Page 102 of The Billionaire's Wife

He was a billionaire.

I still couldn’t wrap my mind around that fully. Not even after the trip to Paris and the luxury boutique hotel. The money I made paled in comparison to that. But I could afford a car. And I was going to keep my job at the bookstore for as long as Megan let me. I didn’t want to be a kept woman.

I never had.

But maybe I’d think about going to college. Now that I wasn’t trying to stay off anyone’s radar, I could do anything.

I paused at the corner and watched the traffic. The streetlights kept everything bright, and there were crowds heading out to hit the nightlife even on a weeknight. But still, nerves twisted in my belly. I was being ridiculous.

How many nights had I walked this route without any issue? Often, it was even later than now, when rush hour traffic still clogged the streets with tired commuters heading home.

The light changed and I stepped into the crosswalk.

A car blazed through the red light. The driver of the first car off the line now that his light was green leaned on his horn. I had just enough time to register the noise before a blast of pain and a sense of flying.

Then? Nothing.

There was an elephant sitting on my chest.

And my hand hurt.

Beep…beep…beep

Was it dark? I grunted and the pressure on my chest eased some even as the constriction of my hand increased.

“Faith?”

I knew that voice. I struggled to open my eyes. “Ngh.”

“Shh.” Tristan clenched my hand—how had he managed that—and leaned in to kiss my forehead. “I’ll call the nurse.”

“Wha—” I paused, cleared my throat, and tried again. “What happened? Did I…did I get hit by a car?”

That couldn’t be right, could it?

Tristan’s expression turned stony. “You did. Thankfully, the car that almost got hit first saw what happened and kept them from driving away. Which they were trying to do.”

My eyebrows lifted. “Who would do that?”

I tugged my hand free and stretched my fingers.

Tristan blanched. “I’m sorry. I’ve been so worried. You’ve been out about three hours.”

“Is that bad?” If I knew anything about car accidents and head injuries, I couldn’t come up with it right now. And that might be bad. Or it could just mean that I’d been hit by a car.

“The doctors said it’s normal. Do you hurt? I really can call the nurse.” Tristan hovered—and wasn’t that ridiculous—indecisively.

I took a minute to listen to my body. I couldn’t say I felt like getting up and dancing, but I wasn’t actively hurting. I glanced down the bed and noticed the absence of casts. “Nothing broken? How is that possible?”

“God. That’s all I can say. You should be in worse shape. They thought you’d have a spinal injury, but the swelling is already going down and they’ve ruled it out. You’re going to stay here tonight. Just to be sure.”

“Oh but—”

“No. Don’t even try. I’m staying with you. And you’re staying here.”

I frowned. If I was okay, shouldn’t I be able to go home? I was going to object again when I truly zeroed in on Tristan’s face. I’d never seen him this pale and drawn. Though he’d come close the night he convinced me to marry him as a solution to my problems.

The fight left me. “Okay.”

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