Page 27 of Rush of Insanity

She was taking psychosis to a whole new level. Exiting fans stopped and stared, security encroached, and the buzz of heartbroken thoughts finally ceased.

What the hell was she doing?

She gripped the hand rail leading to the lower level and took in every nuance of the young woman who picked up the ring. She was young, alone, in her early twenties, with pale skin and mousy-brown hair. Harper wanted to approach her, to snatch the engagement ring from her hands and place it where it belonged—on her wedding finger. But she wouldn’t allow herself.

There was no need for the insanity anymore. Judd hadn’t run after her, and he’d just thrown away the one thing that should’ve meant the most in their relationship.

The woman looked up at Harper, her big brown eyes wide. “I think Judd threw it from the stage. I’m sure it was him.”

“It was.” She descended the first step, her ribs squeezing tight with every inch. “That ring is worth a lot of money.”

“How do you know?”

“It used to be mine.”

The woman’s hand tightened around the ring and she eyed the remaining people in the stadium as if preparing to call for back up.

“Don’t worry, you can keep it.” She’d beg to reclaim it. Her heart already was. Only it wasn’t hers to have anymore.

“But why would he…” The girl glanced over her shoulder to the stage. “It’s crazy.”

“Yeah.” It was always crazy. Pure insanity twenty-four-seven. “Go on.” Harper jerked her head toward the closest exit. “Take it home and keep it somewhere safe.”

The woman nodded, a jerky bob of her head that spoke of awe and confusion. “Thank you.”

Harper waited for her to leave before she descended the remaining stairs and slumped into the closest chair. All her breath seeped out of her as she covered her face with her hands and tried to will the world away.

She didn’t move, didn’t even make a sound as the footsteps of fans slowly faded and the noise of the stage crew became a dreary soundtrack to her heartache. With every passing minute, Judd would be preparing to leave Denver. He was probably already gone, and she couldn’t forgive herself for the way they said goodbye.

Love shouldn’t be this hard. She shouldn’t have to choose between being comfortable in her own skin, yet confused with grief, or being in love and forever feeling out of place. Not that there was really a choice. Judd hadn’t come after her. He never fought for what they had.

He was never going to run after her, no matter how much she wanted him to.

“He’ll be boarding the bus in a few minutes.” Tank’s voice came from beside her.

She removed her hands from her face and stared straight ahead. She was too humiliated by her own actions and weighed down with regret to look at him.

“Did you see what he did?” Her voice wavered. “He threw the ring across the stadium.”

“I’m not surprised.”

“It’s ridiculous.” She blinked away the blur in her vision and met Tank’s gaze. “I can’t believe he’d throw away all that money.”

He cleared his throat. “But who is more irresponsible, the man who threw away half a million or the woman who threw it away when it had more than a monetary value?”

She winced, not expecting the slap of painful truth.

“Look, I’ve gotta go. I just wanted to give you one final kick before this was all over.” He placed a kiss on his fingers and then slapped them against her forehead. “All the best.”

“Jesus.” She wiped the moisture from her forehead but her touch lingered as he strode away. She didn’t want this to be the last time she spoke to Tank. She didn’t want the bus to be her final memories of Judd.

She didn’t want…this.This pain and confusion. This grief and helplessness.

She stood on numb feet and dragged herself to the exit. The lobby was abandoned. Even the merchandise stand was closed. Loneliness seeped in and the pull toward an unknown force tugged at her throat.

Home.She had to get home.

She pushed open the nearest exit and stumbled into the night air, filling her lungs to capacity. All she’d ever wanted was to belong—to a school, or a social group. To something big. She wanted a mass of comfort surrounding her. A network of support to cling to.

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