“No use dwelling on the past, mate. What’s done is done. You can’t change what’s happened. What matters is how you’re going to spend your time from here on out,” Jason says, giving me the truth I need to hear.
I nod in agreement. “Yeah, you’re one hundred percent right. In fact, I finally called a therapist today while I was atwork and booked my first session for a week from now. It’s been long overdue.”
Jason smiles widely, the first I’ve seen in a long time. “I’m proud of you, Kaden. And if there’s anything you need, just say the word.”
“Thanks. Actually, there’s something I want to talk to you about.”
“What is it?”
“I’m thinking it’s time for me to find my own place.”
Jason’s brows shoot up, clearly taken aback. “Are you sure you’re ready for that? I’d hate to think you’re only leaving because you’re uncomfortable living here.”
“No, not at all. I’ve loved staying with you and Jake, and I really appreciate you taking me in when I had nowhere else to go. But if I’m going to be serious about moving forward, I need my own space to work on myself. Of course, I can’t do this completely on my own and will still need your support,but I need to learn how to stand on my own two feet again.”
He lets out a long exhale, then, slowly nods. “Wow. This is a surprise—a good one, nonetheless. And I’ll admit, I’m going to miss your lazy stinking arse wandering around my house, but I trust you know what you’re doing.”
“I do. And this time, I’m serious about seeing it through,” I say honestly. “Besides, you’ll finally be able to have your girlfriend over whenever you want, without me making things awkward or uncomfortable for her.”
It’s still pains me to know that Mila and I will never be close again after I betrayed her sister, Skylar. That only makes things harder for Jason, who’s caught in the middle, with me being the reason Mila hasn’t been around the house as much as he’d like. She’s been doing everything she can to avoid running into me, and, in a way, I’m almost grateful. The last thing I want is for her to see just how far off the rails I’ve fallen.
“Kaden, you know you’re always welcome in my house. I just have to make sure you and Mila stay on opposite sides of it at all times,” he says, sarcastically, his lips curling into a grin.
I let out a snort, feeling surprisingly calm and happy for the first time in a long while. But that feeling is abruptly cut short by what Jason says next.
“While we’re on the topic of Mila, there’s something I need to tell you as well. I wasn’t sure when the right moment would be, especially with everything else you’re going through, but I’d rather you hear it from me than from anyone else.”
I frown, nerves prickling at the thought of what he’s about to say. “Okay,” I murmur.
He draws in a sharp breath and lets it out slowly through his nose. After a long, tense pause, he finally says the words I’ve been dreading to hear: “Skylar’s getting married in six months.”
I immediately go still, as if every muscle in my body has forgotten how to move. For a split second, I think I must have misheard him, but the sympathy in Jason’s eyes tells me I didn’t.
“Six months?” The words slip through my lips like a poisonous whisper, the sound leaving a bitter taste in my mouth, enough to feel the bile rise in my throat.
“I’m sorry to be the one to give you the news. I know you only just found out she got engaged. But I just wanted to give you a heads up.”
My chest tightens and my lungs burn as if the air itself has turned thick and acidic.
We’ve been divorced for only a few short months before Heath slipped an engagement ring on Skylar’s finger. And although we’ve been separated for a year and a half, the news of her engagement still hits me hard.
She’s moving on faster than I could ever have imagined, and I know I’ve lost the right to question it, or to feel this sad and hurt. I’m the one who ruined everything after all. But even so, it doesn’t lessen the sharp pain in my chest of knowing that the woman I’ve always loved and cared about is marrying someone else.
“Are you okay? Talk to me,” Jason urges, his brows drawing together with concern.
“Um… no, not really.” My shoulders sag, as if my body is collapsing under the weight of the news. Even as I try to hold a neutral expression, I know Jason can see the devastation in my eyes. He always seems to see through the cracks in my armour, no matter how hard I try to hide them.
Wanting to numb the pain, I push myself to my feet, eager to retreat to my room and lock myself away for the next twenty-four hours.
“I’m going to take a shower and then head to bed. I need to stop thinking for a while and just get a good night’s rest.”
Jason gives a small sympathetic nod. “I’m here if you need anything.”
I force a quick nod, thanking him for dinner and his support. Then I leave the room, realising I’ve just left him to clean up my mess after he cooked for us. But that’s the least of my problems. I’ve just learned my ex-wife is marrying someone else, and that calls for an emergency drink.
Taking the stairs two at a time, I rush into my room and lock the door behind me. I slide open the wardrobe door and dig through the top shelf beneath the piles of towels and bed sheets until I find exactly what I’m looking for.
I pull the unopened bottle of whisky from the shelf and saunter into the ensuite, setting it carefully on the vanity.
