Without a word, Wes turned away from me and disappeared inside the room with his mom, Morgan, and Dr. Wileman, closing the door behind him.
Goddammit.
I wanted so badly to barge into Haley’s room to see her, but I knew I couldn’t. Not yet. Not when things were still being done and there were others crowded in there. So, I turned, walking through the ambulance bay and stepping out onto the covered platform, the rain still coming down hard. I rounded the corner of the platform to the side of the doors and tucked myself into the corner.
Shock and raw relief ricocheted through my body as reality set in—Haley was alive. For a moment, I’d already started preparing myself for the worst. And the second I allowed myself to fully comprehend that she was all right...my emotions finally got the best of me.
Sliding down the harsh brick, knees to my chest, I clenched my forehead as a sob of fierce relief fought its way out.
“Fuck,” I gasped through a hitched breath as I quickly wiped my eyes and took a few deep breaths.
I was so consumed in my thoughts and my relief that I didn’t hear the bay doors slide open or the footsteps approaching from around the corner.
It wasn’t until a throat cleared that I snapped my head up to see Wes standing in front of me, hands shoved in his pockets. I pushed myself to stand, locking eyes with him—he still looked pissed, but something else flickered in his gaze.
“You, uh–” His voice broke just the tiniest bit before he cleared his throat again. “You saved her.”
His tone made it sound like more of a question than a statement, and I assumed that idea came from Dr. Wileman. I didn’t say anything, not confirming or denying it, because I didn’t see myself as the sole reason she was okay—there were the medics and firefighters, the nurses here, Dr. Wileman himself.
It wasn’t just me.
“The doctor said she’s going to be okay. That they’re going to admit her to the ICU.”
I nodded. “Yeah...they’ll, uh…they’ll do close monitoring for a day or two. Once she’s stable enough, they’ll move her to a step-down unit for a few days.”
Wes glared at me for a beat, pain and confusion twisting his features. He clenched his jaw and shook his head. “Dammit, Blake...” he muttered, his voice ragged as he scrubbed a hand down his face.
When I saw his emotions start to show, my own began to resurface. Wes was very much like me in the way that we didn’t let anyone see certain sides of ourselves if we could help it. Seeing him lose his control over his emotions was such a rare occurrence, and knowing it wasbecauseof me made mine start to slip as well.
After a moment, he looked at me again. “What—You and Hales are—I’m gonna need you toexplainbecause I…” He blew out a breath, raking a hand through his hair.
I didn’t want to be cliché and say “it just happened,” even though that was partly the truth. And I didn’t want to lie and say I didn’t mean to keep it from him because I’d been actively keeping it from him since that very first accidental night with her.
So I said the only thing I knew would convey exactly what this was to me.
“I love her.” My words came out just above a whisper, but there was no denying the conviction in them.
Wes’s brows rose, clearly not having expectedthat. “Really?”
“Yeah…” I let out a strained, wry laugh with a nod. “I haven’t—I haven’t even told her that yet, but yeah…I love her.”
“Well,shit.” He leaned against the wall to the side of me. “I mean, was it…you two working together? Or…” He was really struggling with wrapping his mind around it, and a part of me couldn’t blame him.
I decided to leave out the one-night-stand aspect because that part didn’t really have much to do with it. “Yeah, I guess. We just…got close. I found her really easy to talk to. And she helped mea lot…with everything going on.”
Wes’s brow furrowed. “Helped you?”
“I…” I rubbed the back of my neck. Apparently, this was turning into my honesty hour. “I was struggling…with my PTSD...more than I let on. Because I was convinced that I could handle it on my own. I was ashamed and embarrassed. And Haley—God, I don’t think she even realizes how much she helped without even trying.” His expression softened slightly as he listened to me, hearing the emotion straining my voice. “She just…she has this way of making me feel like my old self. Of making me feel calm, and like—like everything is going to be okay.” I swallowed back the lump in my throat. “And when my world spins too fast…she’s theonlything that can slow it down.”
Wes’s cheeks puffed up as he blew out another breath. “Well,doubleshit. So…you two aren’t just—you’re not fuckin’ around?”
“No, we’re not. And we didn’t—we didn’t want to say anything untilweknew exactly what it was.”
“And I’m gathering you just figured it out?”
“Yeah,” I chuckled dryly. “Something like that.”
“And if I told you I didn’t want you seeing her?”
