I chuckle, genuine and warm. “Because if you can’t be happy, there’s no hope for me. I guess that’s why I like you. You spread hope to everyone you meet.”
Even me.
Her voice lifts. “Thanks. That helps a lot.”
We talk and talk, and by two in the morning, both of us are lying in our separate beds, phone to our ears, and falling asleep.
I wake up with our connection severed by distance, time, and a battery that wore out.
She texts me later, short and final.
dumb girl: If u ever need help with ur center, lmk. I’ll always help if u need it. Take care, jack
It guts more than I anticipated. We were getting attached. Feeling things. Things we shouldn’t. It’s for the best we never slept together.
I grind my molars and snarl, hating that I have something else to mourn.
A month passes and I slide into my old rut, except now, instead of texts, I stalk her social media posts like I’m chasing a ghost.
One evening, I squint at a new video.
She stands with a blonde guy on a massive stage. Twenties. He wears a suit, a gold watch, and polished dress shoes. His jaw is muscled, and he has dimples that surely make women want him.
She holds a mic and speaks with her bubbly, Southern voice.
“Church of Redemption is so humbled to welcome Blake Briggs from New York’s premiere Church of St. George. He will serve as pastor at our evening services.”
“Thank you, Morgan. I am so blessed to join your growing fellowship,” he says and looks at the cameras with a beaming smile. His voice carries through the massive speakers to the sprawling crowd. They clap wildly. He owns the stage the same way Morgan does. “God is good!”
People cheer louder and the choir breaks into song.
He grabs Morgan’s hand and lifts it high in a gesture of unity.
It lasts a single second, but I catch it. Back up. Replay. Back up. Replay.
She side-eyes him and smiles. A coy, bashful smile. A smile she once gave me.
She likes him.
My heart fucking stops.
I put the pillow over my face.
I’m the past. He’s her future.
Chapter 18
Morgan
“What do you think of Blake?” Daddy says.
“He’s... wonderful,” I reply.
And sexy, a smooth talker, and devoted to God.
Dad smiles warmly. “Outstanding. Construction has started on the new church. Everything is going according to plan. The camera loves Blake.”
“Yes, he knows what he’s doing.”
