Feel (Sovereign Book 3) by BJ Harvey

before returning to her face. “How did you get here?”
    “A police officer met me at the airport. He told me there had been an incident and I couldn’t go home. Then they took me to the police precinct where a female detective sat me down and explained what had happened. Is the man Gavin shot going to be okay?”
    My voice broke, and I felt my eyes grow wet. “I . . . I don’t know yet.”
    “And . . .” she hesitated before finishing her question, “Gavin?”
    That was when Aiden appeared at our side. “Mrs. Barnes, I’m Detective Aiden Lawrence. Mr. Barnes was shot in the shoulder and the last update we had was that he was being prepped for surgery. He is under police guard and will be arrested when he is up for questioning.”
    “Oh dear God. I think I need to sit down,” Mom replied. I wrapped one arm around her shoulder and led her over to where I’d been sitting.
    “I’m so sorry, Mom,” I said, one of my hands still clutched in hers as I sat down beside her. “I didn’t know where you were; you didn’t call me.”
    “Gavin changed during the honeymoon. He wasn’t the kind-hearted man I knew before the wedding. He was distant, angry. He kept asking about the company and talking about things that had happened to him in the past. I needed time to think so I decided to book myself into a retreat as far away as possible.” She grabbed my hand and squeezed. “I’m sorry I worried you.”
    “Can I get you ladies a coffee? Water?” Aiden asked.
    “Water would be good. Thank you, Detective,” Mom replied.
    I lifted my eyes to meet his. His expression was unreadable, but I knew the situation wasn’t easy for him. With a curt nod, he walked out of the room.
    “Will you tell me everything that happened?” Mom asked. She pulled a handkerchief out of her purse and dabbed at her eyes.
    “I will. Not today, but I promise I will.”
    “That’s all I ask.”
    “Who’s that man to you?” she asked, her eyes to the door where Aiden had left from.
    “That’s another long story.” I leaned forward, resting an elbow on my leg and holding my head up with my hand. “But he did something that led to the shooting.”
    Mom gasped. “And the man Gavin shot?”
    “He’s the man that I love and that turned my life upside down.”
    She squeezed my hand. “Is he going to be okay?” she asked softly.
    “I don’t know,” I replied, my voice cracking once more.
    “How bad was it?”
    “He was shot in the chest. They struggled to stabilize him at the scene, then brought him to the hospital. I haven’t seen him since. Aiden has tried to get an update but all we know is that he had a collapsed lung and they had to rush him into surgery. He’s still in there.”
    “Lys, he’s going to be okay.”
    “Yeah, Mom,” I replied automatically, not believing it for a second. I knew that with everything we’d been through to get to this point, I couldn’t trust life to do right by me.
    There was always an equal action and reaction to everything that happened. I’d hurt Aiden—a good man—when I followed my heart and chose Barrett. My mother—a good woman—had been tricked by a man hell-bent on revenge for something my father did more than thirty years ago.
    And Barrett had been doing his job and because he fell in love with me, he’d been shot and was fighting for his life somewhere in this hospital.
    Mom and I sat in silence until Aiden returned to the room, carrying two bottles of water. He handed them to us and sat down in the chair opposite ours.
    “I just flashed my badge and asked for an update. Lucas is out of surgery and has been taken to the ICU. They’re not sure when he’ll wake up, but he should make a full recovery.”
    My shoulders slumped and I leaned into Mom’s side, tears once again falling as relief swept through me.
    “I need to call my lawyer,” Mom announced, once I’d composed myself. She released me and stood up, hoisting the strap of her purse over her shoulder.
    “Mom,