Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124005 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 620(@200wpm)___ 496(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
“Thanks. I just don’t want to make this worse than it already is,” I admit.
“What can we do? How can we help?” Shilpa asks.
“I want this to stop hurting.”
“Honestly, it must have been hard to wear his grandma’s ring, and for him to see it on your finger, be so in love with you—and know he’s alone in that feeling. Unrequited love hurts. It makes your heart feel like it’s breaking a thousand times a day. Plus seeing Tristan and the way Rix loves him back, and being so happy about their engagement. I think it messed you both up.” Hammer’s voice is soft and gentle, even as each truthful word feels like a blow.
“Why did he let me see how good we could be and then take it all away?” My heart shatters, and all my deepest fears seep out. “Why doesn’t anyone ever stay? Why am I always too much?”
They hug me from both sides. “Oh, Hemi, you’re not too much. Other people’s actions are usually about them, not us,” Shilpa says.
Hammer squeezes me tightly, like she’s trying to hold me together with love. “What if he just thinks he’s not enough?”
I’m not surprised when the messages from my brothers start soon after Shilpa and Hammer leave. It seems that everyone I love is in tune with how big my feelings are today.
Sam
Moms told us you and the hockey player broke up. Are you okay?
The answer is no, I’m not remotely okay at all. But I will be less okay if my brothers take it upon themselves to come visit and bring all their high octane into my already overwhelmed world. They’re dudes to the nth degree. They’ll want to problem solve by filling my schedule with activities, and all I want to do right now is lie on the couch and cry. So I type out a lie.
Hemi
I’m fine. It just wasn’t working out.
Isaac
Sam
That smells like a lie.
Do we need to fly in and take control of the situation?
I will go full Tonya Harding if I need to.
Isaac
I second this.
Hemi
He’s too important to the team.
Sam
There are lots of talented players out there. He’s fully replaceable.
Hemi
I don’t know if my friends will agree with that.
Isaac
We’ll source a replacement in case you change your mind.
Sam calls me five seconds later on video. I sigh, because not answering will just make things worse.
“What happened? What did he do?” he demands.
“I’m not as in love with him as he is with me.” Sam can smell a lie a million miles away.
“So you ended things because he’s too into you?” he asks.
“No, he ended things because he’s too into me, and he doesn’t think I’ll ever be as into him.”
Sam is silent for a moment before he admits, “I already siphoned the information out of Moms.”
“Why am I not surprised?”
“They made a valiant effort to keep your secrets, but you know how good I am at getting the truth out of people. Plus, they’re the worst liars. It’s why we have a family no-lying rule. Which you broke and I’m disappointed about. I’ll be honest, though, I’d already figured out most of it when we came down to visit after the surprise televised proposal.”
“Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Because you clearly had your reasons for doing it the way you did. This job means everything to you. You love this team, and I understand why. They love you right back. You are an integral part of what makes them work, and you’re fiercely loyal and protective. You could have thrown Dallas under the bus, and maybe you should have, but you put the welfare of the team ahead of your own. Protecting other people shouldn’t come at such a great cost to yourself.”
Isaac pings repeatedly to be let in on the call. Sam pulls him in.
“What’d I miss?” He frowns as he takes in my face. “Shit. This is bad. You never cry.”
“I don’t normally get my heart broken.”
“We should come down,” Isaac declares.
I hold up a hand. “I love you, and I appreciate you, but I need some time to feel all the feelings. And apparently Sam knew all the things but sat on that knowledge until now.” I rub my temples. “How come Moms didn’t see this?” They were the ones I thought would see through this charade.
“Because every time Dallas came home to visit, he told everyone in town how incredible you are, and news travels in Huntsville, as you know. But then Brooklyn and Sean’s engagement happened and tipped the scales,” Sam says. “Though who knows how long those two will stay together.”
“And Dallas—who, by the way, is a great guy with some poor impulse control—saw an opportunity to protect you from the bullshit that would be the high school reunion. He’s had a thing for you forever. It seemed like the win of all wins. Until he realized the engagement put unnecessary pressure on your relationship,” Isaac adds.