I focus on my footing. One step at a time, doing my best not to jostle her. I can’t think about her injuries or what moving her might mean. There was no other choice. Leaving her in the car in this weather, way up here on the mountain, with no help for hours, isn’t an option.
I grit my teeth against the effort and somehow manage to get her up the hill, to the road, before I fall hard on my knees, Lilly still in my arms.
“Lilly.” I shift her a little, looming over her in an effort to keep the snow off her way too still face. “We’re almost there now, sweetheart. Come on. I need you to wake up.” I press my head to her forehead, in aneffort to will her eyes open. “I love you.” The confession surprises even me, but there’s no holding it back. Not anymore. Not when I might already be too late. “I should have told you that instead of pushing you away,” I say. “You mean everything to me, Lilly.”
The storm howls around us, but I barely register it anymore.
“I can’t live without you,” I tell her. “I won’t.”
For a long second, there’s nothing. Then, her lashes flutter. Her eyes open.
“Luke?”
Something inside me breaks open.
“Yeah.” I grip her tighter, unwilling to ever let her go. “Yeah, sweetheart. I’m here. I’ve got you. We’re going home.”
Lilly
The first thing I’m aware of is the ache.
It feels like my body has been tossed around in the tumble cycle of a dryer. Everything hurts.
There’s a dull throb behind my eyes, and a deeper, sharper pain in my ribsthat makes it hard to breathe. Warmth surrounds me, yet I’m still so cold.
The cold.
The snow.
The crash.
My eyes fly open as I remember what happened.
“Luke?”
“I'm here.”
His hand is wrapped around mine, and he squeezes gently. The feel of him grounds me, and when my eyes land on his familiar face, the panic starts to recede.
“I’m here,” he says again. “You’re safe.”
My breath catches in my throat, but I feel my heart rate start to slow again.
I’m safe.
Slowly, I look around at the unfamiliar bedroom. “Where…what…”
“There was a crash, sweetheart,” he says softly. “I got you out of the car. We’re at Tessa and Holt’s. It was closer and safer than trying to take you home.”
Home.
My eyes close, the word settling deep inside. I don’t think about the apartment I left behind in the city. I don’t think about my childhood bedroom.
I only think of one place.
One person.
The way his hand feels wrapped around mine as if he’s holding me in place.
