He shakes his head.
“You can’t.”
I suck in a sharp breath. “What?”
His jaw flexes.
For a second, he looks almost as confused by the words as I am.
“You’ll be coming off a twelve-hour shift. You’re not driving through the mountains on almost no sleep.”
The temperature in the hallway plummets. I wrap my arms around my middle.
“I’ll survive.”
Emmett sighs. “Aspen?—”
“Emmett.”
His mouth closes. The sting of him shutting me out after yesterday is hot across my cheeks. And then his lips part again. “She’s worse than when I left. I couldn’t see it yesterday but Connie said as much this morning.”
This isn’t really about sleep or driving. It’s about fear.
“Emmett.” I say softly, reaching for him but he sidesteps me.
But before I can try again, the doctor steps out of Monica’s room.
She’s young and smiling sweetly as she props her glasses on the top of her head. Her gaze bounces between Emmett and I like she knows she’s interrupted something tenuous.
“Mr. Slate?”
Emmett straightens beside me. “Emmett,” he corrects.
“Okay. Emmett it is.” The doctor offers a sympathetic smile. “Do you have a few minutes?”
Every muscle in his body tenses as he scrutinizes the doctor. “Is she okay?”
“She’s resting right now.”
The reassurance doesn’t ease the tension in his shoulders.
“But?”
The doctor's expression softens.
“Not a but. I just wanted to talk through what happened today and what we’re seeing.” The doctor gestures toward a small consultation room across the hall.
Emmett’s jaw ticks.
“Go,” I tell him. “I’ll be right here.”
His eyes hold mine and there’s a second where I think he’s going to say or do something.
Instead, he nods and follows the doctor down the hall.
Leaving me standing in the middle of the hallway with no idea what to do next.
It’s a strange feeling.
