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Tempted Page 15


  “Can I see her?”

  He glances around at all our faces and nods.

  “Just for a minute.”

  “Thanks, Doc.”

  I let the others go in first because I don’t know how I’ll react when I see her. When they leave, I step into the room and lose it. Whatever I was holding on to before, to keep from breaking down, snaps. Seeing her lying there, not moving, her shoulder bandaged, rips me apart. The sheets hide her other injuries, but they’re the most prominent ones in my mind. The tightness in my chest spreads through my entire body. I drop down into the chair next to her bed and take her hand in mine, bringing her fingers up to my lips. It’s my fault she’s in this hospital bed. I just know it. It’s a message. As soon as I find out who sent it, I’m sending them to Hell. Someone walks into the room, but I don’t even glance in their direction.

  “Sir? Excuse me, but you have to leave now.”

  “I’m not leaving,” I tell the nurse calmly.

  “Sir –”

  “I don’t care what you have to do or who you need to talk to, but I’m not leaving.”

  “Sir, please, don’t make me call security.”

  “I’m not leaving.” I repeat.

  I don’t care what anyone says. There’s no way they’re getting me out of this room.

  E’s voice comes from the doorway. “It’s okay, Cindy. I’ll take care of it.”

  He places a firm hand on my shoulder. “I’m not going anywhere, E.”

  “Don’t worry. You can stay, but she’ll be out for the rest of the night. You should get some sleep.”

  “I wasn’t there.”

  “You can’t blame yourself for this, brother.”

  “Why not? Are you telling me this isn’t some kind of payback? That someone’s not using her to get to me?”

  “We don’t know that.”

  “I wasn’t there. That’s not happening again. Ever.”

  CHAPTER 19

  ***Raven***

  Jesus. I feel like I’ve been run over by a steam roller. Every inch of my body hurts. Even my vagina. What the hell happened at that party last night? More importantly, why don’t I remember?

  “Babe?”

  Ah…his voice. So soothing. I open my eyes and come face to face with the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen. His features are marred by a worried frown. What’s wrong? He’s still in his suit, which I assume is from last night, but he’s disheveled. His shirt is crumpled and his tie is untied and lying around his neck. Why have I not woken up naked in his arms? I look around the room and realize I’m in a hospital. What the fuck happened last night? The ache between my legs gives me an idea, but he couldn’t possibly have done that much damage, could he? Before I can ask what happened, someone enters the room.

  “Hunter,” the newcomer says.

  Gage clenches his jaw, straightens, and turns toward the door.

  “Renley,” he says through clenched teeth.

  “Here we are again,” the sheriff replies.

  “Fuck off, Renley. I don’t need your shit right now.”

  “Well, you’re going to get it. I need you to come with me. We’re taking you in for questioning.”

  Questioning? For what?

  “What the fuck for? You think I did this?”

  Renley approaches my bed and looks down at me sympathetically.

  “Miss Alvarez…do you remember what happened last night?”

  I glance between the two men in confusion. I think Renley mistakes it for fear.

  “I can protect you. Just tell me who did this.”

  Okay. Now I’m even more confused. I need an explanation. “Gage?” My voice is barely a whisper. I clear my throat. Renley looks like he just hit the jackpot. Another man comes up behind Gage and starts to read him his rights. Panic takes over. “Gage?”

  “She’s crying out for me, you idiots!” He shouts.

  “Stop…please,” I beg.

  No one is listening to me. Gage is in handcuffs. I’m in a hospital bed feeling like shit, and I’m drawing a complete blank on yesterday’s details. It was yesterday, right? I mean…I don’t know how long I’ve been in here. No, it was. Renley said it was last night. I want to scream out that Gage didn’t do anything wrong, but the look in the sheriff’s eyes stops me. I also realize that parts of my body are bandaged. This is about more than just sex. That’s not how I landed in this bed.

  “You’re not getting away this time, Hunter. I’ve got a witness. I got you, motherfucker,” Renley says with a cocky grin.

  Tears stream down my cheeks as I watch them drag Gage away. My heart tells me that there’s no way he hurt me, but my mind battles with the word “witness”. Someone saw something. My heart shatters into a million tiny shards. I trusted him.

  How could he do this to me?

  To be continued....

  ***Claimed, book 3, coming soon!***

  Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to leave a review at your favorite retailer. Thank you!

  ~~~~Alana~~~~

  I’d love to hear from you!

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  Other Books by Alana Sapphire

  Forbidden (Death Dealers MC Book 1)

  Rock Hard: A Collection of Erotic Short Stories

  About The Author

  Music and writing are my two great loves. I always thought I'd be doing one or the other. Alas, I cannot sing or play an instrument so I'm relegated to listening to music (and eating copious amounts of chocolate) while I write. Hoping you’ll enjoy my characters as much as I do!