“Did you tell anyone who isn’t here?”
I look around at the group. “No… wait. Yes, I alerted Dillon and Emerson first, but they were on their way here because Emerson’s water broke.”
The girls go crazy.
Detective Lenning is becoming visibly agitated. “Miss Arnault, when we spoke, you asked about his girlfriend—” He searches through his notes.“—a Miss Annabelle Ryan?”
“Yes.” I don’t know where he’s going with this, but I’m not going to help him.
“Did you call her?”
I shake my head.
“Why not?”
I shrug. “I guess I figured she already knew.”
“Why would she know?”
“Because they live together?”
I begin to feel bad for not calling her. They live together, and while she may not be our favorite person, she loves Mason. I’m sure of it, and she should be told.
Me: Annabelle, Mason is here at San Francisco General. We don’t know much, but we’re here. Come as soon as you can.
William speaks up. “Detective Lenning, why are you here asking questions? Is there something we need to be aware of?”
“No, nothing,” he shares. Turning back to me, he asks, “Did you recall the name of his mother?”
“His mother’s name is Janice Sullivan Harris of Canton, Ohio,” I tell him, able to remember now that some of the panic has worn off.
He has Mason’s phone in his hands and scans through the contacts. “Excuse me.”
“Mason’s going to be pissed if he calls her,” Cameron mutters.
I know he’s right, but she is his mother and should probably be here. My parents arrive. They are pretty close to Mason.
I’m a complete wreck as we wait. Sara and Greer take seats next to me, holding my hands. All the things I’ve wanted to say to him circle in my mind, and if he dies, I’m going to be more than disappointed in him. I’m going to chase him down in hell and kill him again!
Hadlee has disappeared, and Annabelle hasn’t responded to my text, so I decide to call her. It goes right to voice mail. “Annabelle, this is CeCe. Mason is here at San Francisco General. We don’t know anything. Please call when you get a chance or come down. We are in the fourth-floor surgical waiting room.”
Cynthia puts her arm around me as I disconnect the call. “He’s strong. He’s going to be okay.”
“Thanks. Annabelle’s phone rings right to her voice mail. I should try the house.”
She nods, and I call the main line at Mason’s house. Fighting back the tears, I virtually repeat the same message on that answering machine. I hope she can get here soon.
It seems to take forever for Hadlee to return; when she does, she’s in scrubs.
“They aren’t telling us much. We don’t know what’s happened. He has an irregular heart rate and shortness of breath. His EKG was bad, and they’re trying to stabilize him and determine if they need to do surgery. It looks like they’re going to induce a medical coma so they can run tests.” Hadlee looks at me. “Let’s go get some coffee. It’s going to be a long night.”
My heart is beating triple time. A coma? That seems extreme. What happened? “I’m okay here. I can wait.”
Cameron puts his arms around me. “Come on, CeCe, you look exhausted and in need of some food.”
I paint a smile on my face. “I’ll be fine.”
Looking around the room, I see that everyone is as stressed as I am. Hoping they will follow my lead, I clap my hands together and say, “All right, everyone, Mason would not be happy to know that we are out here worrying about him. Let’s head down to Labor and Delivery and see how Emerson is doing.”
Everyone seems to perk up, and a few of my friends even smile as we walk to the other side of the hospital in search of our other friend and partner. Emerson is bringing the very first baby into our group of friends.
When we arrive, the nurses recognize Hadlee but won’t let the rest of us in. After a few minutes, Dillon walks out looking grim.
“How ya doin’?” Cameron asks.
“Baby is not moving into the birth canal. The docs are giving the baby a few minutes to figure it out on his own or they’ll begin prepping her for a C-section.”
“I see the baby’s stubborn just like his parents,” Sara sympathizes.
“Maybe.” Dillon grins. “Any word on Mason?”
“We don’t know much, but Detective Lenning is here and investigating.”
“Was it a car accident?”
I shrug. I’m following Cameron’s lead and not wanting to stress Dillon about Mason’s situation. He needs to focus on Emerson and his new baby. “I’m hoping Hadlee can find out more from her side.”
“You guys can wait here or, of course, with Mason. I can text you as soon as the baby arrives.”
