All the Things I Didn't See Read Online Free PDF Page B

been paying close attention.
Kenneth stepped up and clapped Evan on the shoulder, and Josh gave a small smile when he saw the younger man wince a little.
“Don’t worry about it, Evan. I’m sure you got here as soon as you could.”
Josh looked at Kenneth, absolutely certain that Sam’s father didn’t believe any such thing.
    Josh looked around at them all, feeling confused, like there was something he was missing, but no one would catch his eye. He thought about pursuing it, but in all honesty, he was just too exhausted.
    “You know, Josh, it’s nice of you to hang around and all, but maybe you should go home. Get some rest.” Evan’s look of friendly concern wasn’t fooling anyone. “I’ll make sure someone lets you know about my boyfriend’s condition.”
    Josh opened his mouth to object, but once again he was cut off by Sam’s mom.
“Josh isn’t going anywhere, Evan. He’s Sam’s best friend, and he of all people deserves to be here when Sam gets out of surgery. Besides, he has to stay.”
Josh had a bad feeling about where this was going. He knew that Mary wasn’t in any mood to be stopped.
“I don’t get it.” Evan looked at her, genuinely confused. “Why does Josh have to be here?”
    Josh cut in, needing this argument not to happen right now. He had a feeling that Evan had not been informed that Josh was the one who could make the medical decisions.
“Because when Sam wakes up, he’s gonna be worried, and I’ll need to show him I’m okay.”
     
Evan snorted but wisely refrained from commenting.
    Josh looked at Sam’s mom, silently pleading for her to let it go for now. He knew she wasn’t a big fan of Evan, and Josh honestly didn’t blame her. He wasn’t, either, but now wasn’t the time to be aggravating Sam’s boyfriend.
She looked at him and sighed, but kept quiet because it was what Josh wanted.
     
A knock on the door got their attention, and they turned hopeful eyes that way and saw Nicole standing there.
    Josh motioned her in, and she came over to stand in front of the assembled group. “I just wanted to let you know they’ve finished up the surgery and Sam is in post-op. They are getting ready to move him up to a private room on the eighth floor. Once they have him settled, you’ll be able to see him, one or two at a time and only for about ten minutes.”
    Josh felt a hand take his. He looked down to see Mary’s small hand there. Her other one was enveloped in Kenneth’s hand, offering strength as well as taking it.
“How’s he doing?” Kenneth’s voice was thick with emotion.
    “I’ll have to let the surgeon go into more detail, but from what I gather, he did as well as can be expected, considering all they had to do to remove the bullet and repair the damage.”
    She looked around, apparently seeing the fear and hope mingled together on their faces. “He’s on a ventilator to help him breathe, but that’s only temporary. His recovery is going to depend a lot on him. But he’s young and strong.”
    Josh nodded, although the small relief that Sam had made it through the surgery did nothing to relieve the tense, angry knot in his chest. There was still a long way to go.
    All of a sudden, Josh needed to get out of there. He needed some fresh air and five minutes to himself. “How long until we can see him?”
Nicole looked at Josh appraisingly. “Half an hour, maybe a little longer. Why?”
    Josh looked at Sam’s parents, then at Jared, who was being uncharacteristically quiet, and then at Evan, who was glaring at him. He turned back to Nicole.
“I need some fresh air. Is there somewhere I can go? A back door or something?” He was desperate.
     
The nurse nodded. “I’ve got just the place. Come on.” She pushed him ahead of her out the door.
     
Evan’s voice reached them a moment later.
    “Hey, honey, could you get us some coffee here or something?” There was a pause, then the sound of quiet voices scolding him. “What? It’s not like she has