Damaged Pieces (Cape Isle, #2): A Cape Isle Novel

by Allie Able

  “Yes, I do. Go home and don’t come back.” He turns his head and looks back at the wall.

  “That’s not going to happen. I love you and I’m not going to let you do this alone.”

  He looks at me sharply and clenches his fists. “Do you think you can fix me, Katie? Well, too fucking bad. I don’t want you here. I haven’t even let you in here for five days. Was that not enough of a clue for you? Am I going to have to spell it out? Well here it is. We are done. I don’t want anything to do with you or your daughter.”

  I suck in a sharp breath and shake my head. “You don’t mean that. You’re just hurting right now.”

  “Don’t sit there and tell me how I fucking feel,” he says through clenched teeth.

  “Nick,” I whisper.

  “No. I’m done. I want you to leave and I don’t want you to come back.”

  I blink my eyes, trying to hold back my tears, but one escapes. Nick watches the tear roll down my cheek, before looking away, again.

  “Get out,” he whispers in a low voice.

  I should have seen this coming, I should have prepared myself. Men never stay, especially when things get hard. I’m trying to remind myself that he is going through a lot right now, but it still hurts. I’m always the one who loves more, that’s my problem. Even though he is breaking my heart and being so cruel to me, I can’t find it in myself to hate him.

  I stand from my chair and look down at him. “So this is it, Nick?”

  He doesn’t answer, but his jaw clenches.

  “Maybe one day I’ll be what you need, but don’t wait too long because the day you decide you want me, may be the day I’ve finally given up,” I whisper.

  He looks back at me and I can see the pain in his eyes. I give him a short nod and turn towards the door. “I love you, Nick.”

  I don’t wait for him to respond, before walking out of the room and closing the door behind me. I lean back against it and close my eyes. Once again, I let a man become my happiness and that’s where I went wrong. I make a vow to myself that this will never happen again. It hurts to damn bad and I don’t think my heart will heal this time. I take a deep breath and push off of the door. I at least need to let his parents and Lexie know that I’m leaving.

  I walk into the waiting room and see that Grant and Summer are still there. One look at my face and I know they can see my heart is breaking. Grant clenches his jaw and shakes his head. Summer walks over to me and wraps me in a hug.

  “Do you want to ride home with us?” Grant asks.

  I squeeze Summer to me and nod my head. “Yeah, if you don’t mind,” I whisper.

  Summer pulls back and looks at my face. “We don’t mind at all.”

  Lexie walks into the waiting room and looks between me and Summer. “What did I miss?”

  I wipe my eyes and turn to look at her. “I’m going to head on home, but call me if you need me, okay?”

  She looks confused, as she shakes her head. I’m not going to tell her how cruel her brother is being. This is his family and it would be good for me to remember that. I look towards Harold and Lydia and give them both a little wave and a small smile.

  “I’ll call Haden and we will open the clinic tomorrow, Mr. Sinclaire.”

  He stands from his chair and looks down at his wife, before looking back at me. “Are you okay, Katie?” he asks.

  It takes everything I have not to break down and cry at his gentle question. I am determined not to break down here. I can cry and grieve my relationship when I get home and get Abbi to bed, but I will not do that here.

  I stand up straighter and nod my head. “I’m fine. Please call me if you need anything.” I turn to look at Summer and Grant. “Are you guys ready?”

  Summer gives me a sad smile and nods her head. “Let’s go,” she says as she walks towards the door, holding Grants hand.

  “Wait,” Lexie says. She grabs my upper arm and holds me still as she studies my face. “He didn’t,” she whispers.

  “Yeah, Lexie, he did. He’s hurting right now, but don’t let him push all of you away too. Call me if you need me.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  I nod as she hugs me briefly, before letting me go.

  I look back at Harold and Lydia one last time and they are both looking at me with sad eyes. I can’t handle that right now. I turn around and walk out the door of the waiting room and follow Grant and Summer down the hallway.

