Demanded by Him (Wanted Series #3) Read Online Free

he’ll tell you he doesn’t need you there.”
    “Uh-huh.”
    “But that little girl is his whole world.”
    “I understand.”
    “And he’ll hold it together better if you stay.”
    “He seems fine now.”
    “Just do it, okay?” Austin said. “Please.”
    “Okay.”
    “I can be there by this afternoon,” he said. “I’ll catch the
first flight I can.”
    Flight?! “Okay.”
    “Thank you in advance for looking out for my baby brother.”
    “No problem,” I said, feeling like I should’ve been doing more
to help.
    Austin hung up, and I ended the call but kept the phone in my
hand.
    “Thanks,” Wyatt said. “What did he say?”
    “He said he’ll be on the first plane he can catch, and he wants
me to stay with you until he gets there.”
    Wyatt shook his head. “You don’t have to do that. I told you I’d
call you a cab first thing. This isn’t your problem. I don’t expect you to
stick around.”
    “I don’t mind,” I said. “Really.”
    “We’ll see how you feel when you get there. Hospitals aren’t
exactly the nicest places to hang around.”
    “Sounds good,” I said, deciding I didn’t want him to waste his
energy arguing with me.
    “Thanks for doing that, by the way.”
    “No problem.”
    “You’re very cool under pressure.”
    I shrugged. “I’m always under pressure.”
    “Well, I don’t think I could’ve heard Austin’s voice without completely
losing it so thanks for doing that for me.”
    “It’s alright.”
    “He’s not going to say anything to my parents yet, right?”
    “I told him not to.”
    “Good.” He ran his hand over his head. “The last thing I need is
them complaining about the dry air in the hospital room while my daughter
struggles for breath.”
    The pain in his voice was tangible, and it was uncomfortable to
see him so flustered, so helpless, especially when he’d been nothing short of Mr.
Confident since I met him.
    “My mom thinks I shouldn’t have let her go to camp. She told me if
something happened, I’d never forgive myself.”
    “Don’t think like that,” I said. “She’ll be fine.”
    He shook his head. “She wouldn’t take no for an answer. Every
day she had a new pitch for why I would be the best dad ever if I just let her
go to camp with her friends.”
    “You did the right thing,” I said, surprised at the soft tone of
my voice. “You can’t protect her from everything.”
    “I didn’t have a choice. She’s so persistent,” he said. “She’s
like you that way. She has to get what she wants all the damn time.”
    “Daddy’s little girl?”
    He smiled. “Yeah, I guess it is all my fault. She’s got me
wrapped around her little finger.” He breathed in sharply like the thought of
her little finger almost set him off.
    “She’s going to be alright,” I said. “Just breathe.”
    “God I hope you’re right,” he said. “Cause if she’s not…” He
exhaled through his lips but didn’t finish the thought.
     

Chapter 5: Wyatt
     
     
     
    It was the second time I’d ever felt that way and the second
time this had happened.
    The first time she was only little and we were in New York City
for the weekend. The day before she went low, I decided to steal a few hours
for myself and left her with my sister while I went to play a gig with the band.
At that point, Johnny still had me convinced I could do it all. But my heart
wasn’t in it anymore, and I knew it was over.
    I had no intention of abandoning music, of course, not when
music had always been there for me. But I wasn’t interested in investing in
other people the way performers have to in order to be successful. I wanted to
save my attention for Sophie. Besides, her voice was more than enough music for
me, and I wasn’t going to forgo time with her just to get my ego stroked.
    She was my top priority.
    I sighed.
    It felt good to breathe. I knew I needed to remember to do that.
But with every deep breath that soothed me, I thought of the breath