Page 99 of One of Them Girls

My eyes flutter open. “What?” I attempt to say, but my throat is dry.

“Hold on. The nurse said I could give you some water if you woke up.”

My eyes take in the room, coming to land on the face for the voice. After she brings the straw to my mouth and I’m able to wet my throat, I speak again.

“What are you doing here, Tins? What happened?”

Her eyes are sad. “We were on the phone when you got into a car accident. We got on the first plane here.”

“We?”

She laughs. “Finley, Sage, and Reed.”

I go to laugh, but wince at the pain.

Fuck, my head hurts.

“How bad am I hurt?”

“You fractured your arm. I’m afraid you’ll set off metal detectors for the rest of your life. Other than that, just some scrapes and bruises.”

“No wonder I feel like I got hit by a truck.”

Her eyes widen at my phrase, but I chuckle then wince again.

“Don’t joke like that. I thought we were going to lose you.”

“Nah, you can’t get rid of my man that easily,” an unfamiliar voice says from the door.

I smile when I see Jack, holding the biggest teddy bear in his arms, comes waltzing in the door.

“Here you go, boo. The lady downstairs in the gift shop assured me this is the best gift to show you want the person you care about to get better.”

“Don’t make me laugh, asshole. It hurts.”

He smiles widely at me. “Oh come on. You complaining about a fractured arm? You pussy.”

I know he’s joking, using his humor to hide his concern. I can see it on his face. He was worried.

“I know, right? Looks like no video games for me for a while.”

He laughs. “That’s okay. I’ll just play with Ace.”

My heart twinges in pain.

Cassi.

“Who’s Ace?” Tinsley asks.

Jack’s face sobers. “Cassi.”

“Oh.” Tinsley turns to me. “She was here, you know.”

My heart stutters. “What?”

“Yeah. She was here, but when she got to the room, she took off.”

My heart aches for her. I bet she hasn’t even been to a hospital since Ryan. My body aches to reach out to her.

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