Page 150 of Inflame

The way her heart broke in front of me, while I told her our fling was an interlude, is something I’ll never forget.

I knew how this would all end, yet nothing mentally prepared me for the magnitude of just how tragic it would be.

I feel like shit. I probably look like it too. And not a single cell in my body cares about anything other than drowning myself in the sorrows that I created for myself.

I could have stopped Claire from leaving, and yet, I simply allowed her to walk out of my life. While she may not realize it in this moment, I did her a favor.

I’m not boyfriend material.

And leading her on to think I could be is my biggest regret.

She didn’t know the score, because to her, it never was a game.

There’s a knock on the door. Whoever it is must have a key to be allowed onto this floor in the first place. I stumble to the door and open it, finding Mom with her arms full of linens and wedding decor. I take the supplies from her hands and place them on the dining room table.

“Nic, I wasn’t expecting to find you here.” She opens her arms up for a hug and I accept. I need it more than she will ever know, and yet, I’m not the victim in this shitstorm. I’m the villain. She pulls back after a few seconds and examines my appearance. “What’s wrong? You look like you haven’t slept in a month.” Her hand touches my forehead. “Are you ill?”

“I’m fine,” I say softly.

“You are obviously lying. Don’t think I haven’t been noticing you avoiding me either.”

I rub at my forehead as a headache starts to form. “I was meaning to call you back.”

“Sure. Now where is your brother?” she asks, looking behind me and around the room.

“He’s in New York. I’m keeping Angie company until he’s back.”

“You boys keep ignoring my calls, and I’ll just spontaneously pop into the office and cause a ruckus. How does that sound?”

“Sorry, Mom,” I groan. “Been busy with work.”

“There’s more to life than making everything into a business transaction, Nic. When are you going to go on a vacation? Take some time off? Live a little. Maybe date again?”

Before I’m able to give Mom a canned answer, Angie runs down the stairs and greets her future mother-in-law in a huge hug.

“Thank you for coming today to work out these last-minute details. You always have such an amazing eye for these types of things.”

“I love that you are allowing me to be a part of this amazing celebration. Graham sure is lucky that he found you. We both know how difficult that man can be.”

Angie laughs over Mom’s candid descriptions. “We are both pretty lucky,” Angie says softly.

“I’ve been trying to call Claire with no luck getting her to pick up. Is she going to join us this session?” Mom asks.

“She texted me a bit ago and said that something came up. So, I guess we are on our own.”

I can’t help but worry about Claire. My tracking app only provides the GPS coordinates—no details. Separating is for the best, but the feelings of wanting the best for her did not just go away. I will always want what is best for her. If only she would realize that I’m essentially protecting her from me. She was right when she said she deserved better. I’m not ever going to be the man she dreams about.

“Since Graham is gone, how about you come back to Hillsboro with me for the night and we can work out the last few details for the wedding?”

Angie looks at me, and I can tell she is biting her tongue over my appearance. I must look pretty unkempt, because she keeps staring at my hair.

“Is that okay, Nic? It’ll give you some time to not have to babysit me,” she teases, but it pretty much is the truth. Graham doesn’t take any chances when it comes to her welfare.

“Yeah. That sounds like a good plan.”

“Good,” Mom says, “now we can talk about my boys behind their back and you can fill me in on every little detail that they try to hide from me.”

Angie huffs out a laugh and runs upstairs to pack a bag. Thankfully, it doesn’t take her long, because I know Mom cannot resist interrogating me just to fill the silence. My head is throbbing with a headache, and I just need to shower and lie down.

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