“Jaxon.”
“Let me do this right. I want this moment to be one we’ll never forget. Just one more day.”
“One more day,” I repeated, grateful for the darkness; it hid the flicker of hurt I couldn’t keep out of my expression. I understood his reasoning, but that didn’t stop me from needing something more to hold on to.
Another memory of us.
An assurance that we were stronger together.
However, the devastating truth was that neither of us knew how fragile or cruel life could be.
How close we were to the edge of everything we’d dreamed of being ripped away. That tomorrow wouldn’t bring the thing we were waiting for.
It wasn’t the beginning we’d planned.
It was the breaking point.
A storm we never saw coming, one that would irrefutably shatter our hearts.
And by the time I realized the error of my decision, it was too late.
I’d broken us.
Chapter One
Jaxon
New Year’s Eve was a night I spent waiting for it to be over, even before it began. It was the only holiday where I felt alone in a crowded room, and where the loneliness somehow echoed louder than the celebrations around me. A night that had an unsettling way of dragging every thought I had been desperate to avoid back into the light.
Surrounded by couples, hands intertwined, heads bent close together, while I sat at the bar, alone, until Molly appeared at my side and started rambling on about needing to make a drastic change in her life. Whatever she was droning on about, I tuned out long ago.
While she was a nice girl to exchange quick pleasantries with whenever I popped into Beans & Beyond for a coffee pick-me-up, I’d never once given her the impression I was interested in anything more than acquaintances. Though that didn’t stop her from her relentless pursuit and blatant advances, which were always dialed up to maximum effort whenever she’d been drinking, and tonight was no exception.
“Come on, Jaxon, you look like you’ve lost your best friend.” She ran her hand up my chest, her long manicured fingernails teasingly slipping between the buttons of my dress shirt.
“Maybe that’s because I have,” I murmured.
“I definitely didn’t have Jameson and Arizona getting married on my bingo card this year, but there’s no need to be all moody about it.”
It was laughable that she thought my mood was because of my twin.
“Molly, I’m?—”
Her hand made its way down to my abs.
“Let me take your mind off whatever’s weighing on you,” she purred.
“Who says I want to forget?” I shot her a sharp glare, feeling the weight of my memories pressing down as I turned away. “My memories are all I have.”
The softness of her skin, the warmth of her touch. The way her smile made me feel like I was her hero, her everything.
Every detail of her from the past was engraved on my soul, like a tattoo, a memory I clung to in my darkest hours because the alternative wasn’t an option. The thought of letting her go and moving on was unbearable, even after all this time.
God, I missed her.
“Maybe it’s time to make new ones, and what better time to start the new year off on a different foot than with a clean, fresh slate. We could be good together, Jaxon, you just have to give me a chance.”
“I’ve got nothing to give you.” I lifted my rum and Coke to my lips.
