Page 99 of Wrecked for Love
“Never, Chili Pepper. You’ll never lose me,” I reassured her with a smile that felt fragile but held together for her sake. Then I tapped her ill-fitting jacket, which looked more like a bedroll draped over her. “Now,thisis awful!” I grumbled. I had no idea whose jacket it was, but I couldn’t stand it. “And I definitely can’t look past it, Claire. Sorry.”
She laughed. “I can’t wait to get rid of it.”
“Then why not now?”
She tilted her head. I reached under the driver’s seat and pulled out my jacket. She quickly ditched the awful one and slipped into mine.
“That’s better!” I said approvingly.
Her relieved, happy expression softened into something else—something more intense. She guided my hand down to her belly. “I think we made a baby that night,” she confessed, her face glowing with pure elation.
A joyful laugh escaped me, merging with the hope that sparked within. “That’s the best news I’ve ever heard,” I exclaimed.
Her stare bore into me, demanding a confession. “You knew!”
I couldn’t hide it anymore, not from her. “I did. But hearing it from you, Claire Magnussen, makes it real.”
“Elia Lucas…if there was ever a time to be swept off my feet, you just nailed it.”
At that moment, we kissed. My swollen lips touched her fresh, soft flesh. She was careful not to crash on me, but she pressed my mouth against hers. Her lips were a reminder of everything beautiful that still remained, a contrast to the bitter days of fear and uncertainty that had consumed us since her abduction.
“My truck’s just over there. Let’s get out of here,” I urged, eager to escape anything linked to The Revenants or the Vosses.
The snow kept falling, layering the ground in an ever-thickening white. Claire slipped her arm around me, offering her shoulder for me to lean on as we walked. It was reminiscent of that harrowing night at The Cove, where I had fought with everything I had, my body now a map of that ordeal. But this time, the form I leaned into was different. It was filled with the solid certainty of her presence. This time, I knew she was safe, here with me and beside me, and that changed everything.
42
CLAIRE
I insisted on driving. It took some convincing, but after everything that had happened, Elia didn’t stand a chance of getting past me. I channeled my inner Gandalf, planting myself in his path like an immovable force with no room for negotiation. I was getting him to the hospital.
Elia had drifted in and out of consciousness on the way, but the moment we reached the ER, he snapped to life. Even on a stretcher with medical staff swarming around him, he looked unnervingly upbeat.
“I’m fine,” he kept saying, as if his body hadn’t been through hell.
If I weren’t so relieved, I might’ve strangled him myself.
I didn’t need to see the blood and bruises to prove that his body was crying out for rest, for care. That brutal fight. I was there, and I’d seen what Saxum had done to him. And still, my man had escaped from the hospital, stubbornly refusing to let his body heal—because of me. Now, I couldn’t shake the fear that this time…this time, he might not get so lucky.
Logan was already there, his face drawn tight with worry. I’d never seen him look so tense.
“Claire!” Logan’s voice broke through my thoughts as he pulled me into a quick hug, his grip firm. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah, Log. I’m fine,” I breathed.
Logan’s gaze shifted to Elia, still lying on the stretcher but very much awake. “How’s he?” he asked, his tone both cautious and hopeful.
Before I could answer, a familiar voice, faded but unmistakable, interrupted the tension.
“Hey! Still alive,” Elia quipped, his lips curving into a small, strained grin. Bruised, battered, but clearly still himself.
Logan raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms. “Barely. You look like Diesel finally got his revenge.”
Elia chuckled, then winced.
Logan smirked. “Pretty sure you’re still sporting that hoof print from last time.”
Elia rasped, “Those New York asses!”
