before we’d gone to New York. I wouldn’t have minded, as long as I knew where she was and that she was safe. My hands trembled as I called her number.
Please let her be okay.
The call to Jade’s phone went straight to voicemail. Christ. My anxiety kicked up a notch. I called again, gripping the phone as if it was a lifeline.
“Jade’s phone, Sylvia speaking.”
I sucked in a breath. Why in hell was Jade’s mother answering the phone?
“Hello Sylvia,” I said as calmly as possible. I’d never met the woman, and this wasn’t the way I'd envisioned our first conversation. But I had to cut to the chase—I needed to know that Jade was okay. “It's Ryder. Can I speak to Jade please?”
She cleared her throat before answering. “Hello, Ryder. I'm sorry, Jade can’t come to the phone right now.”
Was she already asleep? Maybe she’d gone to bed in her old bedroom. But something in Sylvia’s voice was off and I heard the sound of sirens in the background. Pure unadulterated fear gripped my insides, sending my heart racing. “What do you mean? Has something happened? Is she okay?”
“We’re at the hospital. Jade is with the doctor now.” Her voice was laced with concern that she wasn’t trying to hide. Things were sounding way off. My stomach lurched. Fuck.
“What happened?” My breath was ragged, my heart pumping so rapidly it made my head spin.
“She’s bleeding. Lots of bleeding.” Sylvia sounded as if she were about to lose it.
“What? Where?” I shouted. Had she been in an accident?
“The . . . the baby. I think . . . she’s going to lose the baby.”
“God. No!” I shouted, rooted to the spot. It was as if the breath had been sucked out of my body and I couldn’t breathe.
“What hospital? Tell me. I’m coming, now.”
She gave me the details, slowly so that I could register them, her voice thick with tears. “I’m so sorry, Ryder. I only found out today that she was pregnant.”
Stunned, I couldn’t utter a word. It couldn’t be true. It just couldn’t.
Could life be so cruel? So fragile?
It was breaking my fucking heart.
“Ryder?” Sylvia’s voice cracked. “Jade’s been calling for you.”