Breaking South (Turner Artist Rocker #3) - Alyson Santos Page 0,67

I care about her and how amazing she is. And the latest, a goofy selfie along with a request to see her as soon as she’s free. Man, I hope that’s enough to smooth things over. I can’t live with this pressure in my chest anymore, this weight of letting someone down.

I close the text app just as a message flashes in from my sister.

So sorry to hear about Genevieve. Hope she’s okay.

I bolt up on the couch. What are you talking about? I type back immediately. How could she possibly know I stood up my girlfriend?

The fall? comes her response a second later.

My heart races at another text from a teammate. Dude, that looked bad. Your girl okay?

Shit! Shit, shit, shit. I pull up Genevieve’s number, nausea sweeping through me when it goes straight to voicemail. I try Hadley next, but she doesn’t answer either.

“Hadley, it’s Oliver. What’s going on with Gen? I just got some weird messages about a fall? She’s not answering her phone. Call me!”

I’m about to message my sister again when I realize with a sinking feeling that I’ll probably get more information from the internet on this one. I do a quick search on my phone and collapse back to the couch. I can barely catch my breath at video after video of my girlfriend crashing down a flight of stairs from at least ten feet in the air. She lands awkwardly, smacking her head on the stage and clearly unconscious as a medical team and security rush out. I can only watch a couple times before the bile rises in my throat, my hand shaking as it grips the phone.

No. No! I try Hadley again, my finger barely making contact with the screen as it trembles over her name. No answer.

Fuck!

I bolt to my feet, pacing violently while I shove my hand through my hair. I need to get to my car. No, the airport. Wait, my car would be faster because at least… fuck! I pull on my shoes and grab my keys, already stalking toward the stairs when Sandy comes thundering down.

“You heard?” he asks, freezing in the middle when he sees me at the bottom.

“I don’t know anything. She’s not answering. Neither is Hadley.”

“Hadley?”

“Her assistant. I’m going to her.”

He shakes his head. “Okay, let’s just take a breath for a second.”

I ignore him and continue up the stairs, frustrated when he doesn’t move. “Get out of my way, Sandy. I need to go.”

“Yeah? Where exactly?”

Fuck. “I don’t know yet, but I’ll find out. She was in Vegas tonight so I’m assuming a hospital near there.”

His eyes bulge as his gaze turns cold. “Wait, does that mean when you were trying to duck out earlier you were planning to go to Vegas? Are you fucking out of your mind?”

“Well, I didn’t, and now look what happened! Get out of my way!”

His fists clench at his sides and he seems to double in size, blocking my path. “You’re not driving to Vegas, Ollie. Not right now. Not like that. Look at you. You’re shaking so much you can barely hang onto your keys. You’ll kill yourself on the road.”

I shove them in my pocket, prepared to fight my way past him at this point. “Get out of my way, Sandy. I’m not going to say it again!” I take the final step separating us, pushing into his left side in a swift check. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been out of commission for months like I have and has no problem blocking my attempt.

“You’re scared and desperate. You’re not thinking straight,” he hisses. “Get your ass back on the couch and let’s figure this out.”

“Hell yes, I’m scared and desperate! My girlfriend is in the hospital, and I have no idea what’s wrong with her!” My stomach clenches, twisting with a sick truth. I would know if I’d been there. I’d be with her now. At her side, holding her hand. Hell, maybe she wouldn’t have been distracted and taken the fall in the first place. Hadley warned me she wasn’t right, that I was making things bad. For the second time in my life, my absence failed someone I loved. Oh god, what if I killed her too?

Sparks spear through me, a terror so sharp it pierces my heart and sends surges of bloody fire through my body. I push forward again, this time breaking through his fortress and escaping to the other side.

“Oliver, stop!” Sandy shouts, his own anger igniting. “Don’t make