Page 26 of The Price of a Promise

Because one thing was true—I was alive, and he wasn’t.

I was the only person left who could accomplish the things he’d longed for.

I hadn’t been there to stop him.I hadn’t intervened.I’d been too preoccupied with my own life to stop the downward spiral.

Now I was the only one left to spiral at all.

CHAPTER NINE

CORA

I awoke the next morning in a fog, the kind of heaviness that slides in after endless hours of sobbing.Still in my dress and makeup from the night before, I stumbled around looking for anything that made sense—my phone, makeup remover, a cup of coffee.My phone showed up first, littered with concerned messages from Axel.I wrote him back first, bleary-eyed as I punched out my message with one eye pinched shut.The leftover gunk from my mascara made things difficult.

AXEL: You’re scaring me babe.I never miss a chance to say goodnight to you.

CORA: I fell asleep early and slept hard.Must have needed it!

AXEL: It’s that new ring, isn’t it?Too heavy, makes you tired.

CORA: Yeah, but still gonna need a new one come our wedding day.

AXEL: Working on it.Now what’s the big news from last night?

At least there was Axel.The consistent bright spot in my life.The levity and perspective I could count on.He’d picked my sad ass up too many times to count through college.I didn’t want to be the perpetually grieving girlfriend, though.I didn’t want to get into the nitty-gritty of the letter.I just wanted this issue to lay low for a while.

Which was how I’d been treating it since the beginning.

CORA: Wasn’t much of anything.Just some structural concerns about the business.Not worth the bar visit at all.

AXEL: It’s because you were with me.He’s tracking you.Probably me, too.

Anxiety returned, blossoming in sickening tendrils through my belly.Had my father been reading my text messages all along, too?

CORA: Time for my own cell plan?

AXEL: I’ll add you to mine.

AXEL: No, let’s get a new plan.

AXEL: For the Fairchild family.

Talking to Axel helped wake me up, restore some clarity.Next order of business: admire my engagement ring.I slipped it back onto my finger, smiling as I went into the bathroom and got cleaned up.After a quick shower and facial scrub, I was ready to return to LA.

I got my things packed up, dressed in a comfy slouchy sweater and jeans, slipped my feet into my favorite flats, and switched my things into my cross-body bag from Venice Beach, storing the designer bag in my carryon.

When I left my room, the smell of eggs and toast wafted through the air.I found my parents in the kitchen where their cook, Geri, whipped up the food I smelled.Perfectly plated avocado toast awaited me.

“Good morning, everyone,” I said, forcing a small smile.Geri greeted me more enthusiastically than anyone.

“You look bright and beautiful,” she enthused.

“I don’t exactly feel it, but thank you.”

“I wanted to pack a powerful punch for your flight today, so we’re loading up on good fats.I drizzled a freshly made cashew-chipotle sauce on top.The sprouts are radish and pea.”

“It looks perfect.”I slid onto a high stool facing the center island where Geri had her breakfast station set up.My father lifted a brow from the dinette, where he and my mother sat.

“Care to join us?”my father asked.

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