I've been posting SSS snipets from this chapter, so I thought I would let you all read what happens next. Enjoy!
Out of nowhere a silver car cut Derek off and slid in behind her. A silver car she knew. It was Rex. He’d followed her.
Shit!
He was weaving side to side trying to get up alongside her to no avail. She looked at him in the rearview and he had crazy eyes. She had never seen him this livid before and feared for hers and Jack’s safety. The light ahead was turning yellow. She floored it and went under just after it turned red. That’s when she saw the blue sports car on a collision course with Jack’s side of the car. She let go of the steering wheel and dove over Jack’s body hoping to take all the impact for him. She felt the jarring force of impact and held on to Jack for dear life. His door crumpled in and that was the last thing she saw before everything went black.
****
Derek watched in horror as Lissa and Jack both careened sideways as the blue car connected with her car. His heart sank as he yelled for them. “Oh god, I can’t lose you too.” Memories of his wife being killed came back with a vengeance. He stopped his truck and jumped out while dialing Nine-one-one. He ran to them to make sure they were okay. Jack seemed fine but he was crying. Lissa on the other hand was lying in Jack’s lap unconscious. Then there was a second man on the scene shouting Lissa’s name. It was the jerk in the silver car that cut him off. But how did he know Lissa? Was he the reason Lissa had run the light?
“Lissa? Lissa? Jack, are you okay?" Derek asked, trying to get to his son. He wasn’t getting a response from Lissa which was scaring the shit out of him.
“Get the fuck away from my woman!” Rex shouted, running up on the car. Other bystanders were now approaching the scene too. Derek just wanted to hear Lissa’s voice. And for the jerk too go away, whoever he was. He touched Lissa’s leg and called her name and she started to move. “Lissa, stay still love.” Jack continued to cry and stare down at Lissa.
She moved around and held her hand to her head. “Jack? Ohmigod, Jack, are you okay?” She sat up and hugged him and he stopped crying almost instantly.
“I said get the fuck away from my woman!” The jerk yelled again. Derek was ready to deck the sonofabitch. The sounds of distant sirens were getting louder by the second, bringing back even more memories. He’d already lost one woman he loved he wasn’t prepared to lose another one. And yes, he realized he did love her in that very moment. He loved her and wouldn’t let her go.
“Maybe you didn’t hear me. I said, get the fuck away from my woman. Lissy, is mine.”
Bullshit.
The other man rushed him trying to get him to the ground. Spectators just stood around them like they were watching a schoolyard brawl. Derek fell back but stayed on his feet. The littler man was swinging wildly not hitting anything but air. Derek held him off at arm’s length evading swings. “Let go of me you sonofabitch.”
“Hell no. What the fuck is your problem?” Derek just barely evaded another wild swing. Whatever his problem was it was a big deal to the shorter man. There was no way Lissa could be attracted to this man. He wouldn’t believe it in a million years.
“Rex, stop it! You crazy jerk, stop it!” There, he had his answer. Now he could deck the crazed lunatic and be done with it. He let go of the smaller man taking a wild swing to the gut. He flinched in pain, but quickly shook it off and punched the man in the head so hard he swore he’d broken his hand. The man went down with a thud to the pavement and Derek went to Lissa, who had climbed out of the car. He held her gently not wanting to hurt her, but he wanted to take hold and not let go.
“I thought I lost you. What the hell were you thinking going through the light like that? The urge to kiss her was overwhelming.
The ambulance and the police showed up and Derek let go of Lissa long enough to check on the other driver, who was fine, just a little shaken up.
The medic attended to Lissa who had taken a knock to the head when the door caved in. Although, she had a nice sized goose egg on her head she refused medical care, but Derek insisted she go to the hospital and get it checked out.
“I can’t go. I can’t afford it.” She pushed away from the medic.
“You were unconscious. You might have a concussion.” He placed his hands on his hips and flinched when his fist screamed in pain.
She looked down to his hand. “You need to get that looked at. It’s swelling.” She gently grabbed the hand in question and kissed the knuckles.
That small act of tenderness just reaffirmed his love for her. Jack joined them at the back of the ambulance.
“Daddy, did you see what happened? Miss Lissa saved me. She covered me up when the other car hit us. It was neat.”
That explained why she was lying across Jack. She had thrown herself over him to protect him. He wasn’t a man for tears, but he felt the sting of wetness forming in his eyes. He had a lump in his throat he had to swallow. She had almost been killed by saving his son. All he wanted to do was hold her, and get her to agree to marry him. He was sure of this, more so than anything else. Jack loved her and so did he. He just didn’t know if she would say yes or not. He still had to find a few things out about her. Like who the unconscious creep was and why he tried to claim her. And more importantly, why she was so afraid of love.