I give Dillon a big hug and whisper in his ear, “You tell Emerson we’re here and cheering for her. We can’t wait to see your little bundle.”
We wander back to the ICU waiting area. The hours tick by even slower than normal. I stand, I sit, I read my social media. Everyone I care about is here with me, but I’m worried about Mason, and I’m mad at Annabelle for not being here. Where could she be?
Everyone’s phone pings at the same time.
Dillon: When you can, come meet Liam Michael Healy, born at 10:22 p.m. at 7lbs, 8 oz. Mom is a rock star and doing great!
We celebrate the new addition to our team. I can’t wait to meet the little guy.
“Hadlee, you go first to visit, and we can follow in less than overwhelming groups,” Greer says.
“I think we can go in small groups of four,” Hadlee informs us.
I stop listening to them. I know Mason’s doctor is going to be out any minute.
It is just Cynthia and me waiting when a petite woman steps out. “Caroline?”
I stand. “Yes, that’s me.”
“Hello, I’m Jordan Severs, Mason’s doctor.”
“How’s he doing?”
“We can’t be sure why Mason had a heart attack, but he seems to be doing well. We’ve put him in a medically induced coma for a few days. He needs to recover. Once things settle down, everyone can visit him. It will be good for him to hear you all talking to him.”
“Thank you,” I whisper as I fight back the tears. Mason, you’d better pull through this. I have a lot to tell you, and if you think you can die, you’d better think again.
“He’s strong. This coma will only last a few days.”
You can preorder Fascination and read CeCe and her man’s story here on Amazon.
Thank you!
Okay, I know, I dropped a bomb at the end of this book. Don’t be too mad at me. There is one more book in the series, and I know you’re going to love it.
Thank you for taking the time to read Enchanted, and if this is your first book you’ve read in the series, I hope you’ll consider reading the others. These stories ramble around in my head and pour out of my fingers as I write. I’m grateful for the opportunity to share them with you. Thank you for giving me your time so I can share them with you. If you like it well enough, please write a review on your favorite review site – you can find me on Amazon, Goodreads, and Bookbub. This is one of the ways that others will see my books. If you want to know the exact date of a new release or know what’s going on with my books, join my newsletter. I try to send only one a month, but if I’m releasing a book, you might get a second.
I grew up the daughter of a Marine pilot, and Quinn’s dad is exactly my dad—kind and would do anything for me. While he has never read any of my books (I won’t let him), he is my biggest fan and has regaled me with stories of people he’s met that will be downloading my books. My mother is nothing like Quinn’s. My amazing mother always has the knack of telling me how to keep going when Amazon does something that frustrates me—they seem to get the ship moving left and divert to the right without telling anyone.
I met my husband almost fifteen years ago. We
met through an online dating site. We were two busy professionals who needed a little help being introduced. I thank my lucky stars that I met Daniel. He’s my first beta reader and critique. He’s amazingly supportive. He’ll take the boys to the park after dinner so I can write for an hour or just let me talk through my story. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that we met—in fifteen years, we’ve bought two homes, had two kids, lived in two countries, and driven each other crazy. I’m the luckiest girl around!
My editors from Hot Tree Editing are amazing. Donna is the heartbeat at Hot Tree. She moves my manuscripts around to the various editors, and without her, my work would be full of mistakes and typos. My content editor, Barbara, really helped to keep me on track. She warned me you’d hate the ending, but I promised not to make you wait too long for the final installment in the series. Virginia did the heavy lifting with this book and my line edit. She makes sure all those commas and apostrophes are in the right place, and she’s wonderful at smoothing out the rough spots. And Kim and Sue, my wonderful beta readers who always find the last few missing periods, commas, and things that don’t make sense.
Aria Tran at Resplendent Media does an outstanding job with my covers. I adore her and all her work. I highly recommend her!
And to my friends, Gayle, Erin, Carol, Marcia, my college BFFs Darren and Nicole, THANK YOU! These ladies (and one guy) listen to me talk unending about my books, let me talk through the plot points that sounded so good when I mapped out the series and now make no sense as I’m writing. You are my biggest fans and greatest support. Thank you for listening even when I’m pretty sure you’re over me talking about it.
