Aspen doesn’t quit on people. She would drop everything for the people she cares about—trade everything so I don’t have to do this alone.
My chest aches.
I don’t want her to leave.
But a small, ugly part of me is already wondering what happens when she does.
No one can stay forever.
Maybe this time it’s only for a shift.
But sitting in a memory care facility less than twenty-four hours after watching the woman I love sleep beside me, is a reminder from the universe that nothing stays the same forever.
Yesterday, my grandmother knew my name, and today she doesn’t.
That’s the thing that breaks me open.
Not because I doubt Aspen.
Because I doubt the world.
For the first time in years, I have something worth losing.
And I can’t. I just fucking can’t.
CHAPTER
FIFTY
ASPEN
By the fourth apology, I know I’m out of options.
No one can cover.
I stare at my phone for a long moment before I feel Emmett behind me.
I don’t need to turn around to know it’s him. It’s ridiculous how quickly I’ve learned the shape of his presence. The weight of his stare is heavy on my back.
I lock my phone and close my eyes. I was so sure I’d figure something out.
His arms surround me right there in the hallway. The fear from earlier is still there but now it’s clouded with grief and something else I can’t put my finger on. It’s unsettling and maybe that’s why I’m working so hard to stay.
“What time do you work?”
His tone catches me off guard. It’s like he’s outside his body, asking.
“Six.”
His arms tighten briefly before he lets me go.
I look up. His eyes are tired. The light that was there this morning around the campfire is gone. It’s devastating but not nearly as much as when he steps back and puts physical distancebetween us. Not because of what it does to me but because I can see him changing back to the man I first met right in front of my eyes.
“Enough time to grab your things before you have to leave.”
A lump forms in my throat.
“I’m coming back tomorrow after my shift.”
