Love By Accident Read Online Free PDF Page B

supposed to know? By the way you stood by my side when they said I'd suffered spinal injuries? By the way you cheered me through all those fucking hours of physical therapy?"
    "I couldn't stay. I thought I'd paralyzed you! And with--with everything else--it was too much."
    "So you tucked your tail and ran. Ran and never looked back. I'm not confined to a bed and unconscious now, Lauren."
    "I know and I already told you I'm happy you can walk."
    "That's not good enough!"
    Lauren threw up her hands. "What else do you want me to say, Matt? Because I get the feeling no matter what it is, it won't be good enough."
    He jammed his hands into his hair.
    "We were friends, dammit. You, me and Gil, loyal no matter what. Friends no matter what. Jesus," he shook his head, "did I dream it all? Didn't we help each other through exams and classes? Didn't we all move in together to save money during our second year of college? We all moved to Waterton so we could be together, for Christ's sake!"
    "I know, I remember."
    "Then why the fuck did you leave us both?"
    Her breath hitched on the pain that his words caused. Of course she wasn't surprised by Matt's perspective, since he didn't know the whole truth, but he made it sound like it had been easy to leave. Like she'd simply shrugged her shoulders and left to go on a holiday or some such thing.
    It hadn't been easy, or simple. It had been about survival. Lauren looked Matt in the eye, not an easy task when he was scowling at her. "At the hospital, when I was told about you two, I wanted to die. You can't imagine the guilt. You two had known each other since elementary school. Then I met you guys in college and you're right, the three of us formed a great bond. I cherished both of you." And she had, right to that night four years ago, when everything had shattered.
    "Yeah, your actions really spoke of devotion."
    She wanted to reach for him, but stayed well back. It had been her choice to leave; it was up to Matt if he wanted her back in his life or not.
    "I didn't know how to go on. I knew it was a matter of hours until your parents showed up, until--" she struggled to find enough saliva to swallow. "Until..."
    His gaze narrowed and grabbed onto her.
    "His name was Gil, Lauren. Gil ."
    She nodded in acknowledgement, yet she couldn't say the name. She hadn't said it aloud in four years.
    "I didn't know how I'd face his parents." She held out her hands. "How do you apologize for killing someone's son, Matt? Or how do you tell your best friend's parents that you've left their son crippled? I couldn't! I'm sorry you don't understand, and I hope you never do, but I couldn't face them."
    "Or me!"
    "Or you!" she yelled back, tears filling her eyes as the feelings of that night pressed hard against her heart.
    His gaze battled hers until he broke contact. When he turned for the kitchen, Lauren felt like a popped balloon. Sagging, she dropped into her rocking chair, wiped her wet cheeks.
    From the other room she heard the fridge open, then the door slam shut. She heard him pace, heard him breathe. Not long after, he came back, settled himself on the couch. His hands hung between his bent knees.
    "They kept me sedated for a few days. By then it was too late; I'd missed the funeral."
    Regret and, if possible, more guilt twisted in her stomach. "I'm sorry. That must have broken your heart."
    His eyes whipped to hers. "The chance to say goodbye was stolen from me, but you had the chance. You could have gone, yet nobody saw you there."
    Since she'd already tried to explain how impossible it had been for her to stay around, she simply acknowledged his words with a nod.
    "I was surprised when Gil's parents never filed a civil suit toward you."
    Lauren couldn't have been more shocked. "Because you would have in their shoes?"
    "It would have been hard not to."
    If there had been any doubt about how he truly felt about her, there wasn't any longer. She'd expected as much given their recent meetings, but the