Weston (Broken Falls #6)

Chapter Fifteen

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Weston

I t's been a long, fucking cold day, and we're only halfway through. But I'm meeting the guys for lunch today at Monroe's, and I wish I could have a beer because my nerves are shot. I keep thinking about Melanie, why she left, what I'm gonna do, and what I really want. It's starting to fucking drive me crazy. And she just moved in.

I'm the first one here, even though Jasper should have come with me. He had to go meet Daisy for a doctor's appointment, so hopefully, he shows up soon. I'm cracking the peanut shells on the table, just needing something to make my hands busy when I look up. Boone's walking in with Alexis. He waves over, and I've never been so happy to see the elder statesman of our crowd. He kisses Alexis and then heads toward the table. When he gets close enough, he pulls out a chair and has a seat.

"What's up with you, man? I haven't heard from you in a while."

I sigh heavily. "Dude, if you only knew what the fuck has been going on. Like, it's been crazy town at my house."

He smirks. "I heard that. Abel told me."

"Yeah, I'm sure he and Barrett and Vaughn and Jasper have had a really good time making fun of me."

"I wouldn't call that making fun of you. I think they're worried about you," Boone says. "They've all known you for years; most of y'all went to high school together. They know who Melanie is. We all saw what happened to you when she left. No one wants you to hurt again, and honestly, no one wants her to hurt either. It was a shitty situation with the two of you."

"Has she told you why she left?"

"No." I take a drink of my water. "She hasn't. I've asked her, we had a little come-to-Jesus talk last night, and I told her I really wanted to know, but she begged me to let us start over. And I'm slightly willing to let that happen, but I feel as if I'm setting myself up for failure with that, you know?"

He nods. "No, I get it. Life is hard, and you know the two of you put a lot of pressure on yourselves by getting married so young. And then she left and you didn't know what happened; you've got to be harboring some very big feelings toward her."

"I am." I slam my hand down on the counter. "But I also don't feel as if I can tell her because whatever happened really bothered her. And I've never been the type of person who wants to hurt others."

"So you're willing to let all the pain be yours? That's not a relationship; that's you being a martyr," he says, raising an eyebrow. "And there's no reason that you need to be one. Can you start over with her? Yes, you can, but sooner or later you're gonna have to find out what happened because you don't want to repeat it again. Do you want to be in the same situation in a few years after you've rebuilt your lives together and she decides that she can't handle it?"

"I'm all for people doing what they need to do for their mental health," Boone continues, "but you're important to me. You might be Abel's friend, but you're one of mine too, you're like one of my best friends; all of you are. I love you all and I just cannot sit here and see what she's done to you. I can't sit back and tell you it's okay because it's not, it's not okay."

"You're an amazing person; you love your friends; you work hard, you didn't deserve this."

His words make me emotional; there's a part of myself that wants to argue with him, that maybe I do deserve some of it because obviously, I wasn't giving her what she needed, but the other part of me is scared as fuck.

What if she leaves again? What am I going to do? I don't know if I can handle it.

But before I can say anything, the door opens and more of the guys come in, and of course all of them want to know what the fuck is happening, so I settle in for a long lunch of answering questions and wondering if my heart is going to fuck me over before my head can catch up.

After work, I head to the gym, needing to clear my mind and get out some of this pent-up tension. As I walk in, I spot Nolan across the room, finishing up his set on the bench press. We've been friends for years, and he's been through his own share of ups and downs. Ever since his wife left, and they got divorced, he’s been there to help the rest of us with advice, and sometimes a different perspective. And today, I could use a bit of both.

"Hey, Nolan," I call out as I approach, tossing my bag down near the weights.

"Weston," he greets me with a nod, sitting up and wiping his forehead with a towel. "Heard you had everybody talking at lunch."

I chuckle dryly, grabbing a couple of dumbbells. "Yeah, seems like everyone has an opinion on my love life these days."

Nolan shrugs with a small grin. "It's what happens when you live in a small town with nosy friends. Maybe you'll learn to do what I have, and tell everybody to shut the fuck up."

We fall into a familiar rhythm, the clanking of weights around us providing a comforting backdrop. After a few sets in silence, Nolan speaks again.

"You know, man, I've been where you are," he says, his voice soft yet firm. "When Ashlynn's mom left, I held onto that anger and pain for a long time. I'm beginning to wonder if it's been too long. Thought if I could just hang on to it, maybe I could protect myself, maybe I could make sense of it all. But all it's done is eat at me."

I nod, focusing on my breathing as I continue with the curls. "Yeah, I hear you. It's hard to let go when you don't have the answers."

He swaps the weights, taking a short breath. "The thing that I learned, way too late, is that holding a grudge doesn't help anyone. I wish I had reached out to Ashlynn's mom, tried to understand her side of things instead of walling myself off. It's obvious the two of us weren't meant to be together, but at one point it made me look at my daughter differently. Don't let that bitterness fuck you up."

"What if she leaves again?" I voice the fear that's been circling in my head since the moment I saw Melanie on my front porch. "What if I'm just setting myself up for more hurt?"

Nolan lays a hand on my shoulder, squeezing tightly. "There's always that risk, Weston. There's a risk in loving anyone. But forgiving , it's not about giving them another chance to hurt you. It's about finding peace for yourself, about letting go of what's weighing you down."

I pause, absorbing his words. None of us have heard Nolan talk like this before. Maybe he is changing, and he's turned a corner. Maybe I should take his advice. It's difficult, but a small part of me wants to believe in the possibility of moving forward, while not being held down by our past.

"Thanks, Nolan," I say, my voice rough with gratitude. "I think I needed to hear that."

He gives me a reassuring smile, grabbing the weights again. "Anytime, fucker. Just remember, you're not in this alone. I wasn't either, but I didn't realize it until much too late."

As we continue through our workout, the tension slowly begins to unravel, replaced by a cautious hope. It's a start, and for now, that’s enough.