Chapter 22 My head jerked up . I recognised Ashton . My ridiculously attractive neighbour . "I think … someone I know might've been in an accident . ' I swallowed my rising panic . I need to get to the Grangers . ] The second I got enough brain cells online to function , I fumbled for my phone and ordered an Uber . I stood up , wobbly , and made it two steps before Ashton caught my arm . " Let me ne drive yo I'm fine , I can- you It'll take ages to get a ride from here , ' he said , already pulling me towards the lift like I'd agreed . ' My car's downstairs . It's faster . " ] He wasn't wrong . Also , I wasn't in the mood to argue . Not when my nerves were having a full - blown seizure . As the lift descended , Ashton made a quick call - something low and calm in that velvet voice of his . [ ] When we e reached the lobby , a sleek black car was already waiting at the kerb . A guy who looked like his assistant handed over the keys , then melted into the night . [ ] ' Passenger side , Ashton said , nodding at the car . ] The night air slapped some sense back into me . I climbed in without a word . [ ] Ashton slid into the driver's seat , took the wheel , and floored it . [ ] Only y once we were barrelling through traffic did it occur to me I had zero clue where we were even going I dug out my phone . I need to call someone , figure out which hospital- Ashton tapped his Bluetooth earpiece and answered a call with a smooth , " Yeah . " Before I could get through to Louisa , Rhys , or even Clive bloody Granger , he ended the call and said , ' Louisa Granger's at Eldergrove Private . ] I stared . ' How the hell- ? ] He kept his eyes on the road . ' I had my assistant check emergency admissions in the area . You said car accident , mentioned the Granger name . It wasn't exactly a needle in a haystack . I was too impressed to respond . Ashton - went on , Louisa Granger was admitted ten minutes ago . She was conscious when they brought her in , but she's being treated now . Multiple injuries . ] ] 1 gripped my hands together in my lap . My whole body tensed , spine peeling away from the seat like I couldn't sit still even if you superglued me down She'd been rushed in for emergency care . That meant serious . That meant . it could be bad . Life - or - death bad . Ashton glanced at me , then tapped something on the touchscreen embedded in the dashboard . Soft , calming music began to play - something instrumental and mellow . ' She'll be okay , " he said . The music helped . So did the subtle scent wafting through the car , something clean and woody that I was ninety - nine per cent was coming from Ashton himself . We drove in silence for a bit . Then he asked , ' She e means a lot to you ? I nodded . " She's probably the best parental figure I've got , ' I said , then threw in a dry little laugh . Honestly , she's been more of a mum to me than my actual mum . Saying it out loud felt weirdly comforting . Like I could finally exhale without choking on the panic . Something in me started to unclench , just a little . I couldn't help thinking about when I was linde and Mum used to make me wear Catherine's hand - me - downs . Picture seven - year - old me drowning in a sparkly unicorn jumper two sizes too big , looking like I'd been mugged by a clearance rack Aunt Louisa sa hated that . She'd whisk me off to hers for dinner , clock my tragic outfit , and the next thing I knew , we were in a department store and she was holding up dresses like we were auditioning for The Great Kiddie Style Intervention . Then she'd march straight over to my mum's and start a row that could probably he heard in the next district After I got engaged to Rhys , every time I got sick - which , to be fair , was no more than once a year - Aunt Louisa was the one sitting beside my hospital bed , feeding me soup and telling the nurses off like she owned the place . Even without her saying it out loud , I was starting to realise she didn't just see me as a future daughter - in - law . She'd already decided I was hers . [ ] I lowered my head and wiped my eyes . Had I been selfish breaking things off ? Maybe I should've just played along - married Rhys , become Mrs Rich and Repressed , and lived the rest of my life with perfectly curled hair and zero opinions , Ashton's driving was fast and smooth . We pulled up outside the hospital in record time . The second the tyres kissed the kerb , I shoved the door open and jumped out . The cold slapped me right in the face . I hunched my shoulders but didn't slow down . At the emergency desk , I asked for Louisa Granger . The nurse gave me the once - over - messy hair , red eyes , possibly a relative - and said , ' Eighth floor . Trauma unit . When I got there , I saw Rhys pacing like he was about to challenge the vending machine to a fistfight " How's Louisa ?" I asked , bracing myself for the worst Still in surgery . She only went in a few minutes ago , ' he muttered , running a hand through his perfectly gelled hair like that would magically calm him down . The doctor said she's got a fractured armi , a busted knee , and some internal bleeding they need to sort . Nothing life threatening , but they've got to operate . My shoulders dropped half a centimetre , just enough to register non - catastrophic relief . But then the guilt swanned in . Louisa had been on the phone with me when the car hit her . I wasn't the one behind the wheel , obviously , but I couldn't exactly claim full innocence either . Rhys clearly shared the same thought , because he turned and glared at me balefully " She was upset when she found out you weren't coming to dinner , " he snapped . ' She insisted on calling you . Went outside to do it . If she hadn't- ' If she hadn't called me , she wouldn't have been hit , is that where we're going ? I crossed my arms , already feeling the heat rise behind my ears . ' Well , guess what ? If you'd had the balls to tell her I wasn't showing up and cancel the dinner , she wouldn't have needed to call me in the first place . His jaw clenched . His fists did too . For a second , I thought we were about to put the ' emergency in ' emergency room : [] Experience - fresh and unwanted - had taught me that Rhys wasn't always a pacifist when things didn't go In't go his way way . I stepped back , on guard .