AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I didn’t need to be told twice. King’s temper was legendary and I was in no mood to face it tonight. Heading upstairs, I was just about to open my door when I heard her whimper. Turning, I saw the door was ajar. Carefully, not to disturb her, I peeked inside her room to find her curled up on her bed as she hugged a pillow, crying softly.
At that moment, a crack opened in my heart.
A heart I thought long dead, void of any emotion.
Standing there, listening to her quietly cry, I hated myself for hurting her. From the moment I met her, I treated her like crap. Instead of showing her compassion, I ridiculed her, berated her, and accused her of shit that she didn’t do.
I was the asshole everyone thought.
Sliding down the wall near her door, I listened to her cry herself to sleep. God help me, I was everything Scribe thought of me.
Holding my head in my hands, I wished I could take it all back. The anger, the frustration, the indecision. I should have gone with her. She asked me to, but I wanted to watch the game with my brothers.
A fucking game.
Instead of being with her, I was drinking and laughing it up with my brothers as we watched Virginia Tech take on Tennessee. It was a rivalry game. The club and town had been gearing up for this game for over a week. It was all anyone could talk about and right before kick-off she got a call that her mother needed her. My girl never told her mother no. It was one of the things I loved about her. She was all about her family. If my mom was still alive, I would have been the same way, so I encouraged her to keep the relationship she had with her parents.
So instead of going with her, I stayed.
It was a decision that cost me the love of my life.
A decision that I still warred with myself over.
Now, I was taking my anger out on the one person who had nothing to do with my pain. Instead of treating Skylar Rose with kindness, I treated her as if she were to blame for my wife’s death.
Tightly clutching my hair, I banged my head against the wall, ashamed of myself and my actions.
Hearing a soft sob, I turned to look inside her room once more.
Still laying on her bed, with her long blonde hair spread out around her, she slept restlessly. Her face was soft, like porcelain. Her eyes were so green, they looked like an Irish clover field. Her lips were so pink and full, just begging to be kissed. Skylar Rose was a stunningly beautiful woman. Too good for this life. There was a gentleness about her. A kindness that shone through when she smiled, but there was something else about her that drew me to her. Skylar Rose wasn’t like other women her age. Unlike my wife, Skylar was content with life. Almost as if she knew where she belonged, what she wanted.
In the short time I’d known Skylar Rose, I’d only seen her angry once, when she rightfully slapped me. It was when I accused her of neglect and selfishness.
I was wrong then, just as I am now.
Chapter Eleven
Skylar
Despite my early morning preparedness, I discovered Mr. Montclair waiting for me in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee before the sun had even fully risen.
“You’re late,” he grumbled. He looked tired, almost as if he didn’t sleep. I could see the dark rings under his eyes.
“No one told me what time you left. It won’t happen again.”
Throwing a granola bar at me, I fumbled to catch it as he got to his feet. “I don’t have time to wait around for you to eat. You can eat on the way there.”
Saying nothing more, he left the kitchen with me closely following. I didn’t know where we were going, but I was eager to get started at my new job. Sarah assured me that her mother Beth would be around to help Cameron, who was still sleeping when I left my room. I just prayed that my brother behaved today.
Everything was riding on this job.
If I did a good enough job, I hoped to save enough money to find me and Cameron a nice apartment or maybe a little house. After leaving the rec room last night, I had trouble getting to sleep, trying to figure out what it was I did that angered Chase so much. In the end, I couldn’t think of a single thing. Instead, I unboxed the new laptop Bailey and Sarah got me and started searching for places to live in Rosewood.
I quickly learned that Rosewood was a tourist town, and the availability of seasonal jobs would be a plus if things didn’t work out with Chase at the construction site. While I was going to give it my best, I wasn’t banking on him letting me stay.
Last night confirmed my suspicions.
Chase Montclair did not like me.
