Page 58 of Forever my Love

“Honey, no,” Amber started.

“When he attacked me, he told me Reece was going to pay. I… I didn’t think…”

Luke tensed under her.

“When who attacked you?” Luke asked.

Thankfully, she didn’t have to explain anything since Amber quickly relayed what had happened before the fight.

“Shit.” Luke stood up, then placed Hailey in the chair. “I’ll be right back.” He took his phone from Amber.

“We should have told him,” Amber said with a sigh. “I should have told him.” She leaned her head down. “I was just so caught up in the fight. I thought we’d have plenty of time after… I didn’t know he’d threatened my son.”

“This is all my fault,” Hailey said again. “I… I didn’t know he’d shoot him. I…” She cried and then was pulled into a hug. “I’m so sorry.”

“No, sweetie, there was no way we could have predicted this,” she assured Hailey as they held onto one another.

“The son of a bitch flew in on our same damn flight,” Luke said when he returned. “He was on our plane.” He practically growled it. “How the hell did he get on a plane?” He sat down and pulled Amber into his arms. “Hailey, this isn’t on you. It’s on all the idiots that let that man on a plane. All the idiots who let him fly to Vegas. The damned fool who gave him a goddamn gun while he was on a convicted felon list,” he barked. “Not you. Never you.”

It took almost three hours for a doctor to come out and tell them that Reece had been moved out of surgery to recovery.

It wasn’t until the three of them rode the elevators up to the ICU that Hailey realized this was the first time that she had ever stepped foot in a hospital.

There were so many firsts during this trip. So many good ones followed by this one very terrible first.

More than anything, she wanted many more firsts with Reece.

They were shown into a small waiting room that was empty except for them. Here, Luke and Amber continued to take many calls and make some to fill Hannah and other family members in on Reece’s status.

She’d put her phone on mute during the fight and when she pulled it out, she realized she had more than a hundred missed calls and text messages.

Seeing her sister’s number, she called it.

“You’re okay?” Harper said quickly when she answered.

“I am.” She closed her eyes and rested her head back. “Reece.” Her voice broke.

“I know, I’m here with Nick. We’ve been filled in on everything. Even the attack before the fight. You should have called. There, I said it and it’s over. Now, how are you holding up?”

“I know, I was in shock, I think. I… didn’t want to upset Reece’s fight. I was going to tell you after…”

“I know,” Harper said softly. “We’ve got him now, Fred. He’s in Vegas. He won’t be able to fly anywhere now.”

Hailey felt a slight sense of relief.

“How’s Reece? The last news we had is he’s still in ICU.”

“Yes, his mother is back seeing him now. They’re going to move him to a private room soon, and I can see him then.”

“Honey, I’m so sorry. He’s strong though.”

“I know,” Hailey agreed. “I love him,” she said softly, so quietly that Luke wouldn’t hear as he talked on the phone across the room from her.

“I know. We all do,” Harper said with a sigh. “I wish I was there.”

“No.” Hailey thought of Harper and the baby she was carrying being in the same state as Fred. She was glad Fred had gone after her instead of Harper this time.

Still, the man had to be crazy to shoot Reece in a crowded arena.