AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I hadn't even thought about what would happen now. I loved Jayden but hadn't forgiven him for what he'd done to me. Part of me wanted him to leave, but a bigger part wanted him to stay. Bri had sacrificed her chance to find love for Jayden and me. I couldn't let that be in vain. I'd be crazy not to see who Jayden could be without the cloud of having to marry Bella looming over his head.
Sucking in a deep breath, I exhaled slowly. "No." I shook my head, holding his gaze. "Stay here with me." His gorgeous face pinched with confusion. "Unless you don't want to?"
"No," he said. "I just didn't think you would want me to."
"Tell me what you want, Jayden." My voice cracked. "Tell me what you want from me. Now that Bri has taken your place for us and you're free to choose your future, tell me what you want. Do you want me to be a part of your future? "
He sank onto the coffee table in front of me. "Yes," he breathed. "I want you." He cupped my face. "I'm so sorry for what I did. There is no excuse, and I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you if you'll let me."
"So, no more games." Tears prickled my throat, but I forced myself to swallow them. "No more secrets, no more trying to hurt me to escape."
He shook his head.
"Because if you want out," I said, "this is it. This is your chance to walk away."
"I promise I will never purposely hurt you again." His thumb brushed over my bottom lip. "I promise I will spend the rest of our lives trying to make you smile."
I couldn't fight the tears anymore as they blurred my vision, one escaping and streaming down my cheek.
"What do you want, Sadie?" His thumb swiped across my cheek, wiping away my tear.
"I want you." I smiled, leaning into his touch. I meant it. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him.
forty-nine
JAYDEN
Nine months later...
I hadn't heard from Bri since the day she hung up on me standing outside my house, and after a long conversation with my parents, I'd cut ties with them. It was one thing to force me into a marriage to save their lives, but I'd never forgive them for forcing Bri even though Bri made the choice she'd made because of me.
What infuriated me the most was that they were completely unfazed by all that Bri sacrificed to save them, even after they'd abandoned her more than once. I knew she didn't really do it for them. She'd done it for me, which made me hate them more. They'd begged me to come home and step into the family business, and when I'd said no, they cut me off just like they'd done to Bri. No amount of money in the world would make me go back even if they did accept Sadie into the family, which would never happen. Sadie didn't fit into their mold of what a wife should be.
Luckily everything worked out for the best. At the end of the school year, Sadie finished school and graduated top of her class, the month after I was drafted into the NFL. We packed everything and moved across the country to North Carolina to be closer to my team. Sadie found a small part-time job and enrolled in NCU to work toward her master's degree.
"Where are we going?" Sadie leaned forward in her seat as I swerved my truck into a driveway. She hated surprises, but I loved seeing her face light up whenever she discovered the surprise.
Sadie and I rented a small condo in Charlotte, NC for the past few months. She was content with the small house, but I wanted something bigger. Something we could raise a family in. Something that was ours, and that wasn't the only surprise I had for her.
"Jayden?" Her brows pinched with confusion as the large white six-bedroom, eight-bathroom house appeared. "What are we doing here?"
I didn't answer as I shoved the truck into park, threw open my door, and slid out, meeting her at the front.
"What do you think?"
"It's beautiful, but I don't understand why we are here."
"We are doing a walk-through," I said as a black Lexus pulled up behind my truck. "And if you love it, I want to buy it for us."
Her jaw dropped as her gaze flicked from me to the house. "I—" I'd rendered her speechless, which rarely happened.
"Good morning," my realtor, Tony Brewer, said, strolling up the driveway. "You guys ready?"
I nodded.
"I'll open the door, and you two can go through. Take your time; when you're finished, let me know if you have any questions."
"I have a question," Sadie said. "How much does a house like this cost?"
