Page 74 of Fall at Once

“Jesus. She has a lot of nerve. Okay, that doesn’t seem like a big deal. If she heard everything, she’s bound to understand you were frustrated. Call her tomorrow. You need to get that arm taken care of. And you need to go home and crash.”

“Okay. Good thinking. I’m exhausted. Talking would be pointless now, anyway. I’ll probably end up saying something stupid.”

He smacked my good shoulder. “I’ll take you home when you’re done. I got a couple of the guys to drive my car over.”

“Thanks, man.”

“It’s gonna be okay.”

“I hope so. But I don’t have any energy left to think about it right now.”

Chapter 24

Madi

The drive across town back to the Confectionery went by in a haze of starlight and tears, peppered by the occasional glare of a streetlight. If the roads had been busy, I would have pulled over to cry it out, but lucky for me, I had a clear shot home.

But now that I was home, I didn’t want to go inside.

I cut the engine and tapped a restless beat on the steering wheel as I sat stewing on what I’d heard in the hospital.

I couldn’t seem to acknowledge the significance of Cole’s words, even though they had been repeating on a loop ever since I’d heard them. I tried to brush them aside and think positively, but it wasn’t working.

“We’re not serious. We’re just starting out. Seeing where things go.”

“I’ll never get fucking married again.”

I didn’t want to hear it when I was standing outside that hospital curtain, eavesdropping like a little freak, and I didn’t want to think about it now. I had wanted to cover my ears like a child and pretend he wanted to be with me as much as I wanted to be with him.

It’s not like we had a commitment. We hadn’t made any promises to each other. But at that moment, my heart didn’t want to be logical. It hurt.

This thing with Cole came on fast. It was all at once. It was everything. I didn’t want to lose it, so I grasped at every straw I could think of that would make it make sense.

He was scared to move on.

He was afraid to be in a new relationship. That’s probably all it was.

That had to be it.

I couldn’t conceive of him feeling any other way. He was so good to me. He was too good of a person to string me along. He wouldn’t do that.

Plus, I had to admit that if I had an ex like Sherry, I would be scared too.

I broke up with Ross and as far as I was concerned, even if he moved in next door to me, I never had to speak to him ever again.

Cole didn’t have that luxury. Like it or not, he had to deal with Sherry. They were bound together forever because of Natalie and Evan. And if I somehow ended up with him, I would have to deal with her too. I’m not sure how I felt about that. But there was noneed to put the cart before the horse at this point.

I glanced at the dashboard clock. It was after midnight. I hadn’t realized how late it was when I left. Tate had called, and I spared no thought about anything other than getting to the hospital to be with Cole. It was as simple as that. That was a massive clue that my feelings for him were far more profound than I had allowed myself to contemplate.

After I got out, I heard a rustling sound in the alley. Momentary panic flooded my senses, and I almost jumped back into the car before I heard the distinct sound of Kenzie muttering to herself.

I shuffled around the corner and found her huddled next to the dumpster, leaving a voice note for someone on her phone.

“Kenzie! What the hell are you doing out here? Do you know what time it is?”

She let out a whispered shriek and fumbled her phone into her lap. “Shit, Madi. You scared the hell out of me.”

I stood next to her in the shadow of the dumpster. “I scared you? I just got back from the hospital. It’s the middle of the night. The last thing I need is to hear whispering in the dang alley. And why are you out here? Are you okay?”

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