Page 76 of Somewhere Without You
“Here I am,”I echoed, the words sittingawkwardlyin my mouth.
Loganfinallylookedat me, his eyes locking on mine likehe’djuststepped off a cliff and realizedtherewasno bottom.
“Well,”Maddie saidbrightly,“we should catch up sometime. Do you have a number?”
I hesitated.“I’m only in town for a little while.”
“Oh, come on,”she laughed.“We’repracticallyneighbors. I mean, wecoulddo brunch or something. I’ll drag Logan along—he’ll hate it.”
“I’m sure he will,”I said before Icouldstop myself.
Her smile fellslightly, eyes flicking between the two of us.“Anyway,”she said, her tone cheery again,“We shouldgetgoing. We’re supposed to meet my mother for lunch and she hates it when we’re late.”
She tugged on Logan’s hand but he hesitated—justfor a second.
“Emily. . .”he said, so soft Ibarelyheardit.
I turned away.
They disappeared down the aisle, and I stoodtherefor a long moment, staring at the spot wherethey’dbeen standing, still holding the candy.
I didn’t remember walking to the counter. Ijustfound myselfthere, sliding coins across the scratched surface, the young man’s voicebarelyregistering as he wished me agoodday.
Outside, the air hit me like a slap. I leaned against the faded brick building, trying to breathe.
Eleven years.
Eleven years and the past stillknewexactlywhere to find me.
Forty Two
Before
Thegrasswaswarmbeneath my back, prickly in places but still soft enough to forget the world for a little while. Logan and I lay side by side in the field behind Gran’s house. The sky above us felt wider somehow as clouds drifted lazily above.
“Thatone’sdefinitelya dog,”I said, pointing upward.
Logan’s lips quirked.“Looksmore like a misshapen rabbit.”
I gave him a gentle shove. “You have no imagination.”
He didn’t argue, whichwasweird.Normally,he’dthrow some witty comeback, something sarcastic and stupidthatwould make me laugh.Butthis time, hewasquiet. Too quiet. I turned my head.
Logan now sat cross-legged beside me, picking apart a stem of grass—his shoulders slumped in a waythattold me somethingwasn’tright.
“What’s wrong?”I askedgently.Buthe didn’t answer right away.“Logan. . .”I pressed, sitting up beside him. A soft breeze blew through the field, brushing the hair from my face, but he still wouldn’tlookat me.
“I’m leaving,”he said at last.
I blinked, confused.“What, like right now?Butwejustgot here.”
He turned, his dark eyes meeting mine. Theyweresad and distant, not the rich brown theyhadbeen earlier.
“I joined the Army.”
A shadow swept across his face. Above, a tall cloud, drooping like a weeping willow,hadmovedin front of the sun.
“What?”I asked, confused. “Why?”