  * * *

  “Bye. Thank you for the ride,” I say as I grab my purse and climb out of Grants truck.

  “Call me, Katie,” Summer says with concern. I nod my head, but we both know that is not going to happen. I love Summer, but I just want to forget this day ever happened and try to move on the best I can.

  I close the door to the truck and wave as I make my way towards the front door. I thought about what I’m going to tell Abbi the entire drive from Beaufort and I still don’t know what in the hell I’m going to say. I called my parents and told them I was on the way home and they could go home tonight. I just want to be alone.

  “Hey, I’m here,” I say, as I hang my purse and jacket on the hook by the front door.

  “Hey, sweetheart,” my mom says from the kitchen.

  “Where are Abbi and Dad?” I ask.

  “They should be back any second. They walked down to the beach so Abbi could get some seashells. I already have dinner made and our bags are in the car. Are you sure you don’t want us to stay one more night?” she asks.

  I pull a bottle of water out of the fridge and shake my head. “No, I just want to eat, take a shower and go to bed.”

  She comes around the counter and pulls me into a hug. “Are you okay?” she asks.

  I nod against her shoulder. “I’m fine, mom.”

  She lets me go, as the front door opens. “If you need me just call me, okay?” she whispers.

  “Okay.”

  “Mom!” Abbi yells, as she comes running into the kitchen.

  “Hey, sweetie,” I say as I bend down and pull her into a hug, “I missed you.”

  “I missed you too. Look at all the cool seashells we found!” She says, as she holds out the bucket for me to look at.

  “Wow! Y’all found a lot.”

  She nods her head and smiles up at me.

  “Okay, go put those in the bowl and go get washed up for dinner.”

  “Okay,” she says, as she runs back towards the living room.

  “We’re going to go ahead and get on the road, Katie,” my dad says, as he walks over to give me a hug.

  “You’re welcome to stay for dinner,” I mumble.

  He pats my back and lets me go. “Thanks sweetheart, but we’re okay.”

  I nod my head and go hug my mom, again.

  “Thanks for watching Abbi.”

  “Anytime, Katie. You know that.”

  Abbi comes back into the kitchen and tells my mom and dad bye, before I walk them to the door.

  As we wave goodbye from the front porch, I look down at my daughter and I know she must be confused. I have never been away from her for that long before and I know I owe her an explanation. I just don’t want to break her heart too. When we can no longer see my parents’ car, we go back inside and I walk back to the kitchen to fix our plates, deciding to tell her after dinner.

  * * *

  “Are you almost ready for bed, Abbi?” I ask, as I pass her bathroom door.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Okay, I need to talk to you, so I will meet you in your room.”

  I walk into her room and sit down on her bed. I’m not going to make a big deal of this. I still don’t know how to explain this to her, but I’m going to try to make this as easy as possible.

  “What’s wrong?” she asks, as she walks into the room.

  “Nothing. Come sit down, sweetheart.”

  She crawls into the bed and sits up against her headboard, with her legs stretched out in front of her.

  “Okay, so this past week I was a
t a hospital a few hours away. Mr. Nick was hurt while he was working and I was there checking on him.”

  Her eyes get wide and she sits up a little straighter. “Is he okay?”

  I nod my head and place my hand on her leg.

  “He’s fine, Abbi, but I just wanted to let you know that he isn’t going to be around much anymore.”

  “Why?” she asks in a small voice.

  “I don’t know,” I say and the worst part is that I really don’t know.

  “Did I do something wrong?”

  “Absolutely not,” I answer quickly.

  “But he promised to come over for lots of dinner dates when he got home,” she says, and I watch a tear escape her eye.

  I open my arms and pull her in hug. “I know, sweetheart, but sometimes people make promises and something happens preventing them from keeping those promises.”

  “What is Mr. Nick’s reason?” she asks, holding me tightly.

  “I wish I knew, Abbi. I’m sorry sweetheart,” I whisper.

