Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 88060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“I can’t.”
She let out a disbelieving laugh. “Why not, Liam? Why can’t you tell Aurora how you feel?”
“Because I promised Hope I wouldn’t be with Aurora!”
The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them.
“What?” she slowly asked. “You did what? Why? Why in the world would Hope ask you to promise her that, and why would you agree?”
I looked down at the ground. “The day Hope died, she asked me if I had feelings other than friendship for Aurora and made me promise not to lie to her. I made the mistake of telling her the truth, and the hurt in her eyes about killed me. I regretted it the moment the words were out. She broke down in tears, and she was in so much pain, and I knew she didn’t have much time left. She made me promise her that I wouldn’t…that I wouldn’t let any other woman raise Winnie. She made me promise that no one but you or I could watch her. No daycare at all. She wanted her to be raised in this house, not in any other. She was losing her mind at the end and…fuck, she had all these things she didn’t want me to do, and I felt like it was the least I could do for not being able to tell her I loved her. I was going to be raising her daughter, and she would be gone. It didn’t seem fair.”
Mary blinked a few times. “You know what isn’t fair? My sister asking you to make those promises. She made a promise to you, too, Liam, and she broke it. Not once, but twice! If not more times. How unfair of her to deny you happiness because she couldn’t have what she wanted. Yes, she was my sister, but what she has done to you makes me so angry I could scream.
“She knew you didn’t love her and that the only reason you were with her was one, because of Winnie, and two, because she got cancer. I loved my sister, Liam. I miss her more than anything, but she betrayed you in more than one way, and if you can’t say it out loud, then I will. She not only caused you pain before, but she is doing it now by controlling your every move and denying you the ability to listen to your own heart. You need to forget all about those stupid promises, let go of the guilt you are carrying and be honest with yourself and Aurora. You deserve to find out where this might lead.”
She reached for my hand and squeezed it once again. I turned to her and saw the tears in her eyes and felt my own eyes burn.
“Liam, you deserve happiness. You deserve to have someone love you for who you are. If you can’t listen to your own heart, then listen to me. I was the closest person to Hope besides you, and I’m telling you this because I need you to hear it. Let go of your guilt. Let go of Hope. You’re not the reason she got cancer. Her lying to you about Winnie or Ronald isn’t the reason she got cancer. It was dumb fucking luck that she got cancer, and she had no right to use that against you in the way that she did. Yes, she was sick, and maybe she didn’t realize she was doing it, but either way, it was wrong. Stop thinking about what Hope wanted and start thinking about what you want and the future you want for Winnie.”
Our eyes met again, and this time I didn’t bother to try and hold back my tears.
“When did you get so wise?”
She smiled and shrugged. “I don’t know, but this adulting shit is for the birds! My emotions are all over the damn place and I need chocolate and ice cream so freaking bad right now.”
We both laughed. Mary reached over and hugged me. When we drew apart, she said, “Talk to Aurora, Liam.”
Nodding, I replied, “I will.”
Her brow rose.
Laughing once again, I said, “I promise, I will.”
The sound of Winnie’s voice calling for me caused me to turn and look at the playground. She was jumping with excitement and motioning for me to come to her. I stood and kept my gaze on her.
“If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go play with my daughter.”
Aurora
I held up the white kitten and smiled. “Isn’t she adorable?”
My sister sneezed. “No. She’s going to make me miserable.”
With a roll of my eyes, I said, “You’re not allergic to her, Lou. You just don’t want to clean out the litter box.”
Pointing her finger to her nose, she said, “Bingo.”
“I’m not cleaning it,” Granny said while folding her arms over her chest as she leaned against the counter.