Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Cole
I t was over.
The final show was done, and tomorrow, I would fly back to Bridgewater for the first time in two years with Taylor. And when I left, I hoped I never had to go back again.
I was ready to get back to some sense of normalcy that didn't include Taylor.
"Where's Taylor?" I asked Wyatt, my voice tinged with exhaustion as we stepped into the hotel elevator, finally escaping the paparazzi's prying lenses. I hadn't seen Taylor since before my last song. "Did you finally send her home?"
"You know," Wyatt said, his voice low and disapproving, "I really hoped you two would work your shit out."
I frowned. "Our shit?" I huffed out a bitter laugh. "She fucked my brother behind my back and then married him. There's nothing to work out. I want to take her back to Bridgewater, get my family back, and leave her there."
"Your family?" His eyebrows shot up. "You're not talking to Taylor right now."
"As in Kylie and River," I clarified, my tone clipped and defensive.
Wyatt let out a humorless laugh, his eyes hardening. "We both know that's bullshit, but you know what?" He frowned. "I said I would stay out of it, but what you're doing now is going to end up hurting Kylie. She's not a pawn in this game you're playing with Taylor. A game you're playing alone because Taylor isn't playing it with you."
"Stay out of what?" I demanded, confusion creeping into my voice. "And what game? I'm not?—"
"You are," Wyatt interrupted. "You want to make her suffer the way she made you suffer. You're not fooling anyone, Cole." Shoving his hand through his hair, he blew out a heavy sigh as his eyes softened. "None of it was real, man." My face twisted with confusion. "Their marriage was a business deal."
My breath lodged in my throat as I repeated his words in my head, but I couldn't quite wrap my head around what he was saying. "What are you talking about?" The elevator chimed, and the doors slid open.
"Taylor's in her room," he said, stepping off the elevator. I followed. "You should learn to listen more and talk less. She's been trying to tell you the truth. You just won't shut up."
"The truth?" A mixture of anger and confusion surged through me. What truth? And why did he know it? "You know the truth?" I cocked my head. "Kylie knows? Why..."
"You needed to be angry," he cut me off. "You needed to hate her. You wouldn't have listened to any of us." He nodded down the hall towards Taylor's room. "So maybe you'll listen to her."
My mind raced as I watched him disappear down the hall and into his room. "The letter," I muttered. Spinning on my heels, I bolted to my room. I scanned my card and shoved open the door. Stopping as I let the door slam close behind me, my eyes darted around the room, spotting my suitcase on the floor, opened with clothes spilling out. I couldn't remember exactly where I'd put the letter, but it had to be here. My gaze froze on a crumpled-up envelope underneath a black shirt.
Sinking onto the floor, I reached for it before ripping it open and unfolding the white sheet of paper. My back relaxed against the wall as I read.
Cole,
If you're reading this, it means I'm already gone, and I probably didn't get to tell you goodbye.
So first, I want to start with I'm sorry.
I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused to you, to Taylor, to Kylie. It took me a long time to realize what I truly did to Taylor and you. By the time I realized it, the damage was done. Now, I'm gone, and she's left to pick up the pieces of the mess I caused. It never occurred to me that she would be left behind to carry the burden.
See, Taylor came over to see you, but you weren't there, and she was devastated. I took advantage of her in a vulnerable moment, and I will regret that far beyond my life.
She found out her dad was sick and he was going to need her. She wasn't going to be able to go to Nashville with you. Her father's last wish was to be buried next to his wife on their land, but they were going to lose the land.
I found out two days before that I was terminally ill and had a year, maybe less, to live, and every decision I made after that was selfish. I thought I was protecting Kylie and you. I didn't want to hold her back, and I didn't want you to stay in Bridgewater because I was sick. I needed you both to hate me so much that you left this town and never thought of me again. So much that you didn't mourn me when I was gone, but instead, I made you hate Taylor, who is the most selfless person I have ever met.
She gave up the only person she ever loved for his chance at happiness and her freedom to care for two terminally ill people.
I'm the one who told Taylor that she would ruin your life and your dreams if she told you she couldn't leave. I'm the one who put the idea in her head to marry me instead. I saw it as a win-win, but it definitely wasn't.
The one who truly lost was Taylor, and she didn't deserve it.
Taylor will never tell you the truth unless you make her because she's just not that kind of person. Make her tell you the truth, Cole.
I love you. You will always be my baby brother, my best friend, and I hope you can forgive me, but even more, I hope you can forgive Taylor.
Your Brother, Caleb.
I dropped the letter on the floor as a hot tear streamed down my face. I didn't find out my brother was sick until a few months after I left, and I was so angry that I never responded.
My chest tightened. He'd been sick the whole time. I ran my hand down my face, wrapping my hand around my jaw as I stared up at the ceiling. I couldn't even process how I felt: angry, hurt, betrayed. This all made so much sense now. I needed to talk to Taylor. I needed to hear her truth. Jerking the letter off the floor, I pushed myself up, and stormed toward her room.