  My heart was already broken, when I left Nicks hospital room, but right now, as I hold my daughter while she cries, I know that I will never be the same. I can actually feel the pain in my chest. I will never forgive Nick for doing this to us. He made a promise to me, too. He made me feel like he was in this forever. I not only let him in my life, but I let him in Abbi’s life too. Never again, I vow to myself, never again will I love someone that deeply.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Nick

  4 months later

  I PULL INTO MY DRIVEWAY and shut my truck off. I relax back into my seat and take a look around. The house I bought needs a lot of work. Part of me just wants to say fuck it and move back to my condo, but something keeps stopping me from doing that. I was planning on doing all of the work myself, but I know I’m going to have to get help now.

  I’ve been going back and forth from my parents’ house to physical therapy in Beaufort, for the past few months. I’m mostly healed so they moved my physical therapy to the hospital in town.

  I’m still getting used to walking. I used a wheelchair for the first two months, until they fitted me for my prosthetic. I still have to use the chair sometimes when my leg hurts too bad to walk. It’s fucked up that I can still have pain in a limb that is no longer there. The doctor said that the phantom pain would get better with time, but it will always come back when I least expect it, kind of like the pain in my heart.

  I try not to think about Katie, but I can’t help it. I miss her. I miss her voice, her smile, her laugh, and even her smell. I miss the way she made me feel when I was with her. I know it’s my fault we aren’t together, but I couldn’t ask her to stay. I may be stuck with this life and this body, but she didn’t have to be.

  I sigh and shake my head, as I open the door to my truck. Saying I don’t think about Katie and Abbi is like saying I don’t breathe, it’s not something I plan to do it just happens on instinct.

  I slowly make my way up the stairs. This is something I’m still trying to master. Walking is one thing, but stairs are a bitch. I put the key in the door and push it open. Damn, now I remember why I bought this house, that view is amazing. I have only been here once in the four months I’ve been home. I had a lady come clean it every few weeks, but I wasn’t ready to move into the house I had planned to one day share with Katie and Abbi.

  I spend the next hour making a list of everything that needs renovating and by the time I’m done, I know I’m in over my head. I pull my cellphone out of my pocket and dial Grant.

  I started working for him part time last week, but now that I’m home for good I will start working full-time. My job will mostly be desk work, but every once in awhile I will have to go check out a job site.

  “What’s up?” he asks, when he answers the phone.

  “Hey, man. I hate to ask this, but I’m going to need more help on this house than I originally thought. Think you can come by and take a look?”

  “Yeah, I’ll be there in ten.”

  “Thanks brother.”

  “Anytime.”

  I disconnect and put the phone back in my pocket. I hate asking for help, but there is no way I can do all of this on my own. Even if I had both of my legs, this would take at least six months if I did it by myself. I wander around, looking through each room and double checking my list, while I wait on Grant to get here.

  I hear his truck when he pulls into the driveway and I go to the front porch to meet him.

  “The outside looks good,” he says, as he makes his way up the stairs.

  I stick my hand out for him to shake. “Yeah, the structure is solid. I want to have someone look at the roof, but I don’t think it will have to be replaced. Thanks for coming by.”

  “I wasn’t busy and I’ve been itching to get inside this house since you told me you bought it.”

  I lead the way inside and into the living room.

  “Damn. I thought my house had a great view, but this one may be better. Don’t tell Summer I said that,” he jokes.

  “Your secret is safe with me,” I chuckle.

  I show him each room and we go over all of the plans I’ve made so far. He adds a few things that I haven’t thought of and an hour later we are done.

  “I’ve got to look at our schedule, but I think we can start next week. We can get it done pretty fast if we work a little at night too. I know some of the guys will want some overtime, if you’re willing to pay it.”

  I nod my head. “Yeah, we haven’t even started and I already want to be done.”

  “It’s been awhile since I got my hands dirty. I’m looking forward to it.”

  “Is Summer at the bakery today?” I ask.

  “You know it. I can barely get her to take a few hours off, much less an entire day. I was actually about to ride up there and get a coffee. You coming?”

