Page 98 of The Billionaire's Bride

A few firemen surround us. One of them wraps the blanket around me again. "Miss," he says firmly, "we need to check him out and treat his wounds."

"Of course." I move away from Ed, who holds out his arm.

"Don’t go too far." He smirks.

"I won’t," I promise, half-smiling, half-crying. I glance around for Baron and can’t see him anywhere.

One of the medics tends to my wounds. Another attends to Edward. They place a mask over his face, then strap him onto the stretcher. I follow him toward the ambulance, glancing around again.Where the hell is Baron?

One of the medics walks past me and I hail him, "Excuse me, do you know what happened to the second man who walked out of the building?"

"If you mean the guy who saved your friend, he left."

"What do you mean, he left?"

The medic raises a shoulder, "He refused to be treated."

"But…he was hurt. How could you just allow him to leave?"

"Can’t force him to accept help, ma’am." The medic urges me into the ambulance.Shit, shit, shit. This isn’t good. It can’t be good. Why did Baron leave and without saying a word to me or Edward?

The medic slams the door of the ambulance, which sets off. I bite down on my lower lip. My fingers tremble, and I squeeze them together in front of me.

Edward pulls the oxygen mask off of his face. The medic protests and he dismisses her concern. "Just need a second," he insists.

She frowns, then nods at him.

He turns to me, "What's wrong, Eve?"

"It's Baron," I murmur, "he left."

"What do you mean, left?"

"He walked away. One of the medics saw him leave. He literally just took off, without saying a word to me. Why would he do that, Ed?"

Edward draws in a breath. "Maybe," he says carefully, "maybe he's telling you by his actions what he can't say in words."

"You mean," I swallow, "you mean, this is him saying goodbye?"

He reaches over and takes my hand in his, "You knew this was inevitable, Eve." He weaves his fingers with mine. "One of us was always going to come away empty-handed."

"It’s not fair." A tear runs down my cheek. "I love him, Ed. I love both of you."

"I know." He tugs and I sink down on the floor of the ambulance. I place my head on his chest. He flinches.

"Shit," I mutter, "you’re hurt."

"Nothing I can’t bear," he assures me. "I love you, Eve." He runs his fingers down my hair.

I turn my nose into his chest, breathe in the scent of smoke, of cut grass and testosterone. My belly trembles, my thighs clench, yet the emptiness in my chest gapes. More tears well up and I swallow them down. "I love you too, Ed."

A day later, I park the Aston Martin in front of my house. Edward had wanted to drive, but when I’d pointed out that he was on painkillers to combat the burns he'd suffered, he hadn't protested.

His wounds hadn’t been extensive though, thank God. All in all, we had escaped with minor injuries, considering how serious the fire had been.

Within hours of arriving at the hospital, the rest of the Seven had turned up, wives in tow. The men had huddled in conversation with Edward over the next few hours, while the women, including Isla, had kept me company.

I’d sensed their curiosity about the situation, though none of them had asked me where Baron was, and for that, I was grateful.