One Chance (Hogan Brothers 1)

“I assume the police are involved. I know Brax has men following my mother and digging through her entire life with a fine-tooth comb. They did discover she was obsessed with someone back before Dad. Charges were withdrawn, though.”

“Maybe it’s time your father and I had a talk about this whole situation.” It seemed as though she was thinking out loud and not actually speaking to Sophia.

“Oh no, please don’t. My mother will come completely unglued. I’d hate for something to happen to you because of me, Lorraine.” She would rather die a thousand deaths before letting harm come to the sweet woman who had treated her with nothing but kindness and compassion.

Patting her hand, Lorraine assured her, “It will all be fine, dear, you’ll see.”

Letting it go because she knew how stubborn Nox and his brothers could be, she mentioned the book they were supposed to have read the past two weeks. As they spoke about the good and the bad, ups and downs, Sophia couldn’t help thinking of all the trouble she was causing with so many people.

She wasn’t a martyr, not by a long shot, but she wondered if maybe she should confront her mother on her own. Get everything out in the open. Find out what the hell was really going on because she had a sense there was more than just hatred between them. Something deeper.

Before she knew it, their time was coming to a close and Braxton was knocking on the door. “Braxton, huh? Different name,” Lorraine commented, a teasing gleam in her eye.

“Nice to meet you, ma’am.” He looked uncomfortable.

“Next time come inside. No sense sitting out here alone.”

“I like the quiet.” He was nearly squirming.

“I’ll see you soon, Lorraine,” Sophia interrupted.

Leaning in to give her a hug, she whispered in her ear, “Stay safe, dear.”

Nodding, Sophia followed Braxton down the front steps and to the waiting town car. She’d insisted Lennox spend the afternoon with his brothers, knowing he was worried about Levi and whatever was going on with him.

“Hungry?” Braxton asked her as he opened the door.

“Not really,” she told him. There was too much weighing on her mind as they left the quiet neighborhood.

The drive to Lennox’s house was a short one. They were only two blocks away when an impact so jarring had every window in the car shattering. Her head bounced off the door frame, her ears were ringing and her head swimming as she tried to stop the spinning in her vision.

“Sophia!” She heard Braxton yelling her name but couldn’t answer. She could barely move. Pain vibrated through her entire body as her world turned black.

Arriving on the scene of the crash, Nox had never been so glad he and his brothers lived so close together. The screeching of his brakes was nearly deafening as he and Loch barreled from the barely parked vehicle.

The carnage, the glass, the natural smell of gas had his stomach rolling over. Searching the littered road for Sophia, he was freaking out when he couldn’t see her. He prayed it wasn’t as bad as it looked.

“Nox!” His head whipped around at the call of his name. Seeing Braxton near an ambulance, he rushed over to the other man. Blood ran down the side of his face, and his arm was in a sling.

“What the fuck happened?” he screamed, his temper getting the best of him. “Where the fuck is Soph?”

Remorse shot from the man’s eyes as he looked to the ambulance across from where they were standing. Rushing over, Loch hot on his heels, he looked inside the vehicle. What he saw had his knees so weak with fear, Loch had to grip his arm to keep him upright.

Laying on a stretcher was his Sophia.

Blood covering the entire upper half of her body.

Her chest red from the catch of her seatbelt.

Her arm in a sling, and her leg being stabilized by a board.

The worst part was all the glass protruding from her cheek, neck, and shoulder. The golf ball sized bump on the side of her head.

“Sir?” One of the paramedics called to him.

“Yeah?”

“You the boyfriend we were warned about.”