Forbidden - Karla Sorensen Page 0,69

I was glad because I didn’t even know what to say.

Isabel Ward was the blood-red apple, tempting just by being herself. She was the thing I shouldn’t want but might wreck the world around me in order to try.

One taste, even the smallest indulgence, and I’d know exactly what I was missing.

If I allowed myself to, I’d want to devour her whole. Because there were no half measures, not with her. There might be a hundred things I didn’t know about her. What her favorite food was. If she was a good dancer. If she liked action movies or romances or stories that made her cry. If she liked to read or if ice cream in the winter sounded good to her.

The frantic urge to uncover each and every thing took me by surprise. Because I’d never felt anything like it.

It was impossible not to compare it to Beth, and I hated that too. Beth had been slow, sweet growth. And this … this was not in the same universe.

I walked out of the bedroom and took a deep breath because I didn’t need to figure it out immediately.

While she slept soundly in my bed, I fed the kids dinner, and we walked down to the lake for a little bit.

After we got back to the house, I quietly pushed the door open. She was on her back now, her wrapped wrist laying on her chest, which rose and fell evenly.

“Are you going to wake her up?” Anya whispered.

I ushered her away from the door. “Soon. She’s only been asleep for a couple of hours. I’ll give her another hour and then see if I can wake her up.”

Emmett gave me a nervous look from where he sat on the couch. “And if you can’t?”

“I’ll be able to,” I promised him. “She’ll be okay, bud. You said she never passed out when she … when they fell?” I almost stuttered over the question because it sparked a dangerous, violent reaction in my head if I tried to imagine her and Anya crashing to the ground. Something volatile.

He shook his head. “No, she said way too many bad words when she hit the ground.”

Reluctantly, I smiled. “That’s a good sign.” I tilted my head toward the bedroom. “Your parents gonna be mad when they find out about this?”

His eyes got huge. “Oh yeah. I was actually supposed to FaceTime with my mom tonight, but maybe I’ll just ignore it so she doesn’t find out and try to get a flight home. My dad has to coach tomorrow.”

If I had to guess, missing a game would be an easy sacrifice for both of them, but I didn’t tell him that.

“Is Isabel’s phone in her backpack?”

He shrugged. “Probably.”

Her pack was still sitting on the floor by the door, right where she’d left it when she walked in. After turning on a movie for the kids, I picked it up, pausing before I unzipped the front pocket.

The phone was right there, and when I touched the screen, I saw a few texts and two missed calls from Paige.

“Do you know her passcode?” I asked Emmett.

“You’re breaking into her phone? Cool.” He motioned for it. “I know the pattern. Up, middle, down, then middle.”

He tapped the screen, the phone unlocking immediately.

“You’re not going to throw me under the bus if she kicks my ass for this, are you?”

Emmett laughed. “No. I’ll tell her I did it.”

With a nod, I walked out onto the back deck and pulled up the missed call. I hit the name of her sister-in-law and took a deep breath.

Paige answered on the first ring. “Holy shit, Isabel, I’ve been freaking out since Molly texted me. You fell out of a tree?”

I winced. “This is Aiden, actually. Her … boss.”

Deafening silence met my announcement.

“You’re …” She paused again. “Aiden Hennessy?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry to call you like this.”

“Is she okay? Why do you have her phone?” Paige asked, the concern in her voice loud and clear.

“She’s asleep, and I think she’ll be fine. Sore, but nothing broken or seriously injured.”

She exhaled heavily, then I heard her cover the microphone and repeat what I said to her husband. “I’m going to put you on speaker, Aiden. Logan wants to know what’s going on. Is Emmett okay?”

“Yeah, he was a little rattled when I showed up at the house, but he’s the one who called 911 when the branch broke. He’s a brave kid.”

Logan spoke next. “What happened exactly?”

I told them what I knew and