Chapter 14
He couldn’t walk away from her. Couldn’t turn his back on Taylor even when she’d turned hers on him.
Well, that’s how it felt. But if she wanted to walk away, he’d let her go.
Let her live and find herself. He just wouldn’t lie and say he’d wait.
He’d accept that this was a moment but not the moment.
Despite everything, the two weeks of silence, the way she’d slipped out of his bed without a word, the walls she kept building he still wanted to be her first call.
Wanted to be the name that rose to her lips when she prayed, the shelter she sought when the storms came.
Second only to the God she worshipped, and sometimes, in his most honest moments, he wasn’t even sure he could accept second place.
Brooks switched the call to Facetime. He was surprised she accepted it. Her beautiful face appeared on the screen and he smiled until he saw the sadness on her face.
“What happened?” His voice softened, the concern now breaking through.
She hesitated, inhaled then let it go slowly. She’d been holding that breath since the last goodbye.
“I told my parents. I told them I filed for divorce. I just laid it all out.”
Brooks’ whole demeanor shifted. He knew what telling her parents meant especially about the divorce. In her community, divorce wasn’t just a legal proceeding. It was a scandal, a failure.
“How bad did they take it?” His voice softened. She was still his assignment. Not in the way people meant it. Not as a project. But as a responsibility he chose. One he was willing and ready to make every day.
“Bad,” she whispered. “My daddy wouldn’t even look at me. Momma just keeps saying we should go to counseling. Like she didn’t hear what I said.” She trailed off, and he could hear and see the tears she was fighting back.
“And I’m not crying because I’m sad. I’m frustrated. We are past counseling.”
He respected her parents, always had. They were good people church folks, traditional, the kind that had looked out for their family when their father passed. But they had him fucked up if they thought Taylor deserved anything less than their full support.
Brooks took a slow breath through his nose, working through the anger sitting hot in his chest.
“I’m so sick of this shit,” she muttered, voice shaking. “Sick of being the only one who has to stay strong, act right, take everything folks throw at me like I’m built for it.
I’m not fixing shit this time, Brooks. I’m not praying it away. I’m not pretending I’m fine.”
She paused, breath shallow.
“I just… I need…”
She watched his jaw flex.
“What do you need, Tay?” His voice was low. Steady. Serious.
“I don’t fuckin’ know, support, a hug. A second to catch my breath” she admitted, voice rough.
“Come to me. I’m in Denver. I’ll send you a plane ticket right now.”
The words were out before he could think twice.
“You serious?” She asked, her voice smaller than she intended. Not just because he’d answered while away, but because he’d offered her escape without question or judgment. Just open arms when she needed them most. She didn’t even deserve it.
“Dead serious,” Brooks said, already pulling up the airline app up on his second phone.
He paused, hearing the shift in her breathing.
“Denver? Brooks, I can’t fly to Denver. That’s crazy.”
Her heart thudded so loud she could hear it in her ears. She didn’t know how to stop bracing for disappointment, even with a man who only showed up to catch her. With Tyree, she’d lowered herself for crumbs. Brooks was offering a feast, and she still didn’t know how to eat.
“Brooks, I have work. I can’t.” But even as she said it, she knew that wasn’t the real reason. It never was.
“Why not?” His voice dropped, teasing. “Fuck that job. I’ll buy you a hospital.”
“Brooks, be serious,” she said through her laughter and sniffles. She smiled that was the first real sound of joy she’d let out all day. This was why she had called. Brooks always knew what to do.
“I’m serious,” he said. “You can call in for a day or two.”
“It’s not that simple,” she whispered, her voice trailing off as she looked at him through the screen.
His voice softened, slow and coaxing. “You don’t have to have it all figured out right now.”
“And then what, Brooks? What happens after Denver?”
He paused, let the question hang.
Then spoke, “I don’t know, Tay. I’m not tryna sell you dreams. I just know that right now, you need a soft place to land. And I want to be that.”
Her silence said more than her words ever could.
Then his tone shifted, just a little, just enough. Still soft. But now intimate.
“And if we being honest…” He leaned back, eyes locked on her through the screen. “You can come to me for peace. But don’t pretend you haven’t thought about cumming for me in other ways too.”
“You play too much,” she said, smiling despite herself. The heat between them was undeniable—and for once, she was done pretending it wasn’t.
This wasn’t about caving to her parents or worrying over expectations anymore.
She was past apologies and explanations.
Telling her parents had been the first step—owning her choices boldly was next.
She was here to confront barriers, tear them down, and confidently step into exactly what she wanted. And right now, she wanted him.
He could feel the walls tumbling down a little, but damn if he wasn’t ready to tear them down completely. It felt like begging. He didn’t care. He missed her, needed her too.
Brooks was silent for a moment, then his tone softened, turning more serious. “Ain’t you exhausted from running?”
“I am, seriously.”
“Prove it, get your fine ass on a plane and come to Denver. Run to me.”
“I’m tired, physically, mentally. I’ve built this wall around myself, and I can’t get out of it,” she muttered.
He knew she was; she didn’t have to tell him.
“Then come to me,” he said again, stepping further away from the noise of the club. “You gon make me beg?”
His voice was lower now, edged with frustration, but it wasn’t at her. It was for her. He didn’t like how her people handled her.
“I miss you. Please.” His words were raw. Unfiltered. Stamped. A grown man who wasn’t afraid to want her out loud. No games. No pride.
She didn’t need more convincing.
She needed rest. And right now, rest had his name on it.
A long pause passed between them, then finally, “Send me the ticket information.”
Brooks grinned, already moving.
“That’s my girl.”