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That she hadn’t gone running in the rain to stop Riley from jumping.
That Nate hadn’t brought her to his home and taken care of her.
That Ally hadn’t fallen for him so badly every part of her ached. Especially the bones that were knitting themselves back together beneath her cast.
It was probably a good thing she couldn’t run at the moment, even though every muscle in her ached to move. Because if she put her running shoes on and made her way down to the beach she wasn’t sure she’d ever be able to bring herself to stop.
Lucas walked into the living room. “I put your bags on your bed. You need some help unpacking?”
She gave him the biggest smile she could muster. “No, thank you. I’ll empty them later. It’ll give me something to do.”
“You don’t look well. Should we call your doctor?” Ember asked. “Maybe you shouldn’t have moved out so soon. I could call Nate and tell him you’re going back there?”
Ally shook her head. “No, I probably just need to lie down.”
Lucas walked into the kitchen and poured her a glass of water, bringing it back and putting it in Ally’s hand. “When did you last take some painkillers?”
“Um, I’m not sure. Yesterday I think.” Or was it the day before? Anyway, the hurt she was feeling right now couldn’t be touched by a pill. And yet when Lucas grabbed her purse and brought it back to her, she dug through it until she found the bottle of pills the doctor had described her. Two pills, four times a day, as needed.
She took the bottle from him with a wan smile. “I’ll take some later if I need to. It doesn’t hurt so much any more.” She glanced down at the printed instructions. There was no mention of whether they could mend a broken heart.
“When is Nate coming back?”
“Today some time I guess.” The thought made Ally’s chest tighten, enough to push all the breath from her.
“Is he going to call you when he’s home?” Ember asked. “Otherwise maybe you should come and stay with us. I don’t want to leave you on your own.”
“He’s not going to call.” Her voice broke on the last word.
“What?” Ember looked over at Lucas, and he shrugged. She brought her gaze back to Ally. “Why not?”
“Because it’s over between us.”
Ember’s brows dipped as she took Ally’s words in. “But why?” she asked. “You’re just moving out of his house, not finishing your relationship with him.”
She sat silently as Ally filled her in. Lucas was still hovering in the space between her tiny kitchen and living room, looking awkward as Ally spilled her guts. Ember, on the other hand, reached for her hand, folding it between her own.
“He made it clear that things were over between us,” Ally finished, biting her lip in an attempt not to cry. “He was so angry and short with me. I can’t see any way forward for us.”
Ember squeezed Ally’s hand. “Are you sure he meant that he wanted to end it? Maybe he was just trying to cool things between you. A lot has happened in the past few days. He must have been going crazy when Riley disappeared.”
“I know.” Ally felt her tears sting against her cheek. “And I tried to be there for him, I really did. But the way he talked to me on the phone...” She lifted her free hand to wipe her tears. “I should have known it was never going to work. When does it ever work out for me? Everybody leaves eventually. My mom, my dad, Nate…”
“I’m still here,” Ember reminded her.
Ally squeezed her hand back. “I know. And thank God you are.”
“And so are Lucas and Brooke, and all the people in town who stop me constantly to ask how you’re doing.”
“Frank Megassey gave me the third degree when I went to buy some paint the other day,” Lucas said.
“And maybe Nate didn’t mean what he said. You know what phone calls are like. It’s so easy to misunderstand somebody. Just give things time and see what happens.” Ember looked over at Lucas. “Sometimes they’re worth it.”
“Sure,” Ally agreed, though she held out no hope. He was doing what any good dad would do – putting his daughter first.
And if the way he did it was cruel and hurtful? Well, she could handle that. “I’m beat,” she told them. “I might take a nap before I start to unpack.”
Ember nodded. “Rest will probably do you some good. You want me to stay?”
