Alex Gilbert's drunk voice slurred through the speaker. "I'm wasted. Can you come get me?"
I hesitated. Right—today was his birthday. But what did that have to do with me?
I was about to hang up when a waiter cut in. "Miss, could you pick him up? We're closing."
No choice. I dragged myself out of bed.
This wasn't the first time I'd done this—except back then, it was Alex Delgado.
We were still in Eldoria. He'd gotten drunk at some party.
I had a raging fever, but I forced myself to drive to the bar anyway.
The lights were hazy, the music deafening. I spotted him in a corner booth, a blonde draped across his lap, his hand wandering up her thigh.
I rushed over and grabbed his arm. He shoved me off.
"Stop annoying me."
The force sent me stumbling. My hand slammed into the table's edge—right onto a fruit knife.
Blood welled up instantly, dripping onto the carpet.
The wound burned. But it was nothing compared to the ache in my chest.
"Get lost!"
"I don't need you meddling!"
He threw back another gulp of liquor without so much as a glance my way.
I snapped back to the present. I'd already pulled up to the hotel. The moment I stepped out, I caught the staff whispering nearby.