  I look down at my watch and I see that It’s almost 3:00 pm.

  “Yeah, I have to get a few more things from my condo anyway. The new owners are moving in on Friday, so that only gives me two days to be out and have it cleaned. I’m going to lock up here and I’ll meet you over there.”

  “Do you need help moving anything,” he asks, as he glances down at my leg.

  He can’t see my prosthetic. It’s the middle of June and it’s hot as hell outside, but I’m wearing blue jeans. I’m not comfortable with people seeing my leg and I don’t know if I ever will be.

  “Fuck you, Grant. It’s just a couple of boxes.”

  He holds his hands up in surrender. “I was just asking. Don’t get all pissy on me.”

  I shake my head, but I don’t respond as I walk him to the door. “I’ll see you in a minute.”

  He jerks his head up in a nod and walks to his truck. I make sure all of the doors are locked, before walking out to my truck and driving the short distance to the bakery.

  I pull around to the back parking lot and cut my truck off. I haven’t been into the bakery since I came back home. Hell, I don’t think I’ve gone anywhere around town since I’ve been home. It’s a small town and everyone knows what happened to me. I would rather avoid all of the questions and the pitying looks if I can.

  I walk around to the front of the shop and go inside. There are a few people in line and a few more sitting outside, but I don’t see anyone I know. Grant comes through the kitchen door, carrying what looks like boxes and sets them down on the counter.

  “Did she put you to work?” I ask.

  He smiles and shakes his head. “Nah, she’s stubborn. I had to take them away from her.”

  Summer walks through the kitchen door, carrying a couple of boxes and rolls her eyes. “You would think I was an invalid. I re-stock the front on my own every week. I’m fully capable of carrying a few boxes.”

  “Well, you don’t have to when I’m here,” he says, as he kisses her forehead. I look away when I feel the tightening in my chest. I’ve avoided spending time with them over the past few months. I’m glad things are goi
ng so well in their relationship, I just don’t want to be reminded of what I’m missing.

  “Hey, big brother,” Lexie says, when she finishes up with her line of customers.

  “Hey, Lex. Can I get a coffee please?”

  “Sure. Grant, do you want one too?” she asks.

  “Yep. Thank you, Lexie.”

  “No problem,” she replies, as she grabs two cups and makes her way down to the other side of the counter.

  “What are you guys up to?” Summer asks, as she starts loading the boxes under the counter.

  “Grant came by my house to help me go over the renovation plans.”

  Summer stops what she’s doing and looks over my shoulder. Her eyes get big as she looks back at me.

  “Fuck,” Grant mumbles under his breath.

  “What is it?” I ask, turning around to look behind me.

  I feel like I’ve been punched in the gut when I see Katie and Abbi walking up the sidewalk towards the bakery. I’ve looked at the pictures of her on my phone over a thousand times in the past few months, but they don’t do her justice. She looks so fucking beautiful. She is wearing light blue scrubs and her hair is up in a ponytail. I can’t tell from this far away, but I would be willing to bet she isn’t wearing a stitch of makeup. I use to love to count all of those freckles on her face.

  She hasn’t seen me, yet. I think about ducking into the back room and waiting until she leaves to come out, but I know I have to see her at some point. We live in a small town and we have mutual friends. I might as well get use to it.

  She opens the door and lets Abbi walk through first. She has her head down, but the second she looks up her eyes collide with mine. She sucks in a sharp breath and comes to a stop right inside the door. We stare at each other in silence. Her eyes leave mine and travel down my body and I have to hide a flinch when realize that she isn’t checking me out, she’s looking at my leg.

  “Mom?” I hear Abbi question, and my eyes go to her. She is looking at Katie in confusion. Katie’s eyes leave me, as she shakes her head and gives her daughter a forced smile.

  Abbi doesn’t notice me until they are almost up to the counter and, when I see the look in her eyes, I wish I would have hidden in the back room. She is giving me a look much like the one her mom had, a mixture of hurt and confusion, and it almost kills me.