Page 129 of Hold Me Before You Go

“And Sarah’s got a fucking baby inside her,” Hayes returned.

I opened my mouth to speak, but a gunshot rang out, and suddenly, I was pulled to the ground by Hayes, his body covering mine and Margo’s. I looked at my friend, seeing emotion in her eyes. “Are we going to die, Carrie?” she whimpered.

“Sarah!” Michael roared.

My eyes snapped up to them, seeing our kidnapper, the one who never had a chance, fall back into the river. The knife wasair, floating over the man as he fell back, a bullet hole in his head. As his body crashed into the water, I looked over to the other end of the dock.

Grayson.

Grayson was here.

Grayson was—

“Grayson!” I screamed as Hayes got to his feet. I yelled out for my lover again, fear choking me.

My bounty hunter was covered in blood, his skin pale. He fell to his knees, his chest moving slowly. I scrambled to my feet, running to him as he fell forward, his eyes rolling back. His gun slid across the jagged dock. I was to him within seconds.

“No, no, no, no, no,” I chanted, tears falling from my eyes as the winter air whipped around me, waves crashing against the docks as I rolled him over. “Grayson! Grayson, stay with me!”

He’d been shot. Multiple times.

I pressed my hands to the bullet wound on his shoulder, his blood warm underneath my palms as my head shot up, finding Michael and Hayes running to me. “Help!” I cried out, sobbing. “Hayes, please, please!” Both men went down on their knees around my lover then. Michael radioed for an ambulance as Hayes ripped Grayson’s shirt open.

“Carrie, sit back,” he ordered, checking Grayson’s pulse. I watched in horror as he began doing chest compressions. “Come on, Gray. Stay with us,” he pushed out through his counts.

“Hayes,” I whimpered, putting a bloody hand to my mouth.

“Quiet, Carrie,” he said, not looking at me.

I looked down to Grayson’s face, taking in the beauty of it. I put a hand to his cheek. “Don’t leave me,” I pleaded. “You weren’t supposed to leave me yet. You were supposed to hold me before you go.” I bowed my head, hearing sirens in the distance over Hayes’ grunted counts.

“Goddammit, Grayson,” Hayes bit off, worry lacing his voice. “Don’t you fucking leave.” He leaned back, his chest rising and falling, looking at me with panicked eyes.

I fell apart then, leaning down on Grayson’s chest, pressing my ear to it.

I couldn’t hear anything, and a sound left my mouth.

The rest of the world faded away as the memories came forward.

Couldn’t stay away even if I fucking wanted to.

I don’t know what you are, Sunshine, but you stopped being a job the second I walked out your door.

Yeah, Sunshine. I’ll always come back to you.

My name is Grayson.

But I hadn’t met you yet, hadn’t seen your fucking beauty or your gentle fucking soul hiding behind your gorgeous blue eyes.

You are a work of art, made to be admired by a man like me.

I know you’re worth it, Carrie Hale.

You told me to catch you when you fall, but Sunshine, I fell a long time ago.

I can’t lose you, Carrie.

But I was going to lose him…

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