41. Kavanaugh

41

KAVANAUGH

With the press conference over, I rushed to the hospital, taking the stairs to avoid anyone in the elevator. I could hear Red and Eli’s steps pounding on the concrete behind me, but I didn’t care what they were doing. I needed to hold Isla and see for myself that she was fine.

Though I’d been getting regular updates through Red the whole time, I wouldn’t believe she was okay until I saw it with my own eyes. I shoved the door open to her floor and ran down the hall, ignoring the calls from the nurses not to run. They would do the same fucking thing if they were in my position.

Relief flooded me as I pushed her door open, but it was short-lived when I saw the bed was empty. “Isla!” I called out, opening the bathroom door. It was empty.

Shoving my fingers into my hair, panic took over. She wasn’t here. Where the hell was she?

“Maybe she went for tests,” Eli said, trying to calm me down.

“Right. Tests.” I nodded and ran to the nurse’s station. “Where is Isla McKenna?”

“I’m sorry, who are you?”

“I’m her boyfriend, Brad Kavanaugh.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly, and then I saw the moment of recognition. “You were just on TV.”

“My girlfriend,” I bit out.

Eli tugged me aside before I said something to the lady I might regret. “Mandy,” he said, his eyes flicking from her name tag to her face. “He would really like to see his girlfriend. Was she taken for tests or?—”

“Oh, no. She’s with the man they brought her in with.”

“IKE,” I rushed out.

“Um…Mr. Thorne. I’ll take you to them.”

I was about to chase after her when Eli stopped me. “Listen, I know you want to go in there and make everything right, but remember, she’s been through a lot.”

“What are you saying?”

His face hardened as he stared at me. “I’m saying you don’t know what happened in there, and you can’t judge her for it.”

His words sank in my gut like a lead weight. I didn’t know what happened in there. What exactly did he think she did? “Whatever you’re implying?—”

“I’m not implying anything. I’m telling you to take it easy. You don’t know what she’s been through.”

I wanted to tell him I had every right to demand answers from my girlfriend, but he was right. She’d been missing for four days. I had no idea what happened, and I couldn’t go in there demanding answers. I had to give her time.

I nodded and waited for him to release me before following the nurse down the hall. I thanked the nurse and pressed my hand to the door, taking a moment to myself before pushing it open slightly. But when I heard her voice, I stopped and listened.

“We’re not dead.”

“Then when you’re ready, you’ll come to me.”

She’d go to him. Fuck, I really hoped that didn’t mean what I thought it did. Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open. I couldn’t stop myself. Ignoring him, I stormed over to Isla and dragged her into my arms, so thankful she was alive.

“Thank God you’re alright.”

Her hands slid around my waist, holding me tight. I looked at IKE, nodding to him gratefully. No matter what happened, he kept her alive. “Thank you.”

“I didn’t do much,” he deadpanned. “Unless you count helping her decorate for Christmas.”

Isla laughed, stepping out of my arms. She was still a little shaky and sat down on the edge of the bed. “You did give me your shoes.”

The way she smiled at him sent a shot of fear through me, but I shoved it down to examine at a later time. Right now, I was just grateful she was alive. “Whatever he did, I’m glad you’re both okay.”

“And on that note, I need a fucking nap,” IKE said, stifling a yawn.

My gaze flicked between the two of them. There was a tension in the room I didn’t want to look too closely at. Something had definitely happened between them, but as I replayed the words I’d heard just before I walked in, I knew it was far from settled, which meant that even if they had grown closer, I still had a chance.

And this time, I wouldn’t waste it.

“We should get you back to your room.”

She dragged her eyes from his and finally looked at me. I’d hoped to see love in her eyes, but instead, there was a heaviness I didn’t want to overanalyze. But she forced a smile and took my hand.

“Yeah, I could use a nap.”

As soon as she stood, I lifted her in my arms, knowing the nurses would have something to say about it as soon as they saw me. With her arms wrapped around my neck, I finally took a breath I felt like I’d been holding for days. Each step I put between IKE and Isla eased the ache in my chest. I shouldn’t hate the man who saved Isla’s life, but somehow, all I could see was a man who was trying to take her from me.

The nurse rushed ahead and opened her door from me, sending me a chastising glare for carrying her. I already knew there would be a lecture headed my way, but hopefully, she’d give me a few minutes alone with Isla.

As I set her gently down on the bed, I sucked in a breath, resting my forehead against hers as I took a moment to remind myself that she was alive and nothing else mattered right now. When I looked up at her, she smiled tiredly at me, brushing her fingers through my hair.

“I’m so sorry I left you.”

“Kavanaugh—”

“When your sister called and said she couldn’t reach you, I panicked. I’ve never felt so scared in my life, Isla. The thought of losing you…We flew out to New York and tracked down the people who took you. It was connected to me, which I’m extremely sorry about, but I’ll tell you the whole thing when you get some rest.”

“Who?”

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “Jerry.”

“The man I interviewed with?” she huffed out a laugh that bordered on a cry. “It figures. I guess you were right about him.”

“I don’t want to be right. I just…I’ve fucked up so many things.”

She sighed heavily. “So, why did he do it?”

I gritted my teeth, still pissed as hell. “It had to do with me. I know you want answers, but…can we talk about it later?”

“Kavanaugh—”

I cut her off with a kiss, tasting those lips that I feared I might never get to kiss again. Her cold hands pressed against my cheek, reminding me that I had to slow down.

Chuckling, I stepped back from her, putting my hands on my hips so I didn’t haul her out of bed and storm out of the hospital with her. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

I shook my head and helped tuck her in, then fluffed her pillow as her eyes started to droop. I pulled the chair closer to the bed and took her hand in mine, staring at her like she would disappear at any second.

“I know you need to sleep, but…I need to say this.”

She pushed herself upright and stared at me intently. “I’m listening.”

“There’s so much I need to tell you, but now isn’t the time. I just want you to know that…I’m so fucking sorry for what I did. And I know now isn’t the time to bombard you with my apologies and?—”

Her eyes were focused on me, but all I could think about was the fact that she was snuggled up to him, looking at him lovingly when it should have been me. I’d had too many chances and blown them all, and no matter how much I hoped that I could salvage what was between us, I had to face the fact that there was someone else in her life now. Someone who she had a connection with, who hadn’t broken her trust yet. And all of that stopped me from saying what I desperately wanted to tell her. The truth was, none of it mattered right now. It was too late for my apologies, and deep down, I knew this was probably the end.

So, I smiled at her, rubbing my thumb across her hand as I tore my eyes from hers. “You know what? We can talk about it later.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. You need some rest.” I got to my feet and pressed a kiss to her forehead. Then I dragged the chair to the corner where I could give her some space for the night.

“Kavanaugh,” she said softly.

I turned around, my eyes roaming over her body as she curled up on her side in bed. “Yeah?”

“Thank you for finding me.”

“I’ll always come for you, Isla.”

“I know.”

I took a seat and watched as the minutes dragged her under until she was sleeping peacefully in bed. Tomorrow would come too soon, along with a reality I wasn’t sure I was ready for. So, I sat in that chair all night and I watched her sleep, knowing I might not get the privilege ever again.