Breathe In (Just Breathe, #1)(101)

“Maggie,” I shout, but not a single sound escapes my mouth this time.

“Wake up, Emma,” she repeats, this time with a deeper tone.

Confused, I try again. “Maggie!”

She doesn’t hear me. I don’t hear me.

“Emma, wake up,” the voice commands, getting louder.

A single, bright white light races towards us, growing larger by the second. Maggie turns her head towards me smiling, but her face is contorted. What’s wrong with her face? Why doesn’t she hear me? How does she not see the light?

Again, with all my might. “Maggie . . .!” my voice trails in my head like a deafening siren, stabbing my ears like a knife.

Time stops in this very moment. I can see everything with sheer clarity as I stare in horror into Maggie’s eyes. I can’t move. My mouth is left open, still screaming without a sound. I can’t hear anything besides a piercing ring that echoes in my brain.


My body lurches backward. “Wake up, Emma!” the voice beckons.

Gasping for air, my eyes fly open to darkness. Sadie is frantic on the bed and there is another body with us.

“Emma?”

My gaze turns in the direction of the husky sound and finds Joe.

“Emma, it’s okay. It was just a dream.”

Instinctually, I crawl onto his lap and wrap my arms around his neck. “Please don’t tell Jared,” I beg. “Please don’t tell him.”

Burying his face into my neck, he consoles, “No one will know.”

As my nerves settle, my heart rate returns to a more natural pace. I relax my grip on his neck, but stay sitting on his lap. My fingers play with the edge of Joe’s shirt as he tenderly wipes a couple of tears and kisses my cheeks. I consider a request before looking at him.

“Will you stay with me?”

“Of course, beautiful,” he assures.

The immediate need to pee arises, forcing me to stagger to the bathroom, leaving Joe sitting on the bed with Sadie. When I return from the bathroom, Joe immediately picks me up, pulls down the covers, and slides us both into the bed. I lay on my back scratching Sadie’s head that is now resting on my belly. Joe joins his hand with mine to comfort her and me. He gingerly kisses my temple twice. The sturdiness and heat of his body soothes the pain, beckoning sleep to fall up me quickly.





Twenty Four


The sound of sniffing in my ear wakes me from a hazy slumber. Avoiding Sadie, I curl into Joe’s body and nuzzle into his neck. I’m not freaked out by his presence in the bed, but I slide my hand over our bodies to make sure we’re fully clothed. I’m not sure how he ended up here with me.

“Good morning, beautiful,” he hums. “What are you doing?”

My hand freezes half way down the side of his body and rests on his hip. “Good morning,” I return hoarsely. “Checking to see if we’re naked.”

“Why would we be naked?”

“I don’t know. How did you end up in my bed?”

I wrack my brain trying to figure out what happened last night. I vaguely recollect asking him to stay.

“You don’t remember?” he teases.

“Kind of,” I affirm.

“What do you remember?”

“Umm . . . I’m not sure.”

My mouth is dry, my head is fuzzy, and I’m hoping that the image of Henry down on one knee isn’t real.

“How are you feeling?” he searches.

“I feel fine. A little thirsty.”

He hands me a glass of water from the nightstand and I gulp it down.

“You don’t feel hungover?” his voice sounds shocked.

“Why would I be hung . . . ohh . . .” I begin to remember. “He did propose. Shit.”

The memories are flooding back into my brain including the nightmare.

“How are you not hungover? I’ve never seen you drink that much,” he admits with some concern.

The dispute with Jared over taking the pills comes to mind. “The bottle,” I gesture. “One of the many benefits of activated charcoal.”

“I’ll have to remember that,” he comments.

Wincing at not remembering much after Henry proposing until now, I question, “Did I do anything stupid while I was drinking?

“You did a lot of things,” he muses.

“Care to fill me in?”

I regret losing control over myself the way I did.

“Well . . .” he begins. “We didn’t have sex, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Concerned, I check, “Did I have sex with anyone?”

“No,” he confirms with a laugh.

I breathe a sigh of relief.

“You really don’t remember.”

“Bits and pieces, but I’m good not knowing anymore after finding out that I didn’t have sex with anyone,” I admit sheepishly.

“You hit on me,” he announces.

My eyes widen as he laughs.

“And, you kissed me,” he states.

“I may have hit on you, but I would remember kissing you,” I argue.

“You were disappointed when I stopped the first kiss,” he mentions with a grin.

“Now I know you’re lying. You’re the one always trying to kiss me,” I contend.