It Starts with Us by Colleen Hoover

Chapter Twenty-Four
Lily
There’s a pounding in my head.
And outside my head.
I lift my face off my pillow and feel drool on my chin. I wipe it away with
the corner of my pillowcase. I sit up and see that Atlas left a note beside me. I
grab for it, but then hear the knock again, so I tuck the note under my pillow
for later and force myself to clear space in my foggy brain to make room for
what’s happening in this moment.
Emmy is at my mother’s.
I just had the best night of sleep I’ve had in two years.
Someone is at my door.
I reach for my phone on my nightstand and try to focus on the screen. I
have several missed calls from Ryle, which makes me concerned something
is wrong. But the only thing I have from my mother is a picture of Emmy
eating breakfast from half an hour ago.
Phew. Emmy is okay. I immediately relax, but knowing Ryle is probably
the one knocking on my door doesn’t allow for much relaxation.
“Hold on!” I yell.
I throw on something quick—a T-shirt and jeans—and then I open the
door to let him in. He moves past me, into the apartment, without being
invited in. “Is everything okay?” He looks panicked, but also relieved to see
that I’m alive.
“I was asleep. Everything is fine.” He can tell I’m annoyed. He glances
around the room for Emmy. “She spent the night at my mother’s.”
“Oh.” He’s disappointed. “I tried calling because I wanted to pick her up
for a few hours. You weren’t answering your phone, and you’re always
awake by now…” Ryle’s voice trails off when he sees the couch. I don’t have
to look at the couch to know what he’s staring at. My T-shirt and panties are
still tossed haphazardly over the back of it, I’m sure.