Slowly, she began to ease. She quit kicking and her terrified sounds stopped. Then her fingers wrapped firmly around my arm. She wasn’t letting me go. Even in her sleep she knew I was here, and she was keeping me close.

That felt good. For once, I had helped her. She’d been my rock and my source of peace, but I was never one for her. I thought she’d gone and lived her hell alone. But in reality, she was still living it, and I could do for her what she did for me. Hold on to her so she never lost herself.

Someone was jerking my body back and forth. Groggily, I opened my eyes to see why. It was still dark out. I blinked and looked down to see that Maggie had turned and was now facing me, tucked in close to my body.

A hand on my arm tightened. Apparently, I hadn’t woken up on my own. I looked up to see Brady scowling at me.

“What. The. Fuck,” he growled. “I trusted you.” He was keeping his voice down, which was good. Brady I could handle, but Boone would kill me.

“She had a nightmare. I was just helping her, and then I fell asleep too. I swear to God, that was it.”

Brady’s scowl didn’t lift. “Why were you in her room? It’s after midnight. I know you, West, and you don’t crawl in bed with girls and do nothing.”

He was right about that. Except with Maggie. I did crawl in bed and do nothing with Maggie.

“I would never touch her, Brady. I swear it. She’s my friend, and she needed me. I’m not trying to do anything more with her.”

Brady finally looked like he might believe me. “She’s dressed,” he said.

“Yeah, and so am I. My boots are even still on,” I pointed out.

Brady backed up and nodded for me to move.

I eased away from Maggie and covered her up. Brady was her cousin, but I didn’t like the idea of him seeing her in those skintight leggings. Her shirt was bunched around her waist, and you could see a little slice of skin on her stomach. I didn’t want him seeing that either.

“Don’t come back in her room at night.”

I wasn’t going to argue with him, but he was stupid if he thought I wouldn’t come back. If she wanted me here, I’d be back every damn night to check on her.

“We talked. She fell asleep, then she started having a nightmare about the same time I was leaving. I calmed her down and fell asleep in the process.”

Brady gave me a hard nod. “Fine. Now leave.”

I would go, but he was leaving too. “I will. But so are you.”

He looked at me like I had lost my mind. “What?”

I looked back at Maggie sleeping curled up alone in the bed. “If I leave, so do you. She locks her door at night. How’d you get in?” I asked him.

“I know how to get into my old room when it’s locked. Besides, once I saw your truck parked down the road, I knew where you were and how you got in here.”

I trusted Brady, but I didn’t like that. “I leave, you leave,” I repeated.

“Are you serious?” he asked.

“Very.”

Brady shook his head and opened the bedroom door. “I swear to God, West. You’re insane if you think I’d make a move on my cousin.”

I didn’t think he would. I just didn’t like him being in her room while she was asleep. She hadn’t invited him in. It was an invasion of her privacy.

When I’d finally gotten home and into my own bed, I’d gone to sleep hoping I’d wake up to a repeat of last weekend with my dad. I didn’t get it.

Instead I was woken by the sounds of an ambulance outside the house, and my mother’s frantic voice. My heart slammed against my chest, and I moved fast. I ran from my room toward the front of the house where I heard Momma.

“He’s down the hall!” she shouted at the paramedics who were already rushing through the door. “Hurry! He’s throwing up so much blood. Hurry! Please!” Momma was crying pitifully, and the paramedics moved fast. I backed up and let them pass, then went to my mother, who was holding on to the front door as if she were about to collapse. She had blood all over her clothing. And tears were running down her face. “We’re gonna lose him. Oh God, West, we’re gonna lose him.” She sobbed as her knees buckled.

I hurried over to her and held her against my chest. “He needs us to be strong right now. We can break down later. But we need to show him that we can handle this. If he sees you cracking, it will be even harder on him.” As I urged her to do what I wasn’t sure I could do myself, I felt like Maggie was right there with me saying those words in my ear. Reminding me this wasn’t about me right now. That I was strong enough for this.

