Page 69 of One is Never Enough

“According to Kristian, there was someone else with Trent. He carried Aiden from the apartment.”

“Oh my God.”

Leland puts his hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “Vince and Zac are going to keep me in the loop, okay? I’ll update you every time I have information.”

“Thank you.” I pull Leland into a tight hug. “I love you, and I’m so glad you’re my best friend.”

“You know you didn’t need to pull these dramatics just to get me to talk to Vince and Zac, right?” That shocks a laugh out of me, and I know that was Leland’s intention. “Everything will work out. They’ll find Aiden, and Jace will wake up. Oh, and I love you too.”

Leland gives me a sloppy kiss on the forehead and walks back down the hallway. I don’t know what Toby or I would do without him. He’s been a strong presence this whole time, never complaining when Toby asks him to do anything.

I go back into the waiting room and quietly tell Toby what Leland said. He nods in understanding, and we fall back into conversation. Every time that a doctor or nurse walks by, I practically jump out of my chair, hoping they’re coming to tell us that we can see Jace. I just want to see him with my own eyes to know that he’s really still with us. All I keep hearing is dead on arrival, and I can’t convince myself that they revived him.

“Oliver,” Cassandra says, breaking me from my thoughts. “Do you need anything?”

I shake my head. “I’m fine. You guys are the ones who traveled. Do you need me to get you something to eat? Or drink?” I go to stand up, and she pulls me back down in my chair.

“I’m fine, honey.” She pats my hand. “Jace has told me so much about you that I feel like I know you already.”

“He talks about me?”

She laughs quietly. “All the time. I’m glad the boys found you.”

“It’s me that’s glad. They’re…perfect.”

“Jace has scared us our whole lives. He’s always been adventurous, and he’s always been so full of life. When Jace was twelve, he wrecked on a dirt bike. He had to be life-flighted out to the closest hospital. They told us then that he might not make it.” She looks me in the eyes, and her expression is stern. “He made it through that, and he’ll make it through this.”

I take her words to heart and hope like hell that she’s right.

Chapter 28

Toby

We’ve been in the waiting room for an hour when Leland comes hauling ass back in. I jump to my feet, already knowing what he’s going to say.

“They found him,” he announces, out of breath. “He’s in the emergency room.”

“What’s going on?” Ray demands, and I wince. He’s so much like Jace, it’s not even funny.

“Uh, Aiden’s been missing,” I rush out. “But they found him.”

“Go!” Cassandra says. “I’ll call as soon as we can see Jace. Go.”

I grab Oli’s hand, and we follow Leland back down a stairwell. No wonder he’s out of breath. He must have bypassed the elevator for the stairs so he could get to us quicker. We burst into the ER, and he takes us straight to Aiden. A pained cry leaves Oliver, and he rushes over to Aiden.

“I’m okay, Darling.” The nurse continues to clean the wounds on Aiden’s face, ignoring him every time he winces. He gently pulls away from her and grabs Oliver.

Oliver carefully hugs him with tears running down his face again. “What happened?”

“It’s a long story, but I promise nothing happened. He just got a few good hits in.”

“They took you, Aiden,” I argue. “He didn’t?—”

“No,” Aiden says sternly. “I went to have dinner with Dad, and Trent showed up at my apartment while I was packing a bag. He spewed some bullshit and attacked me. His security guard apparently carried me out, but when I woke up at Trent’s, he was just ranting about taking care of Jace and that you were next. Have you seen Jace yet?”

“No. That’s what we were waiting for. Are you sure?”

Aiden pulls me close to him beside Oliver. “I swear. Nothing happened.”

---