Rebirth: Love me Again

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BONUS

Chapter

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[EVE]

I woke up to find myself in a hospital

yet

again

.

My head throbbed, and every part of my body ached as though I'd been hit by a freight train. Even the simple act of opening my eyes felt like an uphill battle.

"Eve, you're awake!" Victor's voice snapped me out of my haze. Within seconds, he was at my side, concern etched deep into his features. "Don't move too much. The doctor said you still need to rest."

"W-what . . . happened?" I croaked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Sinclair stepped forward, his expression a mix of relief and unease. "Cole said one of the Ashford security guards was bribed to kidnap you. Luckily, they intercepted in time."

Victor let out a derisive snort, his eyes narrowing into slits. "Intercepted? Is that what we're calling it now? How could they let this happen in the first place? If they were so damn capable, Eve wouldn't have been thrown off a cliff. She

almost

died

!"

"No one died, Victor," Sinclair replied, his tone calm but firm. "Cole saved her in time."

Victor turned on him, his frustration boiling over. "Why are you even defending that man, Sinclair? Eve was

hurt

!"

Sinclair sighed heavily, rubbing his temple as though Victor's anger was a weight he bore personally. "And so was Cole. He risked his life to protect her. Can we not dwell on this and focus on the fact that everyone's alive?"

Victor wasn't having it. "It's his fault for being so incompetent in the first place."

Sinclair's patience visibly thinned as he gave Victor a pointed look. "I get how you feel, Victor. I do. But blaming him now won't help anyone. Let's take this as a lesson and move on."

While their argument raged on, my mind was elsewhere entirely. Their voices became a dull buzz in the background as fragmented memories of the incident came rushing back to me.

The danger, the fear, the kidnapping—it all faded into the background, replaced by something far more vivid.

The cave.

Cole and me.

Our bodied intertwined.

The blood rushed to my face so fast it felt like I'd been struck by lightning. My pulse skyrocketed, and my entire body seemed to shut down as if trying to protect me from reliving the memory.

I sank back into the bed, covering my face with my hands, mortified.

"Eve! What's wrong?!" Victor's voice broke through my spiraling thoughts, laced with panic. "Gods, you're burning up! Are you running a fever? I'll call the doctor right now!"

"Victor, calm down," Sinclair said, though even he sounded slightly alarmed.

But I couldn't calm down. I couldn't think, couldn't speak, couldn't even look at either of them.

Because all I could focus on was what had happened between Cole and me in that cave.

We almost . . .

Oh, gods.

I felt the heat creeping up my neck again, threatening to consume me. My hands rubbed furiously at my face as if I could scrub away the memory. Enjoy exclusive chapters from empire

I wanted to disappear, to vanish into thin air, to

never

have to confront this again.

What had I done? How had I let myself be so . . . reckless?

In my defense, I thought he was going to die back there. I thought it was the end, and . . . and besides, something had felt off with me too. My emotions, my body—everything had been in disarray.

But that didn't change what had happened.

And now . . . now, I didn't know how I'd face Cole.

The thought of seeing him again made my stomach twist into knots.

What would I even say to him? What would

he

say to me?

Oh, gods, what have I done?

Everything was finally starting to get better between us. He had been giving me space, keeping his distance like I'd needed.

Just as I began to think we might finally find a way to coexist without stepping on each other's wounds . . . that happened.

I should have been pushing him away, keeping every barrier firmly in place—not

that.

Not

giving in.

Not letting my guard crumble into nothing.

What was I thinking?

My hands trembled as I clutched the blanket, resisting the urge to scream. My chest tightened, and a fresh wave of panic swept over me.

I wanted to pound my head against the wall, to wake up from this nightmare, to undo every foolish choice I'd made.

Why didn't I stop it? Why didn't I stop

myself?

I thought he was going to die. That's all it was—I thought those were his final moments, and in my panic, in my stupidity, I let my emotions control me.

But what now? How do I look him in the eye after this? What do I say to him?

I had crossed a line I could never uncross, and for what? A fleeting moment of weakness that would haunt me for the rest of my life.

I pressed my hands against my burning face, wishing the earth would just swallow me whole. I had been so reckless, so utterly blind to the consequences.

I was such a fool.

"Eve, are you alright?" Sinclair's voice brought me back to the present.

I swallowed hard, forcing myself to push aside the panic for just a moment.

"Is Cole okay?" I asked, my voice hoarse.

"Yes," Sinclair replied. "He's fine."

I let out a shaky breath, relief washing over me—but it was short-lived.

"And the person who kidnapped me? Were they caught?"

Sinclair nodded. "Yes. They're in custody now."

"Who did they say they worked for?" I pressed, my brow furrowing.

"Just a local kidnapping group," Sinclair answered, though he didn't sound entirely convinced. "They claimed Lily and Sophie were their original targets, but you happened to be there, so they shifted to you instead."

"Local kidnappers?" I repeated, disbelief tingling at the edges of my exhaustion.

The man who had taken me . . . he was far too skilled to be part of some low-level gang. Perhaps he belonged to a professional kidnapping syndicate.

But thinking clearly wasn't my strong suit right now. My mind was too clouded by everything else—by the memory of the cave, the sex, the near irreparable mistake.

I clenched my fists tightly, my nails digging into my palms. I'd survived the cliff, the danger, the kidnappers. But could I survive facing Cole?

That, I wasn't so sure.