The Reunion: Shelby's Chance Meeting (Starting Over Series) Read Free Page B

accident. ” Shelby barely heard what Kenny was saying because her heartbeat was so loud in her ears. From what she could gather, Austin had been in a four-wheeler accident with his cousin, Joey. The vehicle had rolled over and landed on Austin.
     
    “ Is he going to be okay? ” Shelby asked in a begging tone as she sank down onto her sofa in tears.
     
    “ We don ’ t know much yet, Shelby. You just need to come. I promise I will call you if anything takes a turn before you get here … The doctors are looking him over now, and he may need surgery …” She had known Kenny almost her whole life, and to hear his voice cracking made her very scared. He was a man ’ s man, and crying was not something he would do unless it was a major event.
     
    “ I am on my way, ” she said as she ended her call and started frantically running around to pack an overnight bag.
     
    She turned off the lights, locked the doors and ran outside only to realize that she didn ’ t have a car. Remembering that Brian had given her a copy of her paperwork with his business card attached, she quickly ran back inside to find it. Tears streaming down her face, she started to sob as she searched.
     
    “ Shelby, are you okay? ” she heard Brian say behind her.
     
    “ Oh, my God … Brian! ” she yelled as she ran and fell into his arms without thinking. She just wanted someone to comfort her, and she was thankful he was there. “ My son … my baby … he ’ s hurt at the hospital in South Georgia …” she stammered and stuttered between sobs. “ My car wasn ’ t here …”
     
    “ Hey, it ’ s okay …” he said softly as he pressed a light kiss to the top of her head. “ Let ’ s go, ” he said as he took her bag and her hand and led her outside. She was so upset that she didn ’ t even notice the car he was driving was not the same one from the night before. She climbed inside the bright red SUV, and he buckled her in.
     
    When they got on the interstate, she finally realized he wasn ’ t taking her to get her car.
     
    “ Where are you going? ” she asked looking around.
     
    “ To South Georgia, of course, ” he said as he looked at the road.
     
    “ But, I thought we were going to get my car, ” she said.
     
    “ No time for that. Your son needs you, ” he said. Her heart melted as the tears returned. She let them flow as she stared out he window looking at passing cars and trees. Her mind wandered to thoughts of Austin as a baby boy, riding his bike for the first time, opening presents at Christmas, Easter egg hunts on the farm … It seemed like a rush of emotions and memories flooded her all at once.
     
    They didn ’ t speak for the first hour of the trip. Somewhere along the way, he had reached over to hold her hand. The warmth of someone being with her during a difficult time was a welcome feeling compared to her normal sense of loneliness.
     
    “ Tell me about your son, ” he finally said softly.
     
    Shelby took a deep breath and her face softened. “ Well, he ’ s amazing. He will be eleven in just a few months. He ’ s the most energetic kid I know, but he ’ s not a brat or ADD or anything like that. He ’ s just full of life …” her voice broke.
     
    “ He sounds amazing. I can ’ t wait to meet him, ” Brian said squeezing her hand. He asked her which hospital he was in so he could punch it into the GPS.
     
    “ This is so weird, ” she said with a slight smile.
     
    “ What ’ s weird? ”
     
    “ I just met you yesterday, and you already know more about me than most of my friends here. And now you are driving me to see my son in the hospital and my ex-husband, ” she said with a half-hearted chuckle.
     
    “ Well, I have to be honest. My intention today was to ask you on a date …” he confessed.
     
    “ Since I can admit I would have said yes, I hate that our first date is this, ” she waved her hand around at the interstate.
     
    “ So you would have said yes? ” he