Page 126 of Don't Let Me Fall (Don't Let Me 1)

And he knows he lost me to his best friend.

But Colt and I? We’re solid.

He cares about me.

I know he does.

But I also know I need some freaking air after that shitty conversation, or I might pass out.

“Ash!” a voice calls from behind me, but I don’t bother to turn around. I need air.

Some freaking air.

Then I’ll be able to clear my head and make sense of what Logan told me.

It’ll be fine.

Everything will be fine.

Because he’s lying.

Logan has to be lying.

Doesn’t he?

57

COLT

“Ash!” I yell, but she doesn’t turn around. She continues stumbling toward the door like she’s drunk off her ass, and a pack of wolves is chasing after her. Her shoulder bumps into a few people, turning herself into a human pinball as she makes her escape, and I set the drinks on the nearest table to chase after her.

“Ash!” I call again.

“You okay?” Theo asks as I rush past him and out onto the front lawn, but I don’t answer.

Because I don’t know.

Ash’s hands are on her head, and her face is tilted up toward the sky as she breathes in deep. Like she’s drowning. Like something happened.

“Ash.” I grab her shoulders and cup the back of her head, forcing her to look at me as the slight wind ruffles her hair. “Ash, what happened?”

“Why’d you get kicked out of Dixie Tech?”

An ache builds in my throat, but I swallow it back. “Ash––”

“You said you weren’t a cheater.”

“I’m not,” I argue, desperate to explain everything. To help her understand. To make her listen.

“And the professor’s wife you were sleeping with?” she demands, licking her lips and trying to stay calm when I know she’s seconds from losing her shit.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I rest my forehead against hers and breathe her in, desperate for forgiveness. “I didn’t know she was my professor’s wife. When I found out, I ended things, but the school still expelled me.” I open my eyes and hold her gaze. “You know I wasn’t lying when I said I’m not a cheater, Ash. You know my history.”

“Yeah, with Brooke,” she clarifies, her expression darkening. “Tell me. Who was she sleeping with again?”

I keep my hands on her face but lean back, my stomach knotting with dread. “Wait. What?”

“Who was Brooke sleeping with behind your back? You said she was cheating on you.”

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