Page 34 of Rejected Heart
I was ready to spend the rest of my life with her, and she clearly wasn’t anywhere close to wanting the same.
“I’m so sorry,” I croaked. "If I knew that asking her to be my wife would have led to this, I never would have done it.”
It might have killed me to not ask her, but what I was facing now was easily worse than that.
“You love her, Liam. I don’t blame you for asking her.”
“But how do I get her back?”
Meredith shot me a sympathetic look. “I wish I knew.”
For a long time, the two of us sat there without saying a single word. I was so caught up in the questions swirling in my head, trying to focus on uncovering explanations for those instead of allowing the pain in my body to take over.
Everything ached.
The loss felt tremendous.
Meredith was just as devastated. The hurt was consuming her, too.
I couldn’t sit here any longer and watch. I couldn’t face the agony I had caused. So I stood and said, “If you hear from her, will you let me know?”
“I get the feeling she’s not going to tell me where she is, even when she does call.”
“I know. But I still want to know that she’s okay. I’d really appreciate it if you could at least let me know that she’s safe.”
She sent a small smile my way. “I can do that for you, Liam.”
“I’m going to go.” She moved to get up, but I held out my hand. “Stay here. I’ll see myself out.”
Meredith ignored me and stood anyway. Then she wrapped her arms around me and hugged tightly. “If you hear from her, please let me know.”
I hugged her back. “I will.”
“I’m sorry, Liam. I’m sorry I couldn’t get her to stay.”
Loosening my hold on Meredith, I stepped back and stared at her for a few beats. “I couldn’t either.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “Goodbye, Meredith.”
With that, I turned and walked away, not an ounce of hope anywhere to be found.
TWO WEEKS LATER
When the knock came at the door, it didn’t take me long to narrow down my options of who might be on the other side. It was either my mom or Jules.
Ever since Layla left me, the two of them had been coming around frequently. Jules offered a listening ear and freshly baked goods. I hadn’t had much of an appetite lately, but Jules wouldn’t ever leave unless I indulged in some of the treats that she made.
It was nice. And though I felt no spark of hope, I did feel appreciation for Jules and her efforts to cheer me up.
I could talk to my younger sister about what I was feeling—what I still didn’t know about Layla’s decision to leave—and Jules never did anything but offer her support. She’d actually been there when I’d gotten the call from Layla’s mom later that afternoon following my visit to her place.
I couldn’t remember a time when I’d answered the phone so quickly. Despite wishing I’d gotten more than I did, Meredith had only shared that Layla had called to check in and that she was safe. Beyond that, Layla hadn’t given her mom any details, claiming she just wanted more time to sort herself out. While it was possible that Meredith was hiding the truth from me, I didn’t think that was the case. I believed if she knew where Layla was, she wouldn’t have hesitated to tell me.
The call had been short that day, but I was glad Jules was there with me. Surprisingly, I’d needed someone to talk to, to vent to, and she’d been more than willing to be that person for me.
Next to her, it was my mom that reached out most frequently. She did it under the guise of doing all the things she saw as her motherly duties by bringing me meals and snacks and asking about laundry.
Even if there was a washing machine in the suite that I was fully capable of operating, she still felt compelled to take charge and help. And I knew it was mostly because she wanted to make sure I wasn’t spending so much time alone. I didn’t necessarily mind it. In fact, I felt a wave of gratitude wash over me whenever anyone in my family stopped by or reached out to check in on me. I only wished they’d been doing it for some other reason.
Since it was Saturday, and I wasn’t technically scheduled to work this weekend—although it was likely I’d find myself there anyway—I’d slept in. Though, to be fair, sleep had been difficult to come by these days. I tossed and turned throughout the night, never feeling like I got a full night of rest since before the failed proposal.
