Inside, she was cursing herself. Angry that she’d turned off her phone and had been out of touch. It wasn’t like her to be so careless or carefree but being with Wynn made her feel as if she might be able to be a different person. A better one. One with the same focus and yet rearranging her priorities.
She glanced at his profile, thinking how much she wanted this man. How they’d only known each other a short time and yet how important he’d become to her. She’d have to put everything between them on hold, though. Rhett was the one who was the most important. She would do everything in her power to see him back to normal. Whatever his new normal might be. Scarlett hated not having any further information. Not knowing why he was in surgery. A car accident? A heart attack? A thousand scenarios crossed her mind and she fought against all of them.
Wynn’s cell chimed. He released her hand and took it from his pocket. He passed the phone to her. Scarlett saw it told them what floor to go to when they arrived at the hospital.
“Is this from Erica?” she asked.
“No. Probably Dash. Erica said he’d be the one to let us know where to head.”
It dawned on her that she didn’t even know the hospital’s name. “Where are we going?”
“UCLA Santa Monica.”
“Good.” From Wynn’s place, the medical facility was probably a half-hour away, even less as traffic started to pick up.
They pulled into the parking lot and Scarlett threw open her door as Wynn put the car into park.
“Wait,” he told her. “Pull yourself together. More than likely, there’ll be paparazzi hanging around outside. You don’t want to show any emotion. Project confidence.”
Scarlett pulled down the visor and looked into the mirror. Her hair looked tousled from their make-out session on the deck. She dug inside her purse and retrieved a coated elastic band and a clip. Smoothing her hair back, she twisted it into a ponytail and then wound it around several times, attaching the clip. She applied a fresh coat of lipstick and tossed the tube back inside her purse.
Taking a calming breath, she released it. “I’m ready.”
Wynn escorted her toward the main entrance, his fingers entwined with hers. She drew strength from him, thankful he’d accompanied her to the hospital.
As he predicted, the vultures gathered outside. A few recognized her and began snapping photos, calling out questions.
“How’s Rhett, Scarlett?”
“Is Rhett gonna live, Scarlett?”
“Why are you with Wynn Gallagher?”
She wanted to scream at them to leave her alone but followed Wynn’s advice and kept her face blank. Until a question caused her to halt in her tracks.
“Do you know the shooter, Scarlett?”
She turned and stared at the wiry man who’d shouted at her. Seeing he had her attention, he continued with a barrage of questions, constantly clicking his camera. “Did you know they brought the shooter here? How many times did he shoot Rhett? Is Cassie pregnant? Will she lose the baby? What happens if Rhett dies?”
Wynn leaned close and said in her ear, “Walk. Now.”
He tugged on her and Scarlett found herself led away, entering the lobby and heading toward a bank of elevators. Wynn pushed the up button and a door opened immediately. He escorted her inside.
Scarlett began trembling as the doors closed. “He’s been shot?” she asked, her voice breaking. “Who would do such a thing?”
“We don’t know anything yet,” he said, his hand tightening around hers. “You know how the paps like to provoke a reaction.”
The door opened and they exited. That familiar smell of antiseptic hit her nostrils as they walked down a long, quiet corridor.
Turning the corner, Scarlett caught sight of Dash DeLauria hovering over a water fountain, his head bowed as he gripped the sides. She called his name and he looked toward her, his face ravaged by grief and tears. His shirt was stained with blood. Rhett’s blood.
Scarlett broke away from Wynn and raced toward him, throwing herself into his arms. They clung to one another for a moment and then Dash pulled away.
“What happened?” she asked softly.
He turned toward the water fountain and twisted the handle, first drinking and then splashing cold water on his face, drying it with his sleeve. By now, Wynn had arrived and stood by her side. The two men nodded at one another.
“We’d taken the kids to the aquarium and Pier Burger. You know how they all love going to the pier.”
Scarlett recalled Rhett telling her earlier in the week that he and Dash had plans to take their children to the Santa Monica Aquarium for a last outing before their private school started next week.
“We’d had a great time, especially with the hermit crabs and sea urchins in the touch tank area. We went back to the van and loaded everyone up. Went up the ramp at Ocean and Colorado and were waiting to pull out when someone rammed into us from behind. We checked to see that all the kids were okay and then Rhett got out of the car to see how the other driver was. I heard a loud voice and glanced back and saw a woman shrieking at him.”
Dash ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “I opened my door and as I got out, I heard her yell something about if only Rhett would’ve answered her letters, things would be different. He would’ve loved her and left Cassie for her. Then she raised her arm and two loud pops sounded.”
Scarlett grasped his elbow, trying to comfort him.
He shuddered. “The rest is a blur. The kids were screaming. Rhett was on the ground, bleeding. The woman was waving the gun around and mumbling. Some security guy ran toward her and she fired a wild shot at him before turning the gun on herself. She went down and I called 911. Went to Rhett.” Dash choked up, a sob bubbling up. “Pressed against the wound in his knee.
