A Second Chance (41 page)

‘I
’
m absolutely fine
.
’
Wa
s
it possible that he looked even worse than she did? He was
so ghostly
pale, his dark eyes
were
two black holes in his face. ‘
What
were you thinking, Jade
, j
umping out like that, right at
her?
She could have killed you
.
’
H
is
voice was
shaking
.
H
e picked her up and carried
her
gently to the sink,
s
it
ting
her down on the counter.

‘
T
here was no time,’ she
answer
ed
weakly, trying to make him understand. ‘
She
would
have been
rea
l
l
y
mad at you for coming to my rescue and try
to
hurt you. I… couldn’t let it happen.’

He stared at her for a second, something in his face making her
forget
the
pain that
pulsated in her arm. She moved and winced, the throbbing getting worse.

Before he could answer, a
para
medic
arrived to take care of Jade
, followed quickly by the police
.

Soon,
both
she and Liam were
busy describing the incident. She looked around, embarrassed by the mess
the minor wound in her
arm had created, the red of her blood vivid against the white porcelain sink. Glancing at Liam
,
she noticed that his elegant suit was stained as well, probably when he was holding her right after the incident.
‘I think that
’
s all we need for now
,
’ the policeman smiled, his face warm
and friendly
. ‘I might have some more questions later, but for now I think you deserve a break. Let me tell you, you were very brave,
Ms.
Rowley.
You’re also lucky you weren’t seriously injured.
In situations like that
,
you can never tell what will happen next.
’

Jade
cringed, knowing how undeserving she was of any
praise
.
She hadn’t been
brave.
She had responded instinctively
to the threat of Liam being hurt, nothing more. She
hadn’t planned
on doing the right thing
; she hadn’t
analyzed her response. All she
had
thought
of
was Liam, her fear
of losing
him sweeping aside
any hesitation
.

She refused the offer to be taken to the hospital for evaluation, the sheer idea of riding in the ambulance and showing up with
a minor injury
a ridiculous one. But
Liam
put his foot down, persuading her to have
the wound
looked at by a doctor, his pleading eyes
winning the short battle of wills.

They
left
the
ball
room escorted by the police and paramedics, the chaos of the place at odds with its previous lovely
serenity.
G
roups of people
stood in small groups talking
, eyes going to her as she walked with Liam. She spotted Sandra in the distance, pushing through the crowd and coming to inquire if she could help in any way.
The whole thing
was ridiculous, Jade thought almost angrily, as she heard photos being snapped left and right.
Being
in the
ambulance
was a relief
, the short trip to the hospital calming her strained nerves. Liam was with her, never once leaving her side
,
h
is
hand around her cold fingers
reassuring and warm. He had to leave her as she was examined by the doctor,
and
his visible reluctance to wait outside
ma
de
her
smile
.

He was back with her the moment the doctor was finished, his eyes going to the thick bandage around her arm.

‘
Well
, I guess we did make a statement after all
,
’ she tried to joke, eager to disperse the
darkness clouding
his face. ‘
More
than we planned for,
wa
sn’t it?’

‘
You
bet
.
Let’s
go home now
.
’
H
e
held her hand, his dark eyes searching
her face
for approval
.
‘
Y
ou should lie down, Jade.’

S
he
smiled, his concern touching
.
‘
I feel fine, Liam. Just a bit dizzy
,
that
’
s all.’

He held her close to him in the
cab
,
reluctantly
detach
ing
himself from her for a minute
when he had to pay for the ride.
He
open
ed
the door and help
ed
her out, her eyes widening as she realized they weren’t at Laura’s home.
H
e had brought
her
to his place, the one
-
bedroom apartment he had rented since
returning
from Hong Kong.  She didn’t think she would ever have the chance to see it, since they usually met at his sister’s or his new home instead.
Perhaps he was the one
who was in
shock,
the unexpected gesture
a complete surprise
.

