Page 44 of One Pucking Surprise
“Ah!” The ground rushes up to meet me, and I land hard, twisting my ankle in the process. A sharp pain shoots up my leg, and I cry out, clutching my ankle as I sit up. “Crap,” I mutter, gritting my teeth against the ache.
I try to stand, but the pain is too much. Defeated, I sink back to the ground and take a shaky breath. Pulling out my phone, I press the power button—only for the screen to remain black.
Dead. Of course. I’d forgotten to charge it last night and meant to plug it in during the drive to the reunion. Perfect.
Chapter 15
Lainey
“Comeon,Zach,”Imutter under my breath, blinking back tears. “Where are you?”
Alone in the middle of an overgrown garden with a twisted ankle and no phone, I’m left to wonder if Clarissa’s “helpful” suggestion to search this area was anything but.
The garden grows darker, shadows twisting into shapes that play tricks on my mind. I try moving again, dragging myself forward on my hands and knees, but the rough ground scrapes at my palms, and I barely make any progress. Frustrated, I slump against a low, moss-covered stone, my ankle throbbing with each pulse of my heartbeat.
The ache in my chest isn’t just from the pain in my ankle—it’s the sting of being left behind. Clarissa, with all her smug superiority, had abandoned me. I clench my fists, anger simmering beneath my exhaustion. If Zach doesn’t show up soon, I swear I’ll—
Something catches my eye, glinting faintly in the dim light. I squint, my heart skipping a beat as I realize what it is. The golden compass token.
“Oh my God,” I whisper, crawling toward it despite the protest from my ankle. My fingers close around the smooth, cool metal, and I lift it to inspect it. “The grand prize,” I breathe, a triumphant laugh bubbling out of me.
I hold the compass up to the fading light, grinning like a madwoman. “Zach is going to be my slave,” I declare, laughing again. “I could kiss you, you beautiful piece of gold.”
Sliding it into my pocket, I lean back against the stone, suddenly too exhausted to care about the dark closing in. I try to distract myself by singing softly, then counting down from a hundred, but the isolation presses heavily on me. Tears spill over as the fear that they’ve forgotten me begins to creep in.
“Did they just leave me here?” I whisper, my voice trembling.
Then, faintly, I hear a voice.
“Lainey!”
I sit up straighter, hope sparking in my chest. “Noah?” I call back, my voice hoarse.
“Lainey! Where are you?”
Relief floods through me. “I’m in the garden!”
A few momentslater, I hear footsteps crunching through the brush, and a beam of light cuts through the dark. Noah appears, his expression grim but determined, as he kneels beside me.
“Oh my God,” I sob, tears falling freely now. “Finally. Noah, you’re my hero.”
Noah furrows his brow, his voice gruff. “Lainey, what happened? Why are you out here alone?”
“I tripped,” I admit, wiping at my tears with shaking hands. “I hurt my ankle. I couldn’t walk. And Clarissa—she left me. My phone’s dead. I didn’t know what to do.”
Noah frowns, pulling out his walkie-talkie. “Zach, I’ve got her,” he says, his voice steady but loud enough to carry. “She’s in the garden.”
Zach’s reply is immediate, his voice crackling through the static. “I’m on my way!”
Noah looks back at me, his expression softening as he takes in my tears. “I’m sorry,” he says gruffly. “I didn’t mean to make you cry. It’s fine. We’re just glad you’re okay. Zach was worried.”
I blink at him through my tears. “He was?”
Noah nods, his grumpiness melting away for a moment. “Yeah. Kept going on and on about finding you.”
I don’t have time to process the flutter in my chest because a crashing sound comes from nearby, followed by the familiar voice I’ve been longing to hear.
“Lainey! Baby!”
