Free Sound Proof (Save Me #5) by Katheryn Kiden, Wendi Temporado Page A

you, though. I flirt shamelessly with her as much as I can, and given the opportunity, yeah, I would be with her in a heartbeat. But I would never attempt to break up her marriage. Now that she’s home, if she decides she wants to go back, I won’t stop her. I won’t like it, but I wouldn’t interfere.”
    Roger nods slowly before dropping his head against the wall. “The girls seem to like you too. I may have done some Googling to find out more about you. What I saw, though, doesn’t impress me, and it doesn’t sound like what just came out of your mouth.”
    I choke out a forced laugh. “That damn Google is the bane of my existence.” He chuckles right along with me, and I’m glad, at least for a moment, that I have his mind in a better place than it was a few minutes ago. “You’re right. I haven’t always been like this. I lived on the road, had the status, the money, and everything else going for me that a random chick would want for a few hours and I didn’t even have to use the degree I have. Except Payton. Very few women put me in my place, but she’s one of them. She deserves to have everything she wants, so do Willow and Sage.”
    “I guess someone taught you right.” He leans forward and rest his elbows on his thighs.
    “Yes, sir.” I nod and look down the hall, hoping Payton comes back soon because this conversation is getting too personal for my liking. “My parents have been married for almost forty years. My father taught me that if you want a woman to stick around, you gotta treat her like platinum and one thing you don’t do, is cheat.”
    He cuts me off quickly when he sees Payton and her mom rush back up the hall.
    “Fuckers,” Payton mutters, sliding into the chair next to me. “Wouldn’t even let me in the room. But that asshole could scream out at me how Sage getting hurt is all Willow’s fault. He’s lucky they wouldn’t let me in because I’d be in jail right now.”
    We all sit back and let Payton rant, because it’s a hell of a lot better than watching her cry. I know the tears will be back soon, probably as soon as she sees one of the girls, or the doctor comes out with another update, so we don’t stop her. I do, however, slide my arm around the back of her chair and relish in the feeling of having her this close to me while we wait for the news on Willow and Sage.
     



AJ
    I think I can hear every clock in this hospital ticking in my ear and it’s driving me absolutely crazy. However, compared to watching Payton fall apart, it’s nothing. They finally let us into Willow’s room about an hour ago but we’re still waiting for an update on Sage. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen time pass this slowly.
    Willow mumbles something incoherently but it’s nothing any of us can make out. She’s been in and out but the after-effects of the anesthesia keep pulling her back under. Payton already knows she’s going to need help while the girls recover because Willow’s face is so swollen that she’s not sure she will be able to speak clear enough for her to make out. She wouldn’t even be able to read her lips if she couldn’t hear her, and with a broken collarbone and broken fingers, she won’t be able to sign correctly.
    Payton has her head resting on the edge of the bed, hiding her face, when the doctor comes in. He stoops down next to her and when he finally has her attention, he tells her that Sage is out and he’s going to take her down to her room.
    She begins to rush from the room but stops just short of the door, torn between both her daughters and it’s heartbreaking. I stand up and pull her into me, framing her face between my hands. She grabs my wrists, holding me there, and looks up at me like she hopes I hold all the answers.
    “Go. Take your parents and go check on Sage. I’ll stay with Willow until you come back.” I press my lips against her forehead and feel her tears slip down over my fingers.
    After Payton and her mother walk out the door,