Feel (Sovereign Book 3) by BJ Harvey Page A

I don’t think—”
    “Alyssa, I do not want to be married to that vile man for a minute longer. I’m going to call Kevin now and get papers filed by morning.”
    “Mrs. Barnes—”
    “It’s Mrs. Jacobs, Detective. I’m not going to have that man taint my good name for a second longer than I have to.
    “The company, Mom. . .”
    “He did not have my permission to do anything, Alyssa. The company is still ours and always has been,” she says emphatically. “Will you be okay for a few minutes, Alyssa?”
    I couldn’t stop myself from smiling at her. I was happy to see the return of the strong-willed woman who’d raised me. “Yeah, Mom.”
    It was after she’d left the room that a doctor wearing light blue scrubs walked in. “Family of Mark Lucas?”
    “Me,” I said, moving to my feet.
    “And you are?” he asked.
    “Alyssa Jacobs, his . . .”
    “She’s his fiancée,” Aiden replied automatically from beside me.
    “Right,” the doctor replied. “Mr. Lucas has been moved to the ICU. I can get a nurse to take you to see him if you’d like.”
    “Yes!” My voice was hoarse, but I cleared my throat and replied, “Please.”
    I turned around to face Aiden when the doctor left us alone. “Aiden, I need you to tell me why you did it.”
    He blew out a slow breath and his shoulders slumped. “I was pissed off and I acted out. I shouldn’t have done it, and I’ve already told Marlee. My problem has always been that I act first and think later. I’m going to have to work on that if I want any career in law enforcement.”
    “You could’ve gotten him killed! All of us!” I said with a shriek.
    “A wounded man can be irrational. I did a stupid thing, and I’m going to pay for that. I won’t ever forgive myself for what I did.” He dropped his head down, raking his fingers through his hair.
    “Aiden, Christy played you both. Barrett didn’t know you were still together.” His eyes jerked up to meet mine.
    “What?” he whispered.
    “She played you both and you’ve punished Barrett, for something she did … for something I did. Don’t you see how reckless and misguided that was?” I waited for an answer but somehow I knew I wouldn’t get one. His eyes were full of pain and regret. “I know I hurt you, but you should never intentionally set out to ruin someone. That’s not the man I thought you were.”
    “Don’t, Aly. I can let you go now. It’s not going to be easy, and I’m never going to forget everything we shared, but the pain I’m feeling right now is my punishment.” His voice was gruff, his eyes full of regret.
    “I never meant to hurt you. I hope you know that.”
    “I entered the fight willingly, Aly, and I’d do it all over again for a chance at having you. But now I need to go face the music for what I’ve done.”
    I stepped forward and closed the space between us. Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, I hugged him tight, letting his warmth seep into me. I turned my head and kissed his cheek before moving away from him.
    “Goodbye, Aiden.”
    “Bye, Aly.” Then he walked out the door and out of my life.
    A few minutes later, a nurse came to collect me. Before we left, I asked the nurses to tell my mom where I had gone and to tell her to wait for me.
    The nurse and I went up two floors in the elevator, and she escorted me into the ICU. The moment I saw Barrett’s stricken body lying on the hospital bed, I stopped moving. There were two plastic prongs connected to an oxygen tube in his nose and wires connected to his chest. The steady beep of the heart monitor gave me proof that he was alive. I quickly moved to his side and sat down beside him.
    I reached my hand up and laced my fingers with his, taking in his bare chest and the white dressing covering his right pectoral. I watched the slow rise and fall of his chest and lifted the back of his hand to my mouth before resting my lips against his skin.
    I don’t know how long I sat there for—it might have been