I stay sitting in my car at the side of the road as I let the engine idle, not knowing how I’m going to react hearing the voice of the woman I love.
“Lucien’s taken her back to the house while I wait for the Sheriff. She refused to let us call the EMT, refusing to go to the hospital so we compromised and they’re going to check her out at the house. Her shoulder is hurting from the seat belt and she’ll probably have bruising on one side of her face where she smashed into the airbag. You’ll see soon enough if you’re on the way. I’ve got to go son, the Sheriff is just pulling up.”
Fuck! He hung up on me.
Trying to calm down, I rest against the back of the seat and close my eyes, taking some deep breaths. The last thing she needs to deal with today is me getting involved in an accident. So with that thought in mind, I pull away and try to keep my speed down, which is difficult as hell.
Gary needs teaching a lesson. A lesson, which I wouldn’t mind teaching the bastard. After today, Carla isn’t going anywhere without someone, preferably me, with her. Even to the fuckin’ bathroom. I smack my fist against the steering column as my impatience to get to her starts eating at me.
My life before Carla was one long party. Other than my family I took nothing seriously, even work I’d blow off time and time again for the chance to spend a few days with a new hot body. Yeah, that was me. Fast cars and faster women. Women who knew the score and wanted what my body could offer them.
Until I met Carla I had no idea that all I wanted was a woman to call mine. A woman who I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, bear my children and, most of all, a woman who would love me for myself and not because of the McKenzie name, which would lead to the McKenzie money, and today I nearly lost all that because of him.
Because of the accident that he caused trying to kill her, he is going to pay for that when I get my hands on the fucker.
Slowing down, I pull over to the side of the road and roll the window down, unable to take my eyes from the wreck of Carla’s car.
“Hey Sebastian.” I hear the Sheriff, but have trouble finding my voice. She could have been killed in that chunk of steel. “Sebastian? Are you alright?”
“No.” I shake my head, finally dragging my eyes away and locate the Sheriff, Thomas Jefferson. Yeah, his parents loved history. “You catch the bastard?”
“Not yet,” he says leaning through the open window, “but I will.”
Not if I find him first.
“Keep me in the loop will you, Tom?”
“As best I can.” He steps away from my car and stands back watching me drive off.
As soon as I turn the corner, I put my foot down, flooring the gas, praying Carla’s okay when I get there.
Chapter 25
Carla
I’m sitting on the sofa in the front room of Lily and Michael’s home with every bone in my body aching, but inside I just feel numb. When my car started to spin out of control, all I could see was Sebastian’s face and my heart broke because I honestly believed I wouldn’t survive.
Crashing the way I had was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life and was right up there with being beaten within an inch of my life. Both terrifying events caused by the same man. A man who I wanted to see dead and gone, which was not like me at all, but he’d tried to take my life twice now.
The thought of him trying again, which he will after having failed twice is causing my heart to race and a pain to lance my head. Fear courses along my body and is more apparent than the pain from being thrown around in the car. What if Sebastian gets in the way? Knowing Sebastian, he will do anything to protect me, so will his brothers by the sound of things.
I glance over to where Lucien, his father and Michael are standing arguing. About what I’ve no idea, but Lucien looks pale.
In fact, when he pulled me out of the car it was a tossup as to who had been in the accident as he’d lost all color and his hands had been unsteady. I’d also caught his father not just looking at me with concern, but Lucien. Once I’d gotten my befuddled brain to start working again, I remembered he’d been in a bad accident, which had left him scarred.
I also wasn’t the only one watching Lucien with concern. Sabrina had been standing in the doorway five minutes ago with Lucien the object of her gaze. She’d disappeared, the minute he caught her watching him.
“Carla, can I get you anything else.” Pippa drags my gaze away from the men and back to her as she passes me a mug of coffee.
I don’t want anything other than Sebastian, but I can’t say that to her as she has no idea I’ve kind of switched sons.
“No. Not really. Thank you, for your concern.” I start sipping the coffee Pippa handed me and notice the frown on her face.
“Honey, you don’t need to thank me for my concern. I care about you. You’re Ramon’s girl. Why wouldn’t I care for you? You’re like family.”