Page 76 of Playing My Rivals

I spot a dry towel, so I reach between the seats to grab it. It’s a tight fit. I can’t quite reach it.

The car jerks, dislodging me, and Dori screams in horror. My body tenses as my heart stops.

The jolt of a forceful thud against the crumbling metal and the breaking of glass are the first things that steal my attention. The next point of focus is the sudden jar and tires screeching as the car swerves and skids along the rain-soaked road. We finally come to a stop.

My heart leaves my body and I become a shell of a person. I’m instantly transported to a time I never wanted to relive.

The impact slams me back into my seat. Shaking but numb, I scan the front of the car. My eyes sweep over to my dad. He’s headfirst in the windshield, resting in peace somewhere that’s not on Earth.

He’s gone. I know it the second his blackened eyes meet mine. The collision must have thrown him between the seats to his final resting place. It’s enough to wreck me into oblivion.

My gaze travels fast. My mom trying with weakened arms to escape the car is the next thing that comes into view. The only problem is the dash crushing her from the waist down. Adrenaline takes control and I jump out of the car.

Why couldn’t it be me?

Please, make it so it’s me who’s pinned in the car.

“Mom!” I scream.

I pull and twist, tugging on her arms to get her out. Nothing works to dislodge her from her misery. I try as many ways as I can.

The pain knocks her out at some point. It takes me a while to realize she’s gone to be with my dad. I fall to my knees and grab the back of my head.

“Fuck!”

No one was around to help. I couldn’t do it by myself. My eyes squeeze shut as I rock back and forth, wishing this nightmare would end.

“Fuck, I’m so sorry. I’m so fucking sorry. What kind of son kills his own parents?”

I repeat the words until my throat is raw. It’s not until I’m soaked and lying in the dirt with Dori on top of me that I realize this is a different accident. My brain is muddled. It’s difficult to know which reality I’m in.

Dori takes my face in her hands and yells, “Jami, it’s me! Come back to me. Please.”

A strangled cry releases from my core when her angelic face comes into focus. She crawls off of me and holds my head in her lap as I try to pull myself together. I roll to my side and bury my face in her lap. I weep until I find the strength to stand.

I swallow the guilt lining my throat and rise to my knees. My confused eyes find hers through the pouring rain.

Completely clueless as to how I ended up on the ground in the middle of a storm, I ask, “What the fuck happened? How did I get here?”

CHAPTER 18

HUNTER

My nerves are shot. With Dorthy and Jamison leaving for Denver last night and being together, I’m at my wit's end.

Jonah came into my office a few minutes ago to tell me Jamison is on a personal holiday.

“I’m curious, Jonah. Do you think it’s possible for a man and a woman to know each other most of their life and not be attracted to one another?” I pull on my tie. Just saying these words makes my throat constrict.

I shouldn’t be having this talk with him, but I need someone to help me through this situation with Dorothy and Jamison.

He stops going through the document I just gave him for the upcoming board meeting. “What’s the context?”

“What do you mean? It’s a simple question.”

“No, it’s not. I’ve known Ava most of my life and don’t find her attractive.”

I shrug. “Okay, good point. But you have said she’s pretty.”

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