Page 45 of Westward

“That was…”

“You know I study the English language for a living, and I’ve lost the ability to form decent words.”

“Lizzie,” he whispered, taking my lips again. “Elizabeth.”

I sighed into him, knowing this was beyond complicated, but I didn’t care.

And that was just one more lie I told myself.

“Lizzie, I am⁠—”

My phone rang, and I forgot that I had left the ringer on from earlier.

“Ignore it,” he ordered.

I nodded and kissed his chin.

“Lizzie, I⁠—”

My phone stopped ringing before going off again.

“Damn it,” he grumbled.

“I’m sorry. It could be an emergency.”

“I’ll get your phone. You lie here.”

“If you answer, you’re going to let the entire town know I was over here.”

“Lizzie, I don’t really care.”

I wasn’t sure I did then either, since the drug haze of sex filled the room. But as he left me, leaving me empty, I rolled out of bed, ignoring his protests. There was no way I was just going to sit there in the middle of our mess and not want to clean up. I did so as Atlas answered my phone—a mistake that I knew I would regret but couldn’t really care that much about while on this high.

But when Atlas walked into the bathroom, his face pale, I froze.

“What is it?”

“It’s Will. He’s hurt. We have to go.”

And just like that, reality crashed again, and there was nothing left.

Chapter 10

ATLAS

“Kellan. Come on. You need to let us back there.”

My childhood friend and the current town doctor ran his hand through his hair, a motion that looked as if he did it often, considering his hair was sticking up in all different directions.

“I need to talk with Will or a nurse and see if you actually can go back there. I’m sorry. You’re not his emergency contact or family.”

Lizzie squeezed my hand at those words before she rolled her shoulders back.

“Then go. I love you, Kellan. But go back there and tell Will that we’re here. Thatcher called us for a reason. We’re his family.”

The way she shouted that surprised me, and yet it didn’t. Although everybody in the waiting room paused and stared at us. We weren’t holding hands or even touching at this point, even though I wanted to. But they did have curious glances.

I didn’t care. They could know everything they wanted right then, I just needed to make sure that Will was okay. Because if anything had happened to him when we hadn’t been there, I would never forgive myself. And I knew for damn sure Lizzie would never forgive either one of us.