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It’s already done.
I turn my back on him and walk away for the last time.
My heart shatters completely in the process.
“Carys...” I don’t look back. “This isn’t the end of us.”
He’s wrong.
Cooper Sinclair is the strongest man I know. But he can’t fix this.
In the monthsince Nattie and Brady’s wedding, I’ve become really good at acting like I’m okay. Maybe Ishouldhave been a Broadway actress, after all. I’ve cracked a few times, but for the most part, I’ve done a pretty good job of hiding my pain.
I’ve noticed I noweatmy feelings.
Not the best move, but I’m still running in the mornings, so it’s not effecting my health or the size of my ass just yet.
I haven’t heard from Cooper since that morning in the rain.
It’s what I wanted. What I knew we needed. But I fucking hate myself a little more each day. Chloe, Daphne, her roommate, Maddie, and I have been trying to do regular brunch dates at the Busy Bee. Everyone’s lives have gone a little crazy this summer, so it’s been a good time each week to sit down and laugh at our problems, instead of crying over them.
With our food mostly eaten, we’re just bullshitting at this point when Maddie looks at Chloe. “So, Chloe...” She waits dramatically for Chloe to stop running her finger through the syrup and look up. “Did Daphne tell you Watkins asked for your number?”
Oh holy shit. Watkins plays on the Philadelphia Kings team with Declan and Maddie’s brother, Brandon.
“Um, no.” Chloe eyes me with a smile. “But I’m pretty sure that’s a big old no. Our inner circles are already a little too incestuous, if you ask me. I will not be dating your brother’s work wife, Mads.”
I slap a hand over my face to hide the obnoxious laugh threatening to break free. “Oh my God. His work wife. That’s great.”
Chloe’s phone vibrates against the table, and she silences it. “It’s Nattie. I’ll call her back. She probably just wants to make sure I’m going to watch the game. Like I haven’t seen enough of our brothers playing football to last a lifetime.” Brady and Aiden were both drafted to the Maryland Sentinels last spring.
The phone vibrates again, and Chloe blows out a breath, then slides her finger over it. “Nat, I’m out at breakfast with the girls. Can I call you after?” Whatever she just said has Chloe’s face going terrifyingly white as she looks over at me. “Breathe, Nattie. I need you to breathe. Where’s Brady?”
My heart skips a beat. “What’s happening?”
Chloe ignores me and looks across the table toward Daphne.
“Well, call his coach, Nat. Call Murph.” She sits quietly for a minute, refusing to meet my eyes. “Hang up the phone, Nat. I’m calling Sabrina to come over until we can get Brady. Give me a few minutes, and I’ll call you back.” She sucks in a sharp breath. “I love you too, Nat. Call his coach. I’ll get Brina there as soon as I can.”
She ends the call and refuses to meet my eyes.
It’s as if a vacuum has sucked all the oxygen from the room, and I can’t breathe.
“Chloe...” My body starts shaking as the tears pool in my eyes. This can’t be... “What happened?” I push the question past my lips.
Chloe takes a handful of money from her purse and throws it on the table. “We’ve got to go.” She pushes me out of the booth, and I vaguely hear her say something to Daphne.
I turn around once we’re outside the Busy Bee and grab hold of her arm with shaking hands and whisper, “What. Happened?” Terrified of her answer in a way nothing has ever scared me before in my life.
“Let’s go to your mom’s, Care Bear.” Chloe looks over my head toward Daphne and Maddie, and I snap. My entire body is strung tight when I claw at her.
“Chloe,” I beg through the tears that are pouring down my face. “Please, just tell me. I need to know.” When Chloe doesn’t answer, a guttural scream scratches up my throat. “Tell me!”
Chloe grabs my hands while Maddie and Daphne gather around me. “It’s Cooper.”
No.
It hurts to breathe.
