The Rules of Heartbreak
Book One: The Heartbreak Series
Brittany Taylor
The Rules of Heartbreak
Brittany Taylor
Copyright © 2021 by Brittany Taylor
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Resemblance to actual persons, things, living or dead, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.
Cover Design: Amanda Shepard of Shepard Originals
Editing: Editing by C. Marie
Proofing: Tiffany Hernandez
Formatting: Ashley Munoz
Created with Vellum
Contents
Prologue
Rule #1
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Rule #2
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Rule # 3
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Rule # 4
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Rule #5
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Epilogue
More to Come
Also by Brittany
The Heartbreak Series
Acknowledgments
About Brittany
To Lisa
For being the mother I didn’t know I needed,
and for encouraging me to always keep going for what I want in this life.
I love you for your strength and for your unwavering belief in me.
Especially in the times I had trouble believing in myself.
Prologue
Death is a beast that wears many masks.
Some deaths cut deeper than others. Some barely leave a scratch.
My mother’s death was the latter of the two.
She’s been dead for years. Well, that’s not entirely true. She’s only been dead for the past four months, but the amount of time my mother has actually been dead doesn’t make a difference to me either way. It may sound harsh, but she never gave me any reason to think she cared for me at all. For years, I’ve accepted the cards I was dealt in my life—a mother who had no interest in her daughter.
It was easier to believe she was dead than it was to believe she was the shitty mother she was in real life. I simply didn’t allow her choice of abandonment to ruin my life. It’s nearly impossible to allow yourself to be hurt by something you’ve never had. How can you be sad about something you never lost in the first place?
Still, my mother’s actual death had nothing on the other kinds of death I’ve experienced. Those were the ones that tore the life I had built to shreds. Those were the ones that made my decision to move to Austin an easy one.
And this time, I’ll be ready for any heartbreaks or deaths that come my way.
Rule #1
When you catch your fiancé having an affair with your best friend, start your life completely over.
Chapter One
“It’s so fucking hot.” I tip my chin up to the clear blue sky and squint my eyes against the bright sun. Sweat drips down my face, sliding its way down the back of my neck. My back aches and my skin heats with the mid-June sun scorching across every inch of my body. I swipe the back of my hand across my wet skin.
My chest has transformed to a light shade of pink, highlighting the faint freckles dotted across my skin, and my hair is saturated with sweat. I inhale a deep breath and crack my eyes open, dreading the last box I need to finish loading into my house. I don’t even bother picking it up. Instead, I stick my foot out and scoot it across the threshold of the front door. The box scrapes against the pavement before sliding across the hardwood of the front entrance of my mother’s old house. Or, I guess I should say my new house—a fact I still haven’t been able to wrap my head around. I leave the box sitting on the floor with the rest of the boxes I’ve already stuffed inside.
“Exhausted?” Liam passes me with his arms wrapped around a box, carrying it inside. His eyebrows arch across his forehead, the corner of his mouth curling.
“A little.” I smirk, wiping my hands on the front of my shorts.
Liam walks back outside, headed for the truck parked in my driveway. I lean against the door jamb and stare outside, taking in my new neighborhood. My eyes dance across the street, taking it all in. It’s surprising to me that up until three months ago, I never knew my mother lived in a place like this. In fact, I shouldn’t be surprised at all. I never knew a single thing about her, not even so much as her hair color, until her lawyer showed up at my doorstep. It’s funny how in the twenty-four years since she gave birth to me, she never made any effort to get to know me. Instead, she decides to leave me her house in Austin, Texas. Nice touch, Mother.
In a way, my mother’s dying wish to have me inherit her house has become a blessing. I didn’t realize how bad I wanted to get out of Minnesota until the opportunity presented itself.
Life in Minnesota was colder and more isolating.
Not here.
The hot Texas air warms my body, burrowing itself deep in my bones. The people here seem to be happy. It feels as if I’ve transported myself to a whole different world, away from the life I was living, opening up the possibility to start a new one.
I cross my arms over my chest and rest my head against the door frame of my new home. The sun shines across my driveway as my brother steps out of the back of the moving truck.
He rakes his fingers through his damp hair. “Are you sure this was a good idea, Sloan?”
“What?” I ask him, faking a smile. It’s the thousandth time he’s asked me this question. “Liam, we’ve already loaded everything into the house. There’s no way in hell I’m taking it all back out even if I wanted to.”
“I know, I know.” He holds his hands up. “I’ve probably asked you too many times.”
“Only about a thousand times.”
He dramatically sighs, following it up with a shrug. He moves past me and bends down to pick up a box labeled Kitchen, carrying it down the hall.
I don’t follow him. I’m enjoying the view of my street too much from where I’m standing. The neighborhood is nice, definitely a few steps up from the cabin I grew up in back in Minnesota.
The exterior of the houses are covered in brick, each one a different shade than the one beside it. The yards are large, giving each house a good amount of separation. Even though the grass has turned a light shade of brown under the scorching summer sun, the neighborhood is still beautiful. The two-story houses are full of life, home to families of all kinds. An older couple walking their dog passes by. They smile and wave before continuing on their way.
Liam returns from the kitchen
a few minutes later. This time his arