Chapter 16
The smell of coffee and bacon filtered into my old bedroom, but it didn’t make me hungry.
It felt like my appetite had disappeared with the other parts of me I had lost along the way.
Sleep had been fitful; every time I closed my eyes, Clara’s voice from the night before... Mason's frustrated words... her tears. They all bled into the memory of Andrew’s, their words tangling until I couldn’t tell which betrayal was whose.
By the time I made it to the kitchen, Mom was fussing over pancakes and Dad was reading the paper. Clara sat at the table with Jackson, her hair up in a messy knot, dark circles under her eyes. We didn’t talk about last night.
“I should head out,” I said after we’d eaten just enough to pretend we weren’t all avoiding something. “I’ve got a shift later, and I need to get home.”
“You’ll be back for Thanksgiving?” Mom asked.
I nodded. “Promise, I will be home to help Dad with the turkey Thursday morning.”
We were halfway down the front steps when a dusty pickup pulled into the driveway. Brody climbed out, carrying a small crate of apples and jars of honey.
“From my mom,” he said, setting them on the porch. His eyes flicked to mine, warm but searching. “She said to tell you not to forget about stopping by soon, Cass.”
Before I could answer, my phone buzzed in my pocket. Once, twice, again. I didn’t even have to look to know who it was.
Chase’s gaze sharpened. “Is it him?”
“It’s fine.” I slid the phone deeper into my coat. “I need to get going.”
“You sure?”
“I’ll be fine.”
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Are you safe?”
The question landed heavier than I wanted it to. “He won’t hurt me,” I said automatically. Then softer, almost to myself, “Not physically.”
Chase didn’t look reassured, and that left an uneasy feeling in my gut. Because Andrew had never hurt me before, but something in him had shifted, and there was a dark edge of desperation in his eyes when he came to my parents' house.
The drive back to Willowbend was uneventful, but I could feel my chest getting tighter the entire way. The bookstore was already buzzing when I arrived, the little bell chiming as customers drifted in and out. I threw myself into shelving new arrivals, ringing up sales, and recommending books.
In the early afternoon, I caught part of a conversation from a woman at the counter.
“Oh, this one’s incredible,” she told her friend, holding up a paperback with someone else’s name on the cover. “The author’s so talented, it feels like they lived the story.”
My heart squeezed. I had lived the story. I’d written every word. Cried every tear with the characters. And sold someone else the credit.
Maybe it was time to write something that actually had my name on it.
My phone buzzed again, this time with an email from one of the publishing houses I did freelance work for. They wanted to discuss an offer.
I knew I couldn't focus on it now, so I put it aside for later and finished up my shift.
I had made it home as the sky faded to black. Our days were growing shorter, and soon October would give way to November and the cold and snow.
Walking towards my apartment, I let muscle memory guide me as I opened the brief, scrolling through the details so intently that I didn’t notice the shadow that was waiting for me just beyond my doorway.
When I looked up, Andrew was there.
My stomach dropped.
I tried to turn away, but in two long strides, he was beside me, his fingers clamping around my arm.
“Cassidy,” he said, voice low, frayed around the edges. His eyes darted over my face like he was trying to memorize it. Like he was frantically cataloguing my features.“You’ve been ignoring me.”
“You know why Andrew and you know where I was,” I said, jerking my arm, but his grip didn’t loosen. I scanned the space around us, looking for a neighbour or a visitor, a way out of this conversation.
Andrew pulled me closer, rasping, “I can explain everything. I’ll get you a copy of the divorce petition from my lawyer...”
“It won’t matter.” My voice was steady, even though my pulse was hammering. “You’ve lied too much. I can’t trust you.”
His eyes flashed with anger. “You can trust me.” He stepped closer, the smell of his cologne wrapping around me like a vice. “I love you, Cassidy. I’ve always loved you.”
He pushed me back against the exterior wall, leaning in, trying to turn the moment physical, trying to rewrite the fight into something intimate. Something I was learning he had done far too often.
“You’re hurting me,” I said sharply, shoving at his chest.
His expression flickered, but only for a moment. "I am trying to show you my love, Cassidy."
He was holding onto my arm tighter now, and I knew it would bruise. Chase's voice echoed in my head. Was I safe with Andrew? I wasn't sure anymore. This didn't feel safe; he didn't feel safe anymore.
"If this is how you love me, Andrew, I don't want it. You are hurting me."
One of my neighbours' doors opened, and Mr Everette poked his head out. "Are you ok, Cassidy?"
Andrew looked from my neighbour to me, “I’ll leave. But I’m getting the proof from my lawyer. You will see. And when I do, we’ll be together. Forever.”
I slid along the way and finally wrenched free, moved towards my door, looking at my neighbour with a nod and a mouthed 'thank you' and stepped inside, slamming the door and bolting it from the inside before my knees gave out.
The tears came fast, hot and choking. For a long time, I just stood there, my forehead against the cool wood, listening for his footsteps leaving.
Then I called home.
“You need to come back,” Mom said immediately, her voice fierce. “We’ll work through this together. We’ll protect you.”
“I can’t. Not yet.” I swiped at my face. “I have to give notice. For my apartment, for the shop. I can’t leave Abby shorthanded, especially around the holidays.”
“Cassidy...”
I could hear my family in the background, but I couldn't let him chase me away from my life.
“I’ll be home soon, I will be home in a few days for Thanksgiving, and I will let Abby know she needs to find someone else... I... I will be ok.” I promised. But even as I said it, I wondered if that was true and if I could make it that long.