Page 89 of Wild Mistake
“No.” She sniffles, ripping her hands from mine and wiping the tears from her face. “Undo it. Tell them you changed your mind.”
“That’s not how things work. Sarah, I can’t.”
“Of course you can!” she shouts, her hands shaking. “You told me you’d do anything for me, so call them up and tell them you’re not coming back.”
“Sarah.”
“Don’t Sarah me. Don’t fucking do that. I’m not the crazy one here. I didn’t make a life decision that impacts our future without your consideration or input.”
“I know.” Shame hangs heavy on my shoulders. I made the decision without consulting her because deep down I knew she’d try and convince me otherwise. I was worried I’d let her. “I’m sorry.” I reach for her hand, my thumb rubbing along the promise ring I gave her three years ago. “I should have told you. That was shitty of me and I’m sorry.”
“You really can’t change your mind?” She sniffles.
“They lock people up for that. I can’t.”
Sarah’s eyes squeeze shut. She hunches over, burying her face in her hands. Her sobs fill the truck cab.
Fuck.
I rub along her shoulder blades, a feeble attempt to offer her comfort. But my touch only makes her cry harder. I’ve never felt so disconnected from my best friend and it’s my own damn fault.
She lifts her gaze and her red rimmed eyes meet mine.
“Tell me what you’re thinking.” I reach for her hand.
“I’m so mad at you.” She uses the back of her free hand to wipe furiously at the tears that don’t stop flowing. “When?”
My brow furrows. “When do I leave?”
“No.” She rips her hand out of mine and crosses her arms. “When did you decide?”
Oh. That.I don’t want to tell her, but I owe her the truth. “Last month.”
Her lips press together and she slowly nods.
“Sarah?” I don’t know what else to say. Nothing makes this easier.
“So, since you’ve been back you let me believe we would have the future we’ve spent the last five years planning, and never once thought to tell me you changed everything. God, I feel so stupid. All week I’ve been going on and on about our wedding, and the entire time you knew none of it was going to happen.”
“I still want you to be my wife.”
“Well, maybe I don’t want a husband who could be so deceitful.”
I fucked up. Big time.Never in all the ways I imagined how Sarah would take this news did our future end with Sarah breaking things off. “You’re angry. You’re upset. I deserve all that. How about I get you home and we can talk about this more tomorrow?”
“No.” She shakes her head. “Don’t you dare tell me to calm down. What you did is inexcusable. I’m not going to live on some Army base while you get yourself killed. I won’t stand by for it. I’m not putting my life on hold for another three years. I’ve already done it once.” She tugs at her ring, loosening it off her finger, then holding it out for me.
No. This can’t be happening. “Sarah, I love you.” I won’t take that ring back. I won’t give up on the love of my life so easily.
She squeezes her eyes shut, and when she opens them the determination set in her gaze is terrifying. “Well, sometimes love isn’t enough.” She sets the ring on the dashboard, and opens her door before I can stop her.
I yank my own door open and stalk after her. “Sarah!”
She doesn’t even look back.
“Sarah! You promised you’d wait for me. Are you really going back on that promise? After everything we’ve been through?” I don’t care that it’s midnight or that the neighbors might hear. Any sense of propriety left when she returned my ring.
Sarah stops walking, turns on her heel, and pins me with a stare that stops me in my tracks. “And you promised you’d come back and we’d start our life together. You broke that. Not me. It’s over, Aiden. Let me go. I won’t hold you back from whatever it is that’s more important than us. You’ve taken enough years of my life. I don’t owe you any more.”
