Page 25 of Falling Back to You

Chapter seven

Cal

13 Years Ago . . . late July

I dropped my hockey bag in the mud room beside the washer. “Ma, I’m home!” I called, shoving a load of sweaty clothing into the empty machine.

After adding the detergent and hitting start, I hurried into the main part of the house. It was quiet. Which wasn’t the oddest thing with only Juliet and me left at home since Dallas, Shane, and Brett were all married and Greyson had joined the Marines.

Mama sat at the kitchen table, an open Bible in front of her and a steaming mug of tea in hand. It was a familiar picture and eased something in me. Change might come calling and the world might go to pieces, but with Mama and her Bible, we were in good hands. I dropped a kiss on her head before grabbing a glass of water.

“Cal—”

“I’m on my way to the shower, I promise. Cleanliness before hungriness.” I winked at her and guzzled the water. “Today was brutal. Not the worst but I’m starving. Did you make fried chicken?” I sniffed the air.

“Callan,” Mama said seriously, “are you and Noelle all right?”

I blinked at her. “Of course. Why wouldn’t we be?”

“She stopped by tonight and left something for you in your room. She . . . she wasn’t herself.”

“Elle was here?” I frowned, thinking back on my earlier conversations with my fiancée. She said she wasn’t feeling well—lady stuff probably—so I dropped some chocolate off before practice. “She said she was taking it easy.” Then Mama’s words caught up with me. “Wait, she left something?”

Woo-hoo! I loved surprises, and it wasn’t even my birthday.

Mama hollered after me, but I didn’t stop to listen. Just pelted up the stairs two at a time to the room Greyson and I used to share.

Now what did she leave?

My gaze landed on the bed. In the middle of my navy comforter was a small box. Curious. I popped the lid off, and folded paper lay on top. I grinned, pulling it out, eager for the love note. I wasn’t ashamed of being romantic.

Something shiny winked at me from the bottom of the box, and I froze. Noelle’s engagement ring. Icy chills licked down my spine, and my stomach heaved with a wave of nausea. What on earth?

Gripping the ring until it bit into my palm, I scanned the looping scrawl, bile rising in my throat with each sentence.

Cal,

I’m sorry. There’s a hundred things I want to say but can’t. There’s a hundred things I already said, but you weren’t listening. It’s not you, it’s me. I can’t go through with this. I need out. I can’t do this to you. Please let me go.

I loved you. More than you’ll ever know.

Noelle

A dozen tear marks smudged the paper. She’d cried writing this. Then why did she write it in the first place? I read it again. Then again. She . . . left?

Ring and note in hand, I stormed down the stairs. “Ma!”

“What’s wrong?” Her forehead creased with concern.

“How long ago was Noelle here?”

“Oh, I don’t—”

“Ma! I need to know!” I begged, panic clawing my chest.

“An hour maybe? What’s goin’ on?”

I couldn’t answer because I didn’t even know myself. Surely this was all a joke. A hoax. I darted outside and across the sunbaked brown lawn to the Shepherds’ next door. Noelle’s car wasn’t in the driveway.