With that, September will be here soon. Enjoy your summer, and I can’t wait to share with you all the fun with CeCe and her man.
Thanks again!
XOXO
A.
Where to find Ainsley
If you are interested in sneak peaks, random cocktail recipes that show up in my stories, or just the simple reminder to read the next book in the series, please join my reading group:
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Also by Ainsley St Claire
Forbidden Love (Venture Capitalist Book 1) Available on Amazon
(Emerson and Dillon’s story) He’s an eligible billionaire. She’s his alluring employee. Will they cross the line from boardroom to bedroom?
Promise (Venture Capitalist Book 2) Available on Amazon
(Sara and Trey’s story) She’s reclaiming her past. He's a billionaire dodging the spotlight. Can a romance of high achievers succeed in a world hungry for scandal?
Desire (Venture Capitalist Book 3) Available on Amazon
(Cameron and Hadlee’s story) She used to be in the 1%. He’s a self-made billionaire. Will one hot night fuel love’s startup?
Temptation (Venture Capitalist Book 4) Available on Amazon
(Greer and Andy’s story) She helps her clients become millionaires and billionaires. He transforms grapes into wine. Can they find more than love at the bottom of a glass?
Obsession (Venture Capitalist Book 5) Available on Amazon
(Cynthia and Todd’s story) With hitmen hot on their heels, can Cynthia and Todd keep their love alive before the mob bankrupts their future?
Flawless (Venture Capitalist Book 6) Available on Amazon
(Constance and Parker’s story) A woman with a secret. A tech wizard on the trail of hackers. A tycoon's dying revelation threatens everything.
Longing (Venture Capitalist Book 7) Available on Amazon
(Bella and Christopher’s story) She's a biotech researcher in race with time for a cure. If she pauses to have a life, will she lose the race? He’s in desperate need of a deal. Will he put his job over his career?
Enchanted (Venture Capitalist Book 8) Available on Amazon
(Quinn and William’s story) San Francisco has become too expensive to call home so Quinn can’t help but take a second job to make ends meet and payoff her expensive school loans. Women don’t hold his interest past a week, until she accidentally leaves me a voice mail so hot it melts his phone. Can they find a way to each other?
Fascination (Venture Capitalist Book 9) Available for preorder on Amazon
(CeCe and her man’s story) CeCe’s prince charming is caught in public with a girls lips on his you know what. People think her life is easy - they couldn't be more wrong. Dating is near impossible with the paparazzi following her everywhere. Any sane man would run from that. So, when a competitor steals her company's entire fall line, down to names and packaging, he’s the only one who can prevent her from moving to a tropical island.
In a Perfect World Available on Amazon
Soulmates and true love. They believed in it once… back when they were twenty. As college students, Kat Moore and Pete Wilder meet and unknowingly change their lives forever. Despite living on opposite sides of the country, they develop a love for one another that never seems to work out. (Women’s fiction)
Coming Soon
Gifted (A Holiday Story)
November 2019
House of Cards (Tech Billionaires Book 1)
February 2020
Tilted (Tech Billionaires Book 2)
April 2020
About Ainsley
Ainsley St Claire is a Contemporary Romantic Suspense Author and Adventurer on a lifelong mission to craft sultry storylines and steamy love scenes that captivate her readers. To date, she is best known for her Venture Capitalist series.
An avid reader since the age of four, Ainsley’s love of books knew no genre. After reading, came her love of writing, fully immersing herself in the colorful, impassioned world of romantic suspense.
Ainsley’s passion immediately shifted to a vocation when during a night of terrible insomnia, her first book came to her. Ultimately, this is what inspired her to take that next big step. The moment she wrote her first story, the rest was history.
When she isn’t being a bookworm or typing away her next story on her computer, Ainsley enjoys spending quality family time with her loved ones. She is happily married to her amazing soulmate and is a proud mother of two rambunctious boys. She is also a scotch aficionada and lover of good food (especially melt-in-your-mouth, velvety chocolate). Outside of books, family, and food, Ainsley is a professional sports spectator and an equally terrible golfer and tennis player.
Enchanted: (Billionaire Venture Capitalist #8): A Fake Fiancée Romance Page 27
