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“Of course you aren’t. Charley. You said you needed a ramp.”
“I was taking care of it!” More tears run down my cheeks, and Cade looks on, distraught.
“I’m helping because I love you.”
I shake my head.No. No, no, no.My mind keeps repeating the word. I’d forgotten love brings nothing but pain. Just like this. A sob escapes. “I can’t believe you did this.”
“Helped you? You can’t believe I helped you, Charley? I care about you. So many other people care about you. My cousin did the work for free. All the guys. Kenna. Bailey. My friends from home. We all came together so your dad could return to the house safely, like you needed.”
With each listing of the names, all I do is add them to the list of people I can never see again. It’s like he’s hurling spikes at me, ripping out my insides. They saw my house. Every embarrassing detail. And now, what? I owe all of them for the luxury of them “helping” me?
I clench my stomach again.
Cade reaches out, but I bat him away. “You brought everyone here like I’m this lonely girl shaking an empty cup on the street. Don’t you get it, Cade? I didn’t wantyouto see my house, and you brought everyone here.Everyone.”
“We—”
“Picked up after me like I’m some sort of slob. You painted the house. You replaced the whole damn porch. Why? Because I’m a lazy piece of shit?”
“They needed a stable foundation to attach the ramp to.”
I run my hands through my hair, tugging at the ends. I look all around. Everything broken made brand new. It’s like he had to fix me up in order to be with me, and I finally pinpoint the words my brain has been trying to tell me. He doesn’t think I’m good enough. He had to bring all his friends here to elevate me.
“Charley, I don’t know what’s going on here. I don’t know why you’re looking at me like that. I thought you were going to be happy. You could be with your dad while I did this. You told me on the phone you didn’t know how you were going to do it, and I did it for you because I love you.”
“Stop saying that.”
His face contorts. “Why?”
“Because you don’t know what it is. Love is heartbreak. Just like this. I told you when we first met that love was a disease, and I fucking meant it.”
“No. Don’t do that. Don’t say that.”
“It’s true! I’m so sick right now I can’t stand it.”
“I helped you!” he screams.
The full force of his anger makes me take a step back inside the house.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” he repeats, moving forward. I wrangle just out of reach, warning him with my glare not to come any closer. His whole body deflates. “Why don’t you love me?” His face pinches. “Whywon’tyou love me?”
Instead of answering him, I return to the real problem at hand. “You knew how embarrassed I was of this house. Of what I went through. Yet, you thought that I would be pleased that you had the whole damn football team, plus my new friends and your family, walking around here, cleaning it up?” I scan my yard, biting my lip. “They trimmed the bushes!”
Cade’s jaw hardens. “Stop. Think about what you’re saying. You sound…crazy.”
“Oh, I’m crazy? You think I’m crazy? Why? Because I didn’t break down and bow at your feet because you swooped in and tried to fix my life when—oh, guess what? No one asked you to!”
He swallows, then looks away, nodding. “You’re right. No one did. I thought that was the point. That I would step up when you needed me without asking.”
“Everyone washere!”
“Get over it!” he snarls. “They were here because they care about you. They heard your dad was sick and wanted to help. Or at least they did. Maybe when they find out you couldn’t care less, they’ll wish they never did anything.”
“Good,” I force out. “I hope so. If that was supposed to guilt me, it didn’t work. You overstepped. You all overstepped.”
“Fine.” He lifts his shoulders. “I have a Thanksgiving meal to catch. With people who actually care about me.”
I clench my jaw.