Page 32 of The Second Kiss
“Jess, are you dead?” he calls.
“Wounded.” I try to make my voice sound normal, but the words come out pinched.
“Jess? Are you okay?” Brad sprints toward my tree.
He and Jacob arrive at the same time. "What happened?" Jacob asks.
“I slipped and—"
"I'll tell you what happened." Brad whirls around to face Jacob. The rage I saw before is back. "You knew it wasn’t safe,but you made her go up in this tree anyway, and now she's hurt. This is your fault!"
Jacob takes a step back. "I didn't—"
"Calm down, Brad." Matt steps between them. "I'm sure Jess is fine."
"It was my fault." I take a breath to keep my voice steady. "I lost my balance and grabbed a branch to catch myself. Sorry, Matt, I think I broke your gun.” I gesture to the gun I dropped, lying in two pieces at the base of the tree. I can't believe Brad is making such a big deal about this, that he's going after Jacob.
Brad's voice turns gentle. He reaches for me from the base of the tree. “Let me help you down.” He puts one hand on my leg.
I still don't want Brad anywhere near me, but I'm hurt and confused, and Jacob has backed away. I slip off the limb and then slide down the tree into Brad's arms. For a horrible second, I think I might throw up. I bury my face in Brad's shoulder and swallow hard. He sets me on a stump, and everyone gathers around, gawking.
“Mark, can you take a look? Mark is a field medic," Jacob explains.
"She needs to go to the emergency room," Brad says. He's standing next to me, his arm across my shoulders.
Mark takes my wrist between his hands. “Does this hurt?”
“Yeah.” I bite down hard on my bottom lip to keep from crying.
“I don’t know. It’s kind of disfigured and already swelling. I think it’s broken,” Mark slides his fingers along the side of my wrist. “But it might be dislocated. Did you hear a pop when you wrenched it?”
I nod miserably. "Yeah."
Mark steps back. “You need to get it x-rayed.”
“No, I’ll be fine. I just need ice or something.” I stand up and immediately get dizzy.
Brad reaches to steady me. "Are you sure, Babe? My truck's just on the other side of the trees. I could take you to the hospital."
I glance at Jacob. I wonder what he thinks of me now. "I'm fine." I take a step back from Brad.
"At least let me carry you back to the house," Brad says.
"Back off, Brad," Jasmine snarls at him. "She says she's fine."
Taryn backs her up. "It's her wrist, not her leg, moron."
Brad steps back, his hands up in surrender. "I'm just trying to help."
“You girls head back to the house with Jess,” Matthew says. “We’ll take care of the equipment.”
“I’ll go with Jess,” Brad says. “Just in case she can't make it back.”
“No, I’ll go.” Jacob is eyeing Brad. “Like you said, it’s my fault she got hurt.”
“Oh, my testosterone.” Kendra puts her hand on her hip. “We're strong capable women. We've got this. Even if we have to carry Jess. The house is right there.”
To me, the house looks far away. I’m not sure I can make it, but there’s no way I’m letting any of them carry me back. Not even Jacob–especially not Jacob. I’ve humiliated myself enough for one day.
