I kiss his stubbled cheek. “See you on Sunday.”
Jayson takes a step back, giving me room to open the driver’s side door and get inside the car. He stands motionless on the driveway as I back out, and I watch him in the rearview mirror as I drive away. I slow down when I pass Ryder’s house. An elderly woman I don’t recognize waves at me from the front porch. I wave back.
When I get to the stop sign at the end of Fallen Brook Drive, I let the engine idle and drop my forehead to the steering wheel. Seeing Jayson again was good…and confusing…and heartbreaking.
What he had to endure alone leaves a hollow ache in my chest. I’m so damn proud of him, proud of the years he’d spent rebuilding himself. However, all I can think about is how I wasn’t there to help him through it. The boy I once loved hadfought battles I never even knew about, and that realization stings more than I care to admit.
Gripping the wheel, I let memories of Jayson and me flood my mind, sweet and sharp all at once—the way our friendship so effortlessly transitioned into lovers, the way we thought our relationship was unbreakable—until it wasn’t.All our next times, we had told each other, never thinking that one night could shatter everything…if that were the only truth to our demise, but it wasn’t. Because I loved Ryder, too, and that love was unshakable. Undeniable. It was forever.
My phone chimes, and I check to make sure that no one is behind me before I pull it out of my pocket.
Fallon: Text me when you’re done.
Me: Just left and in my car. What’s up?
Fallon: I want to take you somewhere.
Another adventure. Fallon is full of them.
Me: Hint?
Fallon: What would be the fun in that?
Me: Pick me up at the house?
Fallon: Montgomery place is closer.
Me: See you in twenty.
When I arrive at the Montgomery estate, Fallon is waiting for me in the circle driveway next to the tiered fountain. As soon as I cut the engine, he opens my car door and takes my hand to help me out.
“Hi.”
Seizing the back of my neck, he pulls me in for a possessive kiss that I’m all for.
“Just wanted to remind you.”
My thoughts are immediately frazzled because,holy hell, that kiss. “Remind me of what exactly?”
“That I love you.”
“Jesus, Fallon,” I reply, because the man literally makes me swoon.
He looks down between us, playing his fingers with mine before weaving them together. “How did it go?”
I know I need to traverse the topic of Jayson with him very carefully. “Good.” I prevaricate over whether I should tell him what Jayson told me in confidence. What he went through—is still going through—is not my story to disclose. But if I learned one thing from my past, it’s that relationships built on secrets and good-intentioned omissions stand on shaky foundations. “He explained why he hadn’t been to Elizabeth Ann’s gravesite the past few years. He, uh…”
Fallon stops the rest of what I was planning to say with a soft kiss. “Whatever he told you is none of my business, Kitten. That’s between you and him.”
At his easy out, I release the nervous breath I’d been harboring. “Thank you.”
We both look over when someone shouts, “I never thought I’d finally see the day. Miracles really do happen. About damn time, too!”
Aurora rushes down the steps of the columned portico, and I let go of Fallon’s hand to meet her halfway. We crash together in an exuberant hug.
I love the friendships she, Harper, Tati, and I have formed over the years. They may be Fallon’s half sisters, but they’re my sisters, too.
“Welcome back!” I enthuse.