His place
was rather small and utilitarian
,
she
thought
as they arrived
o
n
the third floor of an old brown house
that had been
converted into lofts and studio apartments. He had a large living room and a good size bedroom,
a
rather smallish kitchen and bathroom the only other spaces. She
sat
on his couch, watching him prepare her a drink and
listening to his voice as he chatted from the kitchen. The
painkillers
the doctor had given her
were making her drowsy
. She sat straighter, trying to fight the wave of sleepiness that threatened to overcome her. But she
had barely slept
the
night
before
, and the mix of insomnia and pills wasn’t the best combination
for
stay
ing
awake.
Still, she didn’t want to appear
too needy
. She thought about Liam and recalled his face as he came to hold her after the shooting. He
had
looked absolutely terrified, his usual self
-
control in shambles. Was it because he felt guilty
for
talking her into coming with him in the first place? She couldn’t really come up with another reason for him to appear so devastated.
P
robably he felt responsible for her mishap, the blame game starting all over again. She had to be able to tell him that she didn’t blame him in the least
,
before he let it spiral out of control. But she had to be careful to do it subtly, without confronting him with her
heart
open for him to read.
She
would have to be clever
.

She moved restlessly, eager to clear up the misunderstanding. But suddenly Liam’s face floated before her eyes, pale and angry, his lips pulled over his teeth in an angry grimace.

‘
You
never
should have told her you loved me
,
’ he accused her bitterly, his body as tense as
the
string of a bow
.
‘
Y
ou taunted her and didn’t think of the consequences
.
’

‘I
didn’t tell
her, Liam. I never told her I loved you
,
’ she answered helplessly,
frightened by
his fury. He had it all wrong, she thought
with panic
, her hands shaking. ‘I was biding my time
.
’

‘
Wrong
choice
.
’
S
uddenly
Mel
was
next to him, her lovely mouth stretched in a smile that didn’t
reach
her eyes
.
‘I know what a pathetic little wimp you are, Jade
,
’ she jeered and cackled, her eyes burning with anger
.
‘
Y
ou
love him and want him for yourself. But you won’t have him, ever. Even if I have to teach
you a
lesson by getting rid of him,
Jade
.
’
S
uddenly the gun was in her hand
again
, only much bigger this time. She waved it around
,
pointing it at Liam, her eyes tightening into slits.

Jade
was terrified
, e
specially
at finding
herself immobilized, unable to move from the couch as she watched Mel pull the trigger. The shot clashed like a thunder
clap, her whole body jerking in response. Her eyes snapped open
,
and she blinked
,
confused. She was still on the couch, wrapped in a blanket with a soft pillow under her head. The noise she
had
heard was a rolling of thunder, the room illuminated by lightning as she tried to prop herself up against the pillow.

The dull ache in her arm reminded her that even though she
had been dreaming
,
some of the nightmarish events really had happened
. She bit down a whimper of pain, never one to be vocal about her discomfort.
The
sound of
talking
helped her to shake of
f
the last remnants of her
nap
,
Liam’s voice a soothing murmur to her nerves. She sat up, looking around the darkened room.
Once h
er
eyes
were
used to the darkness
,
she
pushed the blanket to the side, eager to see him. After her nightmare
,
she needed
to convince herself that he was
t
here, safe and unharmed. Her arm hurt again, the effect of the pills wearing off. But it didn’t matter, she thought as she walked over to the
well-lit
kitchen.

He saw her immediately, his eyes softening as she stood in the doorway. He said a quick goodbye to who
m
ever he was talking to
on the phone
, closing the distance between them with two easy steps.

‘
Hey
.
’
H
is
fingers came to her cheek, cool and
caressing as he allowed his thumb to drag against her skin. ‘
Did
I wake you up with my talking
,
or was it the thunderstorm?’

‘
Neither
, I think
.
’
S
he
smiled
faintly
, enjoying his closeness
.
‘I just had a nightmare, that’s all.’

‘
No
wonder
,
’ he sighed, his eyes going to her arm. The white gauze was almost glowing in the semi
-
darkness of the room, dramatic against her bare arms. ‘
How
’
s your arm?’