Free West (A Roam Series Novella) by Kimberly Stedronsky Page A

through the fountain. He didn’t wait. Goddamnit ,” I stood, and the relief on her face only angered me further.
    “Why would he do that?”
    “Hurry- I’ll buy plane tickets while you get cleaned up.”
    She was running to the bathroom on shaking legs. “What will happen to him?”
    Logan. How much longer will she continue to love Logan? What would it take to make her truly mine? “I don’t know - which is exactly why I told him to wait ,” I growled, hastily repacking my bag.
    “ West!” Her cry sent me to the bathroom in seconds. I gathered her into my arms as she gripped her arm in fear. “They’re coming back…,”
    “Look at my face,” I dropped her to the bed, my fingers locked on her upper arms. “Just focus.”
    She did so well; I kissed her through the numbers changing, proud of her restraint. When they finally changed, I glanced at the coordinates again.
    “Where?” She panted.
    “Russia. He traveled- and he came back.”
    My cell phone was ringing. I flipped the phone open, shouting before he could speak. “ I told you to wait! ”
    “Fucking wait?” His voice answered me, and I kept my eyes focused on Roam. “It was 1977. And you killed her. You fucking killed her. Put her on the phone-…,”
    “No way in hell you’re speaking to her.”
    “Let me talk to him!” Tears filled her eyes, and I hit speaker, tossing the device to the bed.
    This was it.
    It was Logan’s choice. If he told her, I’d lose all of her trust.
    I would lose her.
    “Roam, it’s true, the fountain is a door,” he rushed. “I spent a day in 1977, but only min utes passed here.”
    “Are you okay? Are you hurt?” She urged, her voice bordering on hysterical.
    I wanted to end the call before he said the words. I focused on her face, trying to remember the way she looked at me before she knew I was a murderer.
    No better than Logan…
    No better than Troy.
    “I’m okay. But Roam, you need to get here with me, now.”
    I snapped the phone closed, and she let the tears fall over her cheeks. “He wasn’t finished! He…,”
    “He doesn’t need to tell us what we’re doing. I’ll call him back later. Right now, I want you to get showered and not worry. I’m getting the tickets- we’re leaving tomorrow. I’ll make sure Logan knows he made you go through the numbers unnecessarily.”
    She brushed at her tears, scowling. “Don’t make him feel guilty.”
    “We know it’s true then… and it’s 1977 .” I stared out at the ocean as the phone began ringing again. I took the call out on the deck, waiting to speak until she was in the bathroom.
    “Don’t you dare hurt her-… ,”
    “Logan, shut the fuck up and listen to me. ” I cut him off before he could begin his adolescent tirade. “I will tell her. I was not myself, and I regret what I did, but I’d never hurt her. Not Roam.”
    “Oh, not Roam? What the fu-…,” he was furious. “She’s not yours. She’s my girlfriend. She’s my best friend. If you’ve touched her in any way, I’ll end your entire career-…,”
    What, teaching? This is what he was threatening me with? “Roam makes her own decisions. Did you see Troy?”
    “No I didn’t see Troy. I didn’t fucking see anything but you choking some blonde girl to death. ”
    Fuck . “Stay there. Don’t travel again- you make the numbers come when you pass through the fountain, and it hurts her. Badly . I’ll get details from you tomorrow. Text only between now and then.”
    I disconnected.

Chapter Thirteen
    Roam
    She stood before the wet mirror in a thin, yellow sundress. I watched her working through her long hair with a comb.
    Her eyes met mine as I moved behind her. When my arms encircled her, she dropped the comb and leaned back against me.
    Into me.
    I sighed. “I’m sorry that I was so angry. If Logan had been killed, you’d be devastated, and I don’t want your love by default.”
    I’d said it. I wanted her to love me, and I needed her to know that.
    She turned in