Page 25

It’s been five days since I’ve heard from Hannah, five days that I’ve been beating myself up over the fact that I let my anger get the best of me. I let the shame I had been feeling drag me down to a place I never wanted to be. Abby told me she had gone home to stay with her mom but that she hadn’t heard much from her either.

A knock on my door pulls me from my tumultuous thoughts. Was I expecting anyone today? Oh, shoot! Hannah! Hope flares in my chest only to be extinguished when I realize it’s just Tate. Opening the door he pushes past me like he’s got a mission to complete. “Well, hello to you too?” I mutter, closing the door behind him.

“I did it.” He says as he paces my living room like a caged animal. “I told her she wasn’t good enough for you. I made her feel like crap, and then when Kara showed up at the carni–”

“Woah there, little buddy, pump the freaking brakes...” I interrupt, his words barreling into me like a bull in a china shop. “Kara showed up where?”

“Umm... The carnival,” What. The. Frick.

“I’m sorry. It sounded like you just said that Kara, the wicked witch of the Pacific Northwest, showed up at the carnival.” Disbelief evident in my voice. How? How did more than a week go by and I didn’t know about this?

“That’s exactly what I said.” he replies softly.

“Why did no one tell me she was there?” I practically growl it at him. He turns his head slightly so his eyes can meet mine; they look so tired, there’s no light there.

“I thought someone would have said somethi ng to you. It’s not like I’m the only one who saw her.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose, this adds insult to injury. Every decision, every action, every word I’ve said to Hannah over the past few weeks runs through my mind. I don’t know how I’m going to fix this. I guess I should start right here. Looking down at my socks, I dig deep. “I’m sorry, not only to Hannah and the kids but to you. I was a jerk; I know you meant well.”

“I’m disappointed in myself, too. You’re my brother Greyson. We’re supposed to be a team. You helped me through the darkest time in my life; I should be helping you through yours. Instead, I hurt someone you cared about on purpose.”

I sigh, knowing this next part is going to inflate his already large ego. “You were right. I do need to get myself together before I try to fix what I broke with Hannah. But I might need your help.”

His smile is small but genuine. “Say it again so I can record it.” He holds up his phone, his feeble attempt at humor cuts through a bit of the tension. “I’ll help you. On one condition.”

I snort out a laugh, something I can’t even recall doing over the past few weeks. It’s weak, but feels good regardless. “Name it.”

“You have to apologize to Hannah. I know you think that it was just you that made her run, and you feel guilty about it. But you don’t know the full story. Your actions were just the straw that broke the camel’s back.” I tilt my head to the side; what does he know that I don’t?

My heart sinks further into my stomach. “What do you mean? What else happened?”

He hesitates for a moment, rubbing his hand across his beard before answering. “Well... You now know the part where Kara showed up. But then spewed a bunch of crap about being the future Mrs. Wilder and how Hannah was just a placeholder. Hannah held her ground though, it was awesome.” He clears his throat before looking down at the floor. “And then Kara backhanded her hard enough it cut her cheek open”

The weight of his words settles like Wile E. Coyote just dropped an anvil on the Roadrunner. My stomach churns violently. Someone laid their hands on my Kitten? My ex laid her hands on my future? The woman who means everything to me? I think the frick not. I start to grab my keys to my car when my feet freeze on their own accord at the thought that passes through my mind.

She probably thinks I strung her along. I ignored her when she reached out for me. I pushed her away when all she wanted was to make sure I was okay. Then Kara shows up out of nowhere, probably confirming every fear she had.

Son of a nutcracker! I acted just like her father. No wonder she walked, no ran away. I can’t even blame her this time; I would have done the same thing.

“Fine,” I manage, my voice heavy with emotion. “But you have to apologize to her too.”

He nods his agreement. “I will.”

We stare at each other for a moment, the weight of the situation hangs like a heavy cloud. My thoughts are a whirlwind of guilt, regret, and a desperation to make things right.

I swallow hard, I’ve hurt her. She faced my demons for me and I didn’t even know it. I left her alone. I’ll be damned if I don’t do everything I can to fix it.