Chapter 14
Ripper
Storm slapped me on the back, “We’ll keep eyes on your girl.”
I shook my head, “Thanks, but got that covered.”
He jerked up his chin.
Red slapped me on the back, “Proud of you, boy.”
Clip, being Clip, punched me in the stomach, “Oof.”
He smirked, “That was for not telling me about this shit sooner, fucker.”
Cason jerked up his chin.
Hippie nodded.
Tank slapped me on the back.
Ten Minutes Later
“Man, it’s colder than a witch’s tit out here. What the fuck is going on?” my brother from another mother, Connor, asked.
“Need a favor,” I told him.
He nodded, “Yeah, brother. What?”
I told him what I wanted.
“And where the fuck will you be?” he asked.
“I joined the Navy. The flight takes off in two hours.”
He gaped.
Then he shook his head, “Should have seen this coming. Alright, brother... I’ll do it.”
He scratched his chin.
“You know that stalking is illegal in all fifty states, right?” he asked.
I stared at him, “And... Your fucking point?”
“That is my point, brother,” Connor said while looking at me like I was a serious dumb fuck.
I shrugged, “I don’t give a fuck. If I can get peace of mind, knowing that she’s okay... I’ll fucking take it. And do it with a giant fuck you to whoever doesn’t like it because she will be breathing easy.”
For the next six years, I got daily reports on my girl.
What I didn’t know... was that I was breaking her heart in the process.
30 Minutes Later
Garret winced.
“She’s got a present being delivered later today at your house.”
He nodded.
Then he shared, “I know you think this is the right thing to do. And I commend you for it. I do. But you should have told her,” Garret growled.
I shook my head, “If I told her, she would have begged me not to go. And I would have listened. I can’t afford to do that.”
He sighed, then ran his hand through his hair and nodded, “No. You can’t.”
Then he winced, “Never thought this shit would happen.”
I chuckled, “Yeah, I...” I trailed off when I got a clearer look at his face.
He wasn’t talking about me.
Fuck.
“I failed her. This is going to break her goddamned heart.”
I winced, “It needs to happen. I tried leaving. Can’t escape that shit. This will give me something better. I hope.”
He shook his head, “No, boy. You can’t outrun your demons. You can try. But... this just shows me I was wrong about you. You don’t deserve my girl. If you did, you’d stay and fight them for her.”
“She’s why I’m doing this,” I insisted. “I gotta get my head right, and right now, it’s not.”
“Maybe. I don’t know what’s in your head. I just know that if you care for her like you claim you do, then you’ll fight your demons for her, and you’ll fight like hell to come back to her. But promise me this... you don’t think you’ll win... then let her the fuck go.”
I nodded.
But I wasn’t promising the last thing... no way in hell.
“Fucking promise you that I’ll fight for her.”
And I broke another fucking promise.