One song led into the next, and time slipped away as she melted into him while he whispered in her ear, his lips trailing along her neck, his breath sending heat straight to her core. He moved his hands down the small of her back, then lower, his fingers caressing the rounded top of her backside, pulling her close, leaving no doubt he was aroused by their foreplay.
The music stopped as someone announced it was time for the bouquet to be thrown. Kinsey found it hard to process the words as she pulled away and found herself looking into his turbulent blue eyes, capturing her own and refusing to let go.
“You’ve bewitched me,” Austin murmured before his mouth descended and he captured her lips for the first time. She knew kissing him would be good, she just hadn’t known it would short circuit her brain.
His tongue caressed her mouth, leaving her no choice but to open for him. She knew in that moment she couldn’t fight him or the surreal vortex that had been pulling them together all night. She gave herself over to him.
Slowly, he moved his head back, just enough to look into her eyes. His own filled with a sea of raging passion. Then, without saying another word, he let go of her, only long enough to take her hand as he led her to the hotel.
Chapter Two
Present Time
“Lucas Anderson, please?”
“This is him,” Lucas said while glancing at his clock. It was two in the morning. At the professional tone of the person on the other end of the line, Lucas became fully alert. No call at this hour was a good thing.
“I’m sorry, sir, but there’s been an accident. We’ve admitted Joseph and George Anderson here at Harbor View Medical Center. We have you listed as an emergency contact in Mr. Joseph Anderson’s belongings. The only information I have at this time is that they were in an auto accident. The sooner you arrive, the better.”
It took several moments for the woman’s words to sink in.
Accident.
Joseph.
George.
Arrive quickly.
Lucas said nothing further as he dropped the phone into the receiver and jumped from his bed.
“Lucas, what’s wrong?” Amy asked as she woke up.
“My father and Uncle George. That was the hospital. They’ve been in a wreck and the person who called said we needed to come quickly,” he croaked. All traces of sleep were wiped from Amy’s expression as she quickly sat up, fear in her eyes.
“I’ll let Marcia know,” Amy replied as she quickly climbed from the bed, threw on her robe, and left to alert the nanny they were leaving.
Lucas turned off all emotion – not allowing the panic inside him to rise. He was the eldest son and it was his responsibility to notify the rest of his family. He had to maintain a calm he didn’t come close to feeling.
Information. He needed more information. He couldn’t make a proper assessment until he knew all the facts. Were they alive? How bad were the injuries? What could he do?
Lucas knew he couldn’t get answers until he reached the hospital, so he started moving.
First, he dialed his cousin. It would go much faster if two of them split up the calls. Fear tried finding its way into Lucas’s heart, making it constrict as he waited for Austin to answer. With great effort, he pushed the fear down, knowing the emotion was useless.
“This better be damn good,” Austin snapped.
“Our fathers are at Harbor View Medical Center.” Lucas didn’t waste time on greetings.
“Who else needs to be notified?”
“You’re the first one I dialed.”
“I’ll call my siblings, you call yours. I’ll meet you there,” Austin replied, his tone alert and clipped.
“Thanks,” Lucas whispered before dropping the phone for the second time. He quickly called the rest of his siblings, then breathed a sigh of relief as Amy rushed back into the room. She immediately went to their closet and grabbed him a change of clothes, dropping them on the bed in front of him before going in and grabbing her own items.
They changed quickly, neither of them talking as they rushed to get ready. As the seconds ticked by, Lucas found himself fighting harder not to let the panic rise.
His father was invincible, he told himself.
“He’ll be fine, Lucas. Joseph is too stubborn to let anything happen to him,” Amy reassured him as her arms wrapped around him in a comforting embrace. Pulling her in closer, Lucas ran his hand down the familiar softness of her hair, and gently kissed the top of her head, the feel of her, calming him, giving him the needed strength to press forward.
“I’m scared,” he admitted, finally allowing a trace of his fear to show.
Amy shook in his arms as she tried to control her own emotions from spilling out. She and Joseph had a special bond.
A father had been one of the many things Amy had been deprived of as a child. Joseph had immediately opened his arms to her and she rushed right in. She was the daughter he always wanted, but was never blessed with, and he was the father she’d always dreamed of. It would hurt her as much as Lucas if Joseph were to leave the world early.
Amy pulled back and looked in Lucas’s eyes. Her own were red and glassy and he could see she was fighting the tears from falling, trying to be strong for him.
“Thank you,” he whispered. She looked at him with confusion. “Thank you for giving me the strength to get through this. You humble me with nothing other than your presence. Thank you, Amy. You’re right. He will be okay. He’s far too stubborn to let go at such a young age. I’m ready now. We need to be there for Mom. I don’t want her alone.”
Amy didn’t reply as her built up tears finally fell, silently running down her cheeks. He wrapped his arm around her as they rushed from the room.
◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊◊
“Over here, Mark,” Lucas called as his brother and Emily stepped into the emergency room. The couple changed direction and quickly approached their group.
“How are they? Why aren’t you with them? What’s going on?” Mark fired questions at the growing mass of people, containing his mom, brothers, cousins and many spouses.
“We don’t know anything, yet. It seems the only thing anyone in this freaking hospital knows how to say is, The doctor will be with you shortly,” Alex snapped.
“Alex, anger won’t help your father or uncle. Please be patient,” Katherine said, her voice strong, though her face was pale with worry.