Page 45 of No Broken Promises

As I waited for his answer, images of Remy flashed in my mind. Over and over again from that night. All the words he used to make sure I wouldn’t ever give him another chance.

“Parker?” Danny said my name. “Did you hear me?”

“No,” I apologized with a laugh. “The baby’s making me a space cadet lately.”

“Thank you, Parker.” He coughed again. “We can do the divorce stuff when I get home. It’ll be easier. I think you’ll like her, too. She’s from away, though.” He referenced the fact that anyone not from Maine was technically from away and essentially started off at a deficit when it came to the locals accepting them.

I snorted. “You’ll have to convince your parents to give a Southerner a chance, you know. I’m happy for you, Danny. Really, really happy.” The lie tastes bitter, but I’m not quite sure why.

Except I am.

I know it’s because he’ll get that. He’ll be happy with the woman he fell in love with. And I’ll be stuck.

Here.

In love with a man who will never love me back.

The man I should be having a baby with.

Shuffling filled the air, and then Danny’s voice came back on, sounding farther away than before, like he was covering the mouthpiece. “I have to be quiet. The guys are sleeping. But you should know, Parker. Every single time I bring you up, Remy’s there, on the edge of his seat, wanting the information. I know he feels something. He’s just not ready to admit it yet.”

“Stop,” I cut him off. “There’s no chance of that.” Danny, even after he asked me to keep his secret, kept giving me updates on Remy. Like my heart could withstand the pain anymore.

It was bad enough that I still wrote a letter to him every week without fail. I couldn’t find the strength to stop.

“I’m sorry that I put you in a situation where none of the pieces fit the way they’re supposed to, Parker. I didn’t mean for this to happen. I didn’t mean to take you away from Remy.”

“Danny.” I didn’t want to talk about it. I didn’t want to think about that night and what happened. I didn’t want to remember the way he smelled as he forced his way inside me.

“I wasn’t thinking clearly that night, and I’m sorry I took advantage of you after you told me to stop. I’m never going to be able to make it up to you. But I can try to do something. Anything. I think it’s going to get a lot messier before we can get it fixed. I know Remy loves you, Parker. I can see it every single day we’re here. Maybe he always has. I’m going to figure out how to fix this.”

A mirthless laugh bubbled out, and I bit the inside of my lip to keep from devolving into tears as I remembered the night that Remy destroyed everything I had ever felt for him with one swift blow, and then Danny stole… everything else.

“You can’t fix it, Danny,” I managed quietly into the static. “I don’t think it’ll ever get better.”

“I promise I’ll help fix it. Just?—”

The line cut out, and Danny was gone after that.

I open my palm to see the last pieces I have left of Danny and the promise he made that day. I swallow back every bit of the emotion, fighting for control of my heart.

“You broke your promise, Danny. You were supposed to come fix what you did to me.”

Now, I am left all alone and don’t have a single clue what I am going to do.

You know what to do. Danny’s voice fills my head, almost like he is standing right next to me. It’s time to let me go, Parker. You can’t ever put yourself first if you’re holding on to the shit I put you through.

19

PARKER

I lock the door securely when I leave, Danny’s dog tags hanging around my neck and tucked safely in my shirt, with Boo’s collar clutched tightly in my hand. Staring down at the ground to make sure I don’t trip over my feet, I cut a beeline through the yard to my car and run into a wall of muscle before I can get there.

“Shit!” I manage to say as I start to fall. But I don’t hit the ground because a strong pair of hands wrap around my shoulders and keep me upright.

“Hey, Parker,” Artie says with a bright smile that seems more than a little out of place, given the circumstances. I mean, who smiles when another person takes a digger and almost falls right on their ass? “I finally caught up to you.”

“Thanks for the save, Artie.” I pull away and start for my car. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

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