Page 198 of The Charlie Method

“Thanks,” I mumble, clearing my throat as I try to regain my composure. “I needed to hear that.”

“Anytime, mate. And remember, you’re not alone. You’ve got people who care about you, who have your back. With that said…” He pauses for a beat, his expression growing somber. “We need to talk about Charlotte.”

I frown. “What about her?”

“Beckett told me about your…arrangement. How you’re both with her. Or you’re all with each other. I still don’t really get how it works. But you know what I mean.”

I blink in surprise. I wasn’t expecting that. I eye him, trying to play it cool, but he’s waiting for me to say something, and I can’t exactly deny it.

So I just shrug.

“Honestly, I’m not here to judge. You’re all adults, and you can make your own choices. But I’m worried about Beckett.”

“Worried? Why?”

James scrubs a hand over his face like this conversation is weighing on him. “Beck’s been through a lot, more than he lets on, and I’m worried he’s chosen a relationship—this relationship—because he knows it won’t ever lead to anything long-term. It’s safer for him, you know? If it doesn’t last, he doesn’t have to get hurt again.”

I suck in a startled breath. I knew Beckett was guarded, but hearing it like this, spoken so bluntly by his dad, makes it feel more serious than I thought.

“I mean, yeah,” I say. “I know he’s been through stuff. He told me about his ex. How she cheated on him, and it really messed him up.”

James knits his brow. “Cheated? What ex are you talking about?”

“Shannon,” I say, now confused myself. “His high school girlfriend. He said she cheated on him, broke his heart, and that’s why he doesn’t let people get too close. It took him a long time to get over it.”

Something shifts in James’s expression. “Will…Shannon didn’t cheat on him.” He stops, like he’s trying to find the right words. “Shannon didn’t break his heart. She died.”

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

BECKETT

Shannon

IRETURN FROM MY AFTERNOONRENEWABLEENERGY CLASS IN TIME TOsay goodbye to my dad before he leaves for the airport. While the taxi waits at the curb, we exchange a hug and he playfully ruffles my hair, and then he gets into the back seat, and I watch the car disappear down the street.

Once it’s out of sight, I scroll through my phone contacts until I hit “Mum.” She answers after a couple of rings.

“Hi, sweetheart.”

I walk back to the porch. “Hey. Dad just got in the cab. He should be at the airport in an hour or so.”

“Oh good. Thank you for letting him stay with you, Beck.” She sighs. “I might have been…harsh.”

“When you kicked him out, you mean?” Snorting, I shut the front door behind me and go to the living room. “No, not harsh at all.”

Another sigh.

“Mum…” I trail off, choosing my words carefully. “Try not to be so hard on him, okay? He made a dumb decision with that job offer, yeah, but it wasn’t to hurt you. He just misses it, you know? Home.”

“I know he misses it.” There’s fatigue in her voice, like this isn’t the first time she’s had this conversation. “But that doesn’t mean he can just uproot everything without a conversation. A marriage is a partnership.”

“I get that,” I promise, not wanting her to feel like I’m taking sides. “I’m not saying he was right. I just understand why he did it. He’s homesick. He had this opportunity to go back, and he took it. I miss it too sometimes.”

“You miss Sydney?” she says in surprise.

I nod, even though she can’t see me. “Yeah, I do. More than I thought I would. I think about it a lot, the life we had there. Sometimes it feels like it’s calling me back.”

“You’ve never told me that before. Would you really want to move back? Permanently?”

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