Page 111 of Unstoppable Love

“I know. I’ve had twenty years of my boys being in dangerous positions, and it never gets easier, but you do learn to trust in their strength, and somehow, everything works out okay in the end.”

Okay in the end. He’ll be okay. Someday he’ll be okay.

Of course, Cameron would be okay, but would he play ball again?

“You sure you don’t want to stay with me?” Isaiah glanced at me and then back to the road. “Or go to Mom and Dad’s?”

“No.” I shook my head. “I think I want to be alone.”

It was two, and we still hadn’t heard from Cameron or Marlin, but the team’s management had finally called. Results of the MRI confirmed a torn ACL and MCL. He’d need surgery on that too, eventually, but the bone had broken so severely that was the primary emergency. Once Cameron had made it through that and was healing, then they’d go back in and repair the knee. It wasn’t like he could put pressure or weight on it for a while anyway. Fortunately, there was no concussion. That was the only thing to be thankful for at the moment. Season-ending injury, at minimum, like Dalton had predicted. That would be difficult enough for Cameron to swallow once he was alert again.

But career ending?

Time would tell on that one.

“I’m not sure it’s good for you to be alone, though, Ava. This is heavy stuff, and you still haven’t heard from Marlin again.”

“I don’t care.”

I had to lose it. I had to crawl into my bed and cry and hold my phone until I could hear his voice and know without a doubt that Cameron was going to be okay. I needed to do all of that alone, without the heavy weight of worry and fear also burdening Cameron’s entire family.

By the time I left, Jenny had cleaned the kitchen. Not surprising, given she’d needed something to do to keep her mind off the fact her son was in surgery. Charles and Dalton had traded in their beers for bourbon, and both Bryce and Gavin were sitting in the darkened living room, saying absolutely nothing.

No, I couldn’t stay there.

And I wouldn’t risk waking my own parents.

“Okay then.” Isaiah sighed, and I was certain that was what we’d all been doing the entire heaving. Sighing. Blowing out heavy breaths, and I had no doubt Jenny and my mom had spent time praying for Cameron’s health and a miraculous recovery. “But I want you to call me, okay? As soon as you hear a word, I want you calling me first.”

I chuckled. “I would think his parents get the first phone call.”

Isaiah shot me a glare as he pulled into my driveway. He leaned over the console of his truck and kissed my cheek. “You’re a pain in my ass, but I love you the most. Get inside, but call me if you need anything.”

“Of course I will.”

I climbed out of my car, keys in hand, and Isaiah’s truck lights lit my path up to my porch. The light was off by my door, and my brows furrowed. I’d left them on earlier, hadn’t I?

My key stuck in the lock, and I fiddled with it, twisting it back and forth, until finally the door unlocked, and I turned, giving a little wave to Isaiah before stepping inside of my house.

Instantly, my spine prickled, and Isaiah’s lights backed out of my driveway, and the rumble of his truck disappeared. I turned to open the door to flag him down, but stopped.

Weird. I was being weird. It’d been a long night, and my mind was playing tricks on me.

I headed straight to the kitchen, where the microwave light I’d left on was still aglow, and deposited my purse and keys.

A shadow moved, and I whirled.

“Hello Ava-baby.”

I stumbled back, gasping, away from my keys. My phone. Jimmy Morton prowled toward me.

“What are you doing here?”

“Figured now that the hotshot is out of the way, you and I can have our turn.”

“Jimmy.” Fear flooded me, my heart raced. I couldn’t pull my eyes off the glassiness of his eyes or the pink in his cheeks. “You’re drunk, Jimmy.”

Kindness. Kindness had worked with him before. A little bit of flirting. “Do you need water?”

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