Page 1 of Devoted Enough

Prologue

NATHAN

Sophomore Year of High School

“Why do I have to bring it to her? Can’t Lily, or what about her mom? Can either of them come and get it?” I asked my mother as she stood in front of me, arms folded over her chest.

“Because your father is out of town, your sister has plans, and I have a meeting I need to attend tonight. Grace is in Missoula caring for her sick mother.”

“Mom, you know how much Haven gets under my skin.”

“Nathan Shaw, that young girl has had a crush on you since middle school, and that shouldn’t make her get under your skin.”

“It’s not just that, Mom.”

“I’m not asking you to simply take something to her, Nathan.”

“But–”

She held up her hand. “But nothing. I also want you to give this casserole to Haven. I’m sure her father hasn’t made her anything decent to eat since Grace has been gone.”

My mother’s voice was filled with dislike for David Larson. Haven wasn’t very fond of her father either, at least based on the few times she has spoken about him. “Do you not like him?”

She huffed. “Never mind how I feel about him. I promised Grace I’d make sure Haven was okay.”

I sighed. There wasn’t anything I wouldn’t do for my mother, but Haven Larson? Going to her house and seeing her wasn’t something I really wanted to do. It wasn’t that I didn’t like her; I did like her, but if my friends found out, they would tease me. Not that I couldn’t handle it, but it would most likely get people teasing Haven, and I didn’t want that. Haven got a lot of shit in school for not having money. The girls teased her for her clothes and the fact that she walked dogs as a job. I thought they were all jealous of her. She had the most beautiful grayish-blue eyes, brown curly hair, and the cutest dimples that appeared when she smiled. From the gossip making the rounds at school, her father wasn’t especially nice to Haven or her mother, Grace. No one was sure why, though.

“Fine, I’ll drop off the casserole and her backpack. But it was her fault for leaving it here after her lessons.”

My mother gave Haven horseback riding lessons for free since she was good friends with Grace. If you ask me, Haven spent way too much time here at our place and not enough time at her own home.

Kissing me on the cheek, she opened the door to the truck. “Be careful driving, Nate.”

“I will, Mom. You be careful driving to your meeting too.”

She leaned in and kissed me once again. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

With a wink, I replied, “Anything for you, Mom.”

She rolled her eyes. “The apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”

It took me about forty minutes to get from the ranch to Haven’s place. Her parents didn’t live on the best side of town, but it wasn’t the worst either. They had a simple, two-story house that I had only ever seen from the outside.

I pulled up and parked in front of the house. Haven’s father’s truck was parked in the driveway. Grabbing the backpack, I got out of the truck and made my way to the passenger side to get the casserole. As I walked up to the door, I heard a loud scream come from inside the house, and my heart felt like it was about to nearly jump out of my chest.

“That’s Haven,” I said to myself as I quickly went to the door and was about to ring the doorbell when I heard the faint sound of more screaming for someone to leave her alone. I reached for the door, and it was open. My heart hammered in my chest, and I had no idea what I was walking into. When I heard a crash come from upstairs, I dropped the backpack, put the casserole on a side table near the door, and then dashed up the steps. Haven’s voice guided me to where I needed to go.

“Please don’t do this. Please!”

I ran up the steps. The room where her voice was coming from was down the hall.

“You know what will happen if you don’t keep your damn mouth shut.”

For a moment, my footsteps faltered. That was Haven’s father’s voice.

“Please…don’t do this! Please, stop!”

I pushed the door open to see David forcing Haven’s hands above her head as he moved over her. For a moment, I was frozen in place. Was I seeing what I thought I was seeing?

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