Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 80982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80982 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
“No.” His eyes narrowed. “She has nothing to do with it.”
His response came too fast, too defensive, so I shook my head and grumbled, “I don’t buy that for a second.”
“It’s true.” His tone softened. “This is all me. I fucked up, and I apologize for it.”
“Well, I hope you mean it.”
“I do.” Silence stretched between us, and not in a good way. It was awkward and unnecessary. I was about to tell him I had to go when he muttered, “So… this guy? Is he going to be sticking around?”
The audacity of this man never failed to surprise me. I crossed my arms and sighed, “Why do you even care?”
“I don’t. I just…” he muttered with his eyes lifting to mine. “I miss you.”
“You miss me?” I gasped. “You lied and cheated and destroyed our marriage and our family, and now, you miss me?”
“More than I ever thought possible.”
His response nearly knocked me sideways. Not because it hurt, but because it was absurd. I didn’t laugh. I didn’t yell. I just looked at him for a long second, letting the moment settle over me, but it didn’t settle. Instead, it infuriated me.
If he’d said all this a year ago, it would’ve wrecked me, but not now. Not after all those nights I cried myself to sleep. Not after our boys watched him destroy the life we’d created together. Not after all the work I’d done to rebuild what he’d left behind. And not after Walker.
Even with all the heartbreak still sitting heavy in my chest, Walker had reminded me what kindness and compassion felt like, what love felt like, and there was no way I could ever go back to anything less.
“I need you to hear this, Dan, and I really need you to let it sink in.” His expression shifted. “We are done, and I mean that in every sense of the word.”
“Rae…”
“Go home to your wife.”
I watched the color drain from his face as I rolled up the window and shifted into reverse. I backed out of the spot, and without a second thought, I drove over to my parents’ house.
My conversation with Dan circled around and around in my head, and each time I got to the part where Dan told me he missed me, I would let out an aggravated sigh and grumble, “The audacity.”
I’d meant it when I told him I was done. I was done with all of it.
When I got to my parents’, I wasn’t surprised to find Dad outside working in the garden. The man was always working on something. I went in and helped Mom with the laundry and the dishes. And while it wasn’t one of her best days, there was something about being there that comforted me.
Once I finished up things with her, I helped her to her recliner, and it wasn’t long before she’d dozed off. I used the opportunity to go out and help Dad with the garden. I pulled a few weeds, and I was about to pull some more when he said, “I’ve got this, honey. Why don’t you go home and get some rest?”
It was fair to say I looked worse than I thought.
I didn’t bother arguing. I was tired and really could use a little time to myself.
On the drive home, I could feel the loneliness creeping back in. I tried not to think too much about it, but the silence was too much. And before I could stop myself, my mind drifted to Walker and the way his voice cracked when he told me about his wife and son and the look on his face afterward.
It was like he cared too much and hated himself for it.
I hadn’t known what to say to him. A week later, and I still didn’t. With that thought in mind, I had pulled up to the liquor store. I went in, grabbed a couple bottles of my favorite wine, and then I was right back in the Tahoe.
It was no surprise that the house felt too quiet without the boys. I walked in, looked around, and immediately missed their messy backpacks and dirty shoes. I even missed the sprinkle seasonings I usually found on the kitchen counters. I don’t even know what the seasonings were for, but I missed them just the same.
I changed into my comfy clothes, and after I poured myself a generous glass of wine, I curled up on the couch with my favorite blanket. I turned on a silly comedy, and it wasn’t long before I’d drifted off to sleep. I woke up a few hours later, and the room had gone dark around me.
I sat up, stretched, and eased the covers back before going outside to grab the mail. I’d just grabbed the letters from the mailbox and was about to grab the boxes when I heard the soft rumble of an engine.