Momma nodded and wiped at her face. “You’re right. He needs us to be strong,” she repeated. “Help me remember that.” She patted my arms I’d wrapped around her. “I need to change and go with them to the hospital.”

“I’ll drive you. Go get changed, and we’ll follow. They aren’t going to let you in the back. They’ll need all the room to help Dad.”

She nodded again, but I could tell she didn’t like the idea of his leaving this house without her.

I held her as they brought out my father, unconscious and covered in blood. Seeing him like that brought on a new, deeper sorrow. One I hadn’t experienced yet.

“We’re coming, honey. We’re right behind you. Be strong for us. We’ll be waiting on you,” Momma called after him.

“Go on and get cleaned up,” I told her.

She held on to my arms for a few more seconds as they put him in the back of the ambulance. Then she hurried down the hall to change.

I jumped in the shower and cleaned off before throwing on some jeans and a T-shirt. Once we got to the hospital, I’d find a cleaning service to call about coming to clean up their room. I wanted it nice and ready when Dad came back home. I also didn’t want Momma cleaning it up.

When I stepped out of my own room, Momma stepped out into the hall from hers. We looked at each other for a moment. “He needs us to be strong for him,” I reminded her. I wanted her to find her inner strength too. In case this was it. If we had to say good-bye to him soon, I wanted her to be ready to give him that without breaking down.

I just hoped to God I could do it. Momma nodded once more and headed for the door. I followed behind her as I texted Maggie. I was going to need her now more than ever.

I Need You Here

CHAPTER 25

MAGGIE

They took him to the hospital in an ambulance. I need you.

I kept reading West’s text over and over as Aunt Coralee, Uncle Boone, Brady, and I drove to the hospital.

He hadn’t given me details. He just said he needed me. I had jumped out of bed and gotten dressed without thinking of how I was going to get to the hospital. When I hurried into the hallway to go to the bathroom so I could brush my teeth, Uncle Boone had been walking up the stairs with the morning paper. I’d handed him my phone so he could see the text message. He read it, then went to wake up Aunt Coralee and Brady.

No one was talking. Brady kept bouncing his knee nervously as he stared out the window. He’d been the first one in the living room after his dad had woken them all up. The panic written across his face was what only a real friend would feel.

I wasn’t sure I’d had that, not from any of my friends. I was thankful West did.

“I need to tell the guys,” Brady finally said. “It’s time they knew. They’ll want to be there with him too.”

Uncle Boone nodded. “I agree. After we get there and you’ve seen them, you can go find a quiet place and call. But not the whole team. Just the ones he’s close to. He needs his real friends around him right now.”

I wasn’t sure West would want that, but if this was the end, then he needed it.

“Did he text you?” Brady asked me.

I nodded.

“Did he give you any details?”

I shook my head and handed him my phone.

He read the text several times before handing back the phone to me.

“Thank you,” he said. “For being there for him. I don’t understand whatever it is y’all have, but thank you.”

He didn’t have to thank me. It was West. I’d do anything for him.

My phone dinged, and we all tensed up. I wanted to hurry and get to him.

He has a tumor pressing against a vein or something. They have him back there. That’s all I know. We’re on the fourth floor left wing waiting room.

I quickly typed: We are on our way. Almost there.

Then I handed the phone to Brady. He read the text to his parents. Then the phone dinged again, and he read the incoming text silently before handing it to me:

Good. I need you here.

I closed my eyes tightly and prayed. I wasn’t sure what to pray for because I knew West’s dad couldn’t be saved from this. But I prayed anyway.

Once we arrived at the hospital, Uncle Boone let us out at the entrance before he went to park. I didn’t wait on anyone. I ran inside and headed for the elevators. If West got the news his dad had passed away, I wanted to be there beside him. I wanted him to have what I hadn’t. Someone who understood.

When the elevator door opened, I hurried on and pressed the button. When the doors opened again on the fourth floor, there stood West. His eyes were bloodshot, and they locked on mine. He’d been waiting on me.