“Mom, stop. His club happens to be one of the cleanest clubs in the city. He doesn’t condone drug use. This has nothing to do with him.” Her lies feel like sharp daggers stabbing into my gut.

With nothing more to say, I start to pace.

My feet pound the linoleum as I walk back and forth through the small waiting room.

I’m not sure how much time has passed before the door across the room opens. All of us stop.

Hell, time might have stopped too.

I can feel how my pulse accelerates as a man, who appears in scrubs, walks toward Harper.

“Mrs. Jameson?”

“Yes. This is Bailey’s mother.”

“I’m Dr. Bell, I treated your daughter. Would you like to go to a more comfortable place to talk?”

Mrs. Jameson looks warily in my direction and then at the doctor. “Please. Tell us she’s going to be all right.”

“She’s stable.”

“Can we see her?”

“Right now, she’s being observed. As I’m sure you know, Bailey came in under the influence.” The doctor looks toward me, and I’m sure this is when they kick me out.

“What aren’t you telling us?”

“We ran her bloodwork. Along with alcohol, there was an array of drugs found in her system.”

“Drugs . . . ?”

“We found—” The doctor talks, but it feels like I’m stuck in quicksand, or maybe like I’m drowning in an ocean. I can hear the words, but they sound muffled. I knew she went to find Reese to get drunk, but I never thought Bailey would revert to drugs. It hurts to breathe, knowing that I pushed her. That I broke her. I shake my head. It wasn’t you. She made her choice. She decided to do drugs. Maybe I was the catalyst, but this rests on her. No matter what she thought.

“She has a long road ahead of her. She’s sleeping, and we want it to stay that way, so for right now, we want her visitors limited to two at a time and family only. You won’t be permitted to stay in her room for more than ten minutes. I’ll have my nurse get you when it’s a good time.”

“Thank you, Dr. Bell.”

I head back to my seat and resume bouncing my knee. It’s the only comfort I have at this moment.

I feel sick.

I didn’t stop Alexa that night, and because of my actions, another person I care about is fighting for their lives. I’ve tried my hardest to keep my club clean, but it’s a club. Drugs and nightclubs go hand in hand, despite my best efforts, and that’s never going to change.

I hear someone sit beside me, but I don’t bother looking up.

“You can go home, you know. You won’t be able to see her anytime soon. You stink. Go take a shower.” Harper tries to lighten the mood, but I just can’t.

“I’m not going anywhere. I’ll sit in this damn waiting room until she’s released.” I look up to find her studying me.

“You care about her.” It’s not a question.

“I love her.” I don’t say more because what more is there to say. I haven’t even wrapped my head around my own feelings yet, but I know Bailey is my world.

“What really happened tonight? Why do I feel like you aren’t telling me everything?”

I look at her long and hard. She’s the opposite of Bailey, yet I can see the love in her eyes. It makes my heart hurt.

“As much as I want to tell you, Harper, I need to tell Bailey first. However, that being said, I heard what the doctor said. She had drugs in her system. The first sign of trouble, and she reverted back to her old habits. You need to be ready. When she gets better, you need to be prepared to send her somewhere. I know you know about her past, but as someone who has lost someone important to them, she needs help. No matter what she says, she won’t get better on her own. Don’t let this happen again.”

She looks like I’ve slapped her.

“What do I tell my mother? How do I tell her I knew but never told anyone?”

She clearly only knew the surface of her sister’s habits. Bailey said as much, but I assumed her family would have at least suspected. How the hell had she kept something like that a secret from her mother?

“I’m scared, Drew. I can’t lose her.” She begins to cry.

I grab her hand to offer a semblance of support. “I’ll help. I’ll get you the information on the best inpatient facility around. She’s going to get better. But I have to tell you that this is partially my fault. She walked in on something that looked bad. It wasn’t what she thought, but she didn’t give me the chance to explain.” She gives me a wary look.

“I swear to you, Harper, I would never hurt Bailey. I was ambushed by an employee, and Bailey walked in at the worst time possible. I love her.” As soon as I say the words, I know they are true. I feel them in my soul. “I’m not sure how it happened, but she’s changed my world.”

Tags: Ava Harrison Billionaire Romance
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