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“Everyone knew what you’d done by the time Cassie got back from visiting you in Alabama. It was all over the newspapers that you were getting married and had a baby on the way. It was on Facebook. Did you know that the stupid school magazine she worked for had the balls to call and ask her for pictures of you? They said they only had old ones and wanted to know if she had any newer ones.”
“You’re kidding?” His eyes widened as he looked at her with shock.
“I wish.”
His hands balled into fists. “I’ll fucking kill them, the inconsiderate little—”
Melissa pointed an accusing finger at him, stopping him mid-rant. “It wasn’t just the newspapers and social media. It was everywhere she went. School was the worst. Cassie couldn’t even walk across campus without people making comments and snide remarks. She had the most personal and painful moments of her life on display for everyone to see and judge. And trust me, everyone had an opinion about your breakup.”
Jack cringed. His hands reached into his hair and he tugged at it, the same way he always did when he was frustrated or uncomfortable. “I had no idea that was happening or I would’ve done something to stop it. I would’ve made sure no one ever said another mean word to her again.”
“I’m not telling you this to make you feel bad, Jack. I’m telling you so you’ll understand the repercussions your actions had on her. You made the mistake, but she had to pay for it.” Melissa said the words calmly, but their edges were sharp.
He dropped his head fully into his hands and worried his hair, his fingers twisting the strands. When he looked back up, there were tears in his eyes.
“You broke her, Jack,” Melissa said, delivering the final blow, and my brother looked like he’d never recover.
“I broke me too,” he admitted, brushing away the lone tear that rolled down his face, and my own eyes stung at seeing him that emotional.
“Jack, look.” Melissa sat down across from him and folded her arms on the table. “I love you, I really do. But you have to let her go do this.”
He clutched at his chest as he swallowed hard. “I want her back. I need her. It’s either Cassie for me or no one.”
“I’m not the one you have to convince.” She reached out her hand, her fingertips brushing over his knuckles before he pulled away.
He tore his gaze away from hers and met mine. “I know.”
“She still loves you,” I said, deciding it was time I jumped in here. When his eyes narrowed on me, I said, “What? You don’t believe that? She does.”
Melissa frowned at me. “It’s not about whether or not Cassie loves him, Dean.”
“It’s a little bit about that, otherwise we wouldn’t be having this conversation,” I said with a chuckle.
Her expression softened and she bit back a smile. “Have you even been paying attention?”
“Dean’s right,” Jack said, interrupting the byplay between Melissa and me. “I wouldn’t have a fighting chance if she didn’t love me anymore.”
“So, what are you gonna do?” Melissa folded her arms over her chest, watching him carefully.
Jack jumped to his feet. “First, I’m going to get that marriage annulled,” he said with newfound determination. “Then I’m going to hop on a plane to New York and get my girl back.”
Yes! I punched a fist in the air. If there’d been pom-poms on the table, I would have reached for them and done a victory dance.
But Melissa frowned at him, apparently not convinced. “How?”
He exhaled quickly, seeming to deflate. “I don’t know yet.”
Uncertainty lingered in the air, making the silence that followed awkward. The pressure was palpable in the room. We were all aware that if Jack went after Cassie to try to win her back, he had to do it right or not at all. If he didn’t think this through and screwed it up, he wouldn’t get another chance.
Jack cleared his throat, breaking the silence. “Can I use the bathroom?”
“Of course.”
“Can I use hers?” he asked, and I cast Melissa a sideways glance.
“Uh, yeah.” She rolled her eyes, and I stopped myself from doing it too just to mess with him.
As he walked away, I remembered what state Cassie had left her room in. Jack would be devastated to see the things she left behind—memories of him, memories of them. The jar containing the quarters he’d given her still sat on a shelf. And while the majority of her pictures were gone, one of her and Jack still remained on her bedside table.
