Page 71 of More Than Falling in Love

“I’d offer to rough him up for ya, but he just had surgery, so I’d feel kinda bad.”

I laugh.“I’m the one who deserves it.Not Kent.”

He stands and holds out a hand to help me up.“How did you get here so fast?Ava said you got in last night.”

“Promise you won’t tell a soul.”

He scrunches up his face.“I hate keeping secrets.But okay.”

“I chartered a flight.No one can know about it.”I’ll fly commercial going back, but time was the major factor in my decision.And thanks to the recent sale and big check, I can afford it.Just not every day.

He pulls open the passenger side door.“Now I know how Mason feels.”

Once he’s behind the wheel, I ask, “What’s her name, the one who’s engaged?”

“Bluebonnet.And yes, that’s really her name.”

“Well, Bluebonnet has no idea what she’s missing.”

He starts the engine.“I don’t want to talk about it.”

I run a finger along my lips before shooting off a text to Ava.

Me:It didn’t go well.I’m going home.Tell Mason I’ll be back in three weeks.

Ava:You don’t want to at least stay the night?

Me:I don’t want Mason to see me upset.

Ava sends a heart, and I know she understands.I haven’t told them what happened, but they can tell things aren’t right.

I tilt my head back.“Wake me when we get to the airport.”

Chapter 26

Kent

“What were you thinking?”With hands perched on her hips, a nurse stares down at me.“Nobody said you could get up.”

I’m splayed on the floor, probably showing off bits I’d rather have covered, and my hand is throbbing.“I was trying to catch someone.”

“Didn’t work out that way, did it?”She shakes her head.“And you just have to be huge, don’t you?I’m going to need help getting you back into that bed.”

“I can stand up.”

“Right.Because we saw how well that worked the first time.What hurts?”

“My hand and my stomach.”

“You probably broke something with that stunt.”She wags a finger at me.“Don’t move.”

I ignore her advice and shift to a sitting position.How did I manage to knock over the monitor and the chair?Grunting and wincing, I use the bed to get to my feet, but I can’t stand upright.The pain is too much.The bed is just low enough, and I sit on the edge.

When I pull myself toward the middle of the bed, sharp pain radiates through my hand, and I bite back a yell.

“You aren’t a very good patient.”The nurse runs to the bed, picks up my feet, and shifts me onto the bed.“Was that yelp because of your hand?”

“Yeah.It hurts a lot.Actually, everything hurts.”Including my heart.The look on Poppy’s face as she ran out of here makes me feel like I ripped the wings off a butterfly.

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