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ChapterForty-Eight
SUNDAY
For the first time in twenty-four years, the sense of dread that followed me everywhere was gone. I hadn’t truly been aware of its presence until my mother showed her face, but now that she was defeated, it seemed like it should’ve been obvious. Despite the lack of that invisible weight, there was no relief. Only a new, heavier ache. One that was threaded through every fiber of my being. An emptiness. A hole in my chest where my heart should be.
I placed my palm on the weather-worn headstone engraved with the Gallagher name.
Caleb.
It was his blood running through my veins. Stitching me together when all I wanted to do was fall apart. But he was gone. His body lay cold and unmoving in the church where he’d sacrificed everything to save me. I hadn’t found the strength to go back there. To face the reality of what he’d done. That time would come, but I wanted—needed—a quiet place to mourn and say goodbye. It was only fitting that place was where his family was buried. Where we would lay him to rest. But right now was for me.
Just a few stolen moments to myself where I didn’t have to pretend. Where I didn’t need to mask the soul-crushing loss of him. Of all of them.
We’d won, but at what cost? Victory felt hollow in the wake of all that had been taken from me.
Because if my mother had succeeded in anything, it was robbing me of the certainty of their love and commitment. How could I look at any of my mates right now, knowing all of this had happened because of me? That they’d all lost people important to them because of my mother’s stupid game? Not to mention the fact that they’d never even had a choice. They’d been forced to love me. Tricked. Used as her pawns.
On instinct, I placed a palm over my belly, but of course, Eden wasn’t there now. She was safe and alive. Beautiful.
It had been hard to leave my daughter, but Kingston hadn’t let go of her once since setting foot in the house. The way he loved her was clear in every gentle touch. She would be well looked after while I tried to come to terms with living in a world without Caleb. My confessor. My husband. My savior.
I had far too much on my mind to be in that home with Caleb’s scent everywhere, knowing that none of them would be with me without my mother's intervention. That was what hurt the most. Caleb sacrificed himself for a love that didn’t even exist. He gave everything.
For a lie.
My breath hitched and knees buckled as I fell onto the moss-covered ground and let the soul-deep sob break free. I fisted the earth, digging my fingers into the dirt but feeling nothing. And as the tears fell, instead of a cathartic release, I lost more of myself. My gaze landed on the black yarn wedding band Caleb made for me. Something in me shattered as I took in the already fraying fibers. One day it would fall apart. What would I have left of him then?
Eden.
I’d have her.
I’d do exactly what he asked. I’d tell her our story. Make sure she knew every single day how much he loved her. What a good man—father—he was.
The flutter of wings and a soft rustling breeze had me blinking open my eyes, expecting to find some kind of bird who’d come for a closer look at the woman drowning in her grief.
“Your burden is heavy, Sunday Fallon.”
Through my tears, I stared at the man sitting perched on Caleb’s father’s headstone. He was painfully beautiful, his golden blond hair glowing even though the moonlight was barely peeking through the trees. His dark leather pants and jacket seemed out of place on him yet somehow completely worked.
“Who are you?”
His lips curled in a smile. “A friend. One with a vested interest in you and your happiness.”
I scoffed. “Well, you’re a little late, pal. I’m fresh out of happy.” Perhaps I should have been a little more weirded out by the sudden appearance of a stranger, but after the day—weeks—I’d had, this was barely a blip on the radar.
“Good deeds deserve to be rewarded.”
Sighing, I sat on my ass and rested my head in my hands, pressing my forehead into the heels of my palms. “Don’t you know the saying? No good deed goes unpunished.”
“You think this is punishment? Believe me, it could be so much worse.”
My laughter was loud and slightly unhinged as I wiped my nose and looked up at him. “How, exactly? I just found out the four men I love were tricked into loving me, and that’son top ofone of them fuckingdying. So excuse me if I don’t believe it could get any fucking worse.”
“You could be forced to live your life knowing your soulmate is out there and never being able to have them.”
“Did you not hear what I just said?”
“Sunday, after all the five of you have been through together, why would you believe they don’t love you?”
