We pull up to the house, and I see that Keith is just getting home. He throws his bike on the grass, then looks over at us while taking off his helmet. He walks over to us and sees that Chelsea’s eyes are all puffy and her nose is red.
“What happened to you?” he says. “Is it that time of the month?”
“Shut up.” She pushes him as he laughs and runs up the steps.
“Mom!” he shouts, walking into the house, and I’m shocked she’s still there. “Chelsea has her period, and she’s crying. Miss Emily had to drive her home.”
“I hate him,” she says from beside me. The door swings open, and Savannah walks out with a smile. The minute she sees us, her phone rings, and she looks down.
“Mom,” Chelsea calls out her name, but she just holds up a hand telling her to hold on.
“Hey, Casey,” she says, looking at us, and then her hand goes to the railing. Her legs give out, and she sits on the step. “Where is he?” She listens. “No, I’m home. We canceled.” She looks at me with all the tears in the world. “Okay,” she whispers, a sob ripping out of her while the phone falls from her hand. Chelsea runs over to her and takes her in her arms as she sits beside her.
“Dad!” she shouts, and Beau comes running out. “Dad!”
“What’s the matter?” He runs to his wife and squats down in front of her. “What happened?”
She looks at him with all the love in the world. The two of them have been best friends since they were small and then played cat and mouse until they were forced to get married. She puts her hand on his face. “He’s back.” Her body shakes with sobs. “He’s come home.”
Beau looks at her and then looks at me, and all I can do is nod. He looks back at his Savannah and Chelsea.
“I saw him.” Chelsea now says something, and Savannah looks at her.
“Was he okay?” she asks, hanging on Chelsea’s every word. “Did he look okay? Did he look like he’s been hurt?”
“He looks the same,” Chelsea says, and I want to tell her that she’s wrong. He’s different; his arms are bigger. His face is more chiseled; his eyes are darker and hold secrets. He has a couple of scars on his arms, and his hair is shorter. He may look the same, but he's not the same. I look down and blink away the tears that are now threatening to come out.
Savannah looks at me, and she holds out her hand for Beau to help her up. He holds out his hand for her, and she grabs it. She walks over to me with Beau helping her the whole time. If I didn’t know she was Ethan’s mom, I would think she was his sister. She hasn’t aged at all. Sure, her hair has a bit more gray, and her eyes have lost a bit of their spark, but she looks the same as she did in his baby pictures. “He’s home,” she says to me, and my heart shatters. “He’s come home.”
Taking a huge breath, I lock my feelings away for at least the next five minutes until I can escape this scene. “I’m happy for you,” I say, but my voice cracks, and she grabs my hand. “Happy that he’s come home.”
“He’s back,” she tells me, and I look at her.
“I can’t go back there,” I say, and this time, the tears fall. It’s like the dam has been broken. “I can’t go back there. I won’t survive it.”
“But …” she says, and it’s Beau who puts his arm around her shoulder.
“Sweetheart,” he says her name softly. “She’s moved on.”
“I have moved on. I’m engaged to a wonderful man. I’m finally happy,” I say, and she looks at me, putting her hand on my cheek.
“Not once did you say you didn’t love him,” she points out, and I’m about to say something, but she doesn’t stop. “A love that deep and that strong doesn’t ever go away.”
“It was easy enough for him to stop loving me,” I remind her, even though the last thing I want to do is shit on Ethan
“He’s back, and he’s going to explain everything,” she says. Shaking my head, I feel arms around me and see that it’s Chelsea trying to give me strength.
“There is nothing to explain,” I say. “I don’t want to hear anything he has to say.” I look at Beau. “Nothing he can say will make what he did to me okay.” I try not to break down. “He left me. He tossed his cell phone out the window and drove out of town,” I say, and she nods. “He didn’t see me run after his truck. He didn’t hear me yell his name until my voice was so raw I couldn’t swallow for two days. He. Didn’t. Care.”
“Emily,” Beau says softly.
“I’m happy your son is back,” I say, and then I look at Chelsea, who is wiping away her own tears. “I’m happy your brother is back, but that is where it stops.”
“Okay,” Savannah says, and then I hear a truck coming. I look over my shoulder and see that it’s Casey’s blue Range Rover.
I release Savannah’s hands when she whispers her son’s name. She drops my hand and walks across the lawn toward the car. I watch as Ethan gets out of the truck, and I hear Beau from beside me. “I’ll do what I can do,” he says softly. “To get her not to bring it up.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I say, turning and walking slowly away at the same time Savannah sobs as Ethan takes her in his arms. She grips on to him, saying his name over and over again as I get in my car. I start the car and drive off, away from the man who broke me, away from the man who shattered my heart, away from
