Broken Promise (Men of Severn #1)

Chapter Four

Karmen Jones

It amazes me that I have lived in this house my entire life. I have always thought I would be lost without this safe space and now I am leaving it behind. It has taken me less than six hours to pack up my entire life and find a suitable apartment in the city.

I never would have imagined that changing my entire life would be this easy, but I even have a job interview next week. It’s like everything is just falling into place, like this is exactly the path I should be following.

My phone rings and Shane’s name flashes on the screen.

“I swear, Shane, if you’re calling to talk me out of this, I will burn this house to the ground.”

“Not at all,” he replies calmly, not even acknowledging my threat. “I’m actually calling to tell you I sold your house.”

“Jesus, you’re fast.”

“I’m good at my job. It helps that you have a great house,” he replies with a chuckle. “The new owner will sign the paperwork on Monday, but you can stop by whenever you have time.”

“I’m heading out of town in an hour. Are you still at the office?”

“I’ll wait.”

He ends the call before I can argue but that’s just Shane. He has always been abrupt and to the point and I’m used to it.

Grabbing the last two boxes I carry them out to my little red hatchback and put them on the back seat. I’ve left the trunk empty because I don’t know how much stuff Lenor will want to take with her, and I wanted her to have enough space.

I walk through the house and make sure there isn’t anything I forgot before heading out on the back porch with a glass of iced tea to wait another ten minutes before heading to my friend’s house.

My heart almost burst out of my chest when I see a man sitting on one of the deck chairs, but I quickly realize it’s Wesley, the one person I don’t want to see today, or ever again for that matter. Taking a seat on one of the other chairs, I sip my drink in silence. I have nothing more to say to him, but he must be here for a reason. I’ve already put my heart on the line, and it wasn’t enough for him.

“Do you remember the day I broke my leg while Tommy and I were trying to build a treehouse?”

His words draw my gaze to the oak tree in the far corner of the yard. The ladder they built still sits there as well as the frame, but they never finished it.

“Why are you here, Wesley?”

“You cried harder than I did,” he says not answering my question. “I never understood why. I was seventeen so you were only twelve.”

“What is the point of this walk down memory lane? I have places to be.”

I vividly remember that day. It was the first time I realized I loved Wesley. I was terrified that he wouldn’t be okay no matter what my parents said. I won’t be telling him that, though.

He stares at me until I face him. “I’m sorry.”

“Great.”

“No, Karmen, I need you to listen to me,” he says seriously. “I am sorry. You deserve someone that can give you the world. You should be with someone that can make you happy.”

“It doesn’t matter anymore, Wesley. I know now that I need to grow up and start living a real life, not some fairy tale I’ve conjured in my mind.”

“I never meant to hurt you.”

“You can’t choose who you fall in love with, Wes. It’s not your fault.”

Standing, I walk into my childhood home before the first tear slips down my cheek. I swore I was done crying over Wesley Blake and someday I will be. But today is not that day.

****

Wesley Blake

I sit on the porch until the sun sets and a million stars dot the night sky. I should probably head to the bar to make sure no one is fucking anything up, but I can’t seem to force myself to get up.

Adam has been sitting beside me for the better part of an hour. He hasn’t spoken a single word, but I know he is dying to say something.

My phone rings and I ignore it. Once, twice, three times. I know it isn’t the one person I want to speak to, so it doesn’t matter who is calling. Then Adam’s phone rings, snapping me out of my stupor.

“Shane, how can I help you?”

He listens to our brother before hurriedly standing. “I’m with Wesley. We’re on our way.”

“What’s going on?” I ask.

The look of fear on my brother’s face has my blood running ice cold.

“We need to go to the hospital. Mom had a heart attack.”

He is already walking away from me, striding toward his car. It takes me a split-second to process his words before I run after him. He is already backing out of the drive when I jump in the passenger seat.

Adam drives like a crazy man, his hazards flashing as he speeds through the sleepy streets of Severn. It’s only a ten-minute drive to the hospital on the outskirts of town but it feels like a lifetime has passed by the time we are striding through the automated glass doors.

The moment I see Shane I know we are too late.

“She’s gone,” he says, and I watch in slow motion as Adam’s legs give out and he crumples to the pale blue linoleum floor.

Adam is the youngest and the only one of us still living at home. This is bound to hit him the hardest. My heart cracks open as I watch my little brother sob, knowing there is nothing I can do for him. Shane and I help him up and lead him to a chair against the wall. None of us speak but we all know life will never be the same.