Page 106 of Open To Negotiation

“Her parents arrived, you need to rest.”

“No, this is my fault. I shouldn’t have let us get in that car. I shouldn’t have ignored it. I should have let Dane call us a cab and forced her to come with me. Actually I shouldn’t have been out at all. I was just so—” I cut myself off and let out a sigh.

Theo may be here now but I could feel the distance. It wasn’t like before, every time he touched me it felt different and it was making me want to crawl out of my skin. I didn’t want him to know how much he was affecting me. He didn’t get that. Not anymore.

“This isn’t your fault, Love.”

“Stop calling me that.” I winced as my raised voice hurt my ribs. His eyes narrowed slightly, like I was the one pissing him off.

“I think you should let her go,” Asher said.

“Stay the fuck out of this,” Theo growled without looking at his friend.

“Knight.” Noah took a step forward.

“No.” He whirled around on his friends.

I used his distraction to push up with my right hand and stand up. I stood there blinking as I wavered, my vision blacking out for a moment as pain radiated down my body.

“Quinn?” Will was the closest and caught me as I swayed.

“Head rush.” I rested my arm on the one he offered. “I’m fine.”

“Get back in bed, Quinn,” Theo gritted out as he moved Will out of the way. I softened my features and looked him in the eye.

“Please. Theo. I need to go, I need to be with her parents. I need to know if she’s okay. Please let me do this.” I felt the tears building in my eyes. I was sore, exhausted and seriously on the verge of losing it. For the first time since I’d woken up, Theo’s eyes warmed as a tear fell down my cheek.

“Please don’t cry. It fucking breaks me to see you cry,” he pleaded as he brushed a tear from my cheek.

It hurt, I couldn’t hide my flinch. He’d said that to me before, said it to me when I still felt important to him. I’d melted the first time, now it just confused me more. I cried while he walked away from us in his office and that didn’t change anything. And I’d been crying myself to sleep for eight days now. Why didn’t those break him?

We stood there staring at each other another moment before Theo’s eyes cooled again almost like he could hear my thoughts.

“You will sit in the wheelchair I bring and when you get tired you will come back here.”

I pushed my shoulders back and nodded at him.

“Got one outside,” Noah said with a smile as he moved out of the room.

“I think we should get a restraining order,” Will chimed in as he crossed his arms over his chest and Theo stood there glaring. At what, I wasn’t sure.

“Why do we need a restraining order?” I looked between the men as Noah came back in with the wheelchair.

“We should file an immediate order of protection for both her and Aubrey,” Theo grunted as he helped me sit down.

“Can someone explain why I’m getting a restraining order?” I asked, glaring at them as best I could. It kind of hurt what I’m assuming was a cut on my head.

“He drove you into a fucking car, Quinn, while he was drunk,” Theo said like it answered my question.

“I want to talk to Aubrey before I do anything.” Theo looked at Will who nodded and walked out. I let out an exasperated sigh as I let them push me.

Dane followed our little group, which I was too tired to question. Two floors down I was pushed into the waiting room and immediately pushed out of the chair.

“Shannon.” Aubrey’s mom came rushing at me, wrapping me in a hug. I flinched from the pain but I didn’t push her away. “Is she okay?”

“You should be sitting down,” Theo grumbled as he put his hand on my lower back. I tried to shake him off but it didn’t work. Aubrey’s dad, Joe, hugged me too but more gently.

“You look terrible, kid,” he said with an affectionate pat on my cheek.