Free Daring Dane (Intoxicating Passion #3) by Felicia Tatum Page B

from
coming for me, nothing would. I tried calling Leela and Windi, but they didn’t
answer. I didn’t know who else to call. Dane’s name and number stared back at
me from my phone. Scared and alone, I did the only thing I could think of and
pushed call.
    “Korah!” He exclaimed, not even saying hello.
    “Dane? Are you busy?” I timidly asked him.
    “No, of course I’m not. What do you need? Do
you want talk?” he quizzed. He sounded excited.
    “Not exactly. I need a ride,” I responded.
    “Of course, I’ll come get you. Where you at?”
    I paused, unsure about his reaction once he
heard where I was. “I’m at the hospital.”
    ###
    He stormed through the doors, which I didn’t
even know was possible, considering they were sliding doors, but he somehow did
it. The distraught look on his face was unexpected. He seemed more than
curious, he seemed…concerned. I rose from my chair, giving him a small wave as
he rushed toward me. He stopped when he saw the bruises, his eyes staring at
the dark handprint around my neck. I knew it was worse than it was earlier. It
would get even worse than it was now, according to the staff. He stumbled
forward, his eyes wide.   “Korah are you
okay?” he asked.
    I nodded, but it was a lie.
    “Wait… What happened?” he questioned,
blinking several times as if that would make the bruises he saw disappear.
    “Can it wait until we get to the car?” I
asked, looking around, seeing all the people watching our interaction
    “Yeah,” he nodded. “Can we go now?”
    I nodded. He reached down, taking my hand in
his; he could probably feel the shaking on his palm. He seemed to care as he
traced a small circle on top of my fingers. The small move actually calmed me a
bit, and my heartbeat finally returned to normal after all these hours. Had it
been hours? It felt like hours. I wasn’t even sure how long I’d been there.
    Dane led me outside and opened the car door
for me, before getting in the driver seat. He gripped the steering wheel, his
knuckles white, and finally gazed at me. “Korah, who did that to you?” he
demanded, his voice was full of anger, hatred.
    Twisting my hands in my lap, I lowered my
head. When my voice finally came to me, I whispered, “My ex-boyfriend, Christopher.”

Chapter Two-Dane Davidson
             Korah,
my beautiful, lovely Korah, sat beside me, her neck black and blue, getting
darker by the second. Her shaky hands gripped the dashboard. My Korah? I couldn’t think about that
now. She was here beside me, bruised and shaken to her core. I needed to find
out what happened, had to find out why. “Korah? Can you tell me what happened
today, baby?”
    Her dark locks fell around her face,
shielding her eyes. She shook her head, hair flying everywhere. “Dane…I…I don’t
know if I can. I’m sorry had to call you. No one else was available.”
    “I’m glad you called me. It’s what I’ve been
wanting for two weeks now. I realized my mistake after I freaked out and left.
I’m so sorry, Korah. I hope you can forgive me, but we’ll talk about that
another time. Right now we need to get you home and safe.” I reached over,
placing my hand on top of hers, giving a gentle squeeze. She didn’t flinch,
which I supposed was a good sign, so I leaned over, pulling the seat belt
around her and buckling her in. I suspected her arms were also bruised, because
the slightest touch brought a pained wince to her face. Her head lolled to the
side, resting against the window, and she closed her eyes.
    I didn’t bother her as I drove, being careful
to pay attention to the road instead of her. I didn’t know what exactly
happened, but when I found the guy who did this to her, well, he would regret
it.
    ###
    “Korah? We’re at your apartment,” I said
softly, rubbing my knuckle over her cheek.
    She whimpered, then opened her eyes, which
were wide and scared. “Dane?” Her voice was shaky, terrified, and it killed me.
    I nodded, “Yeah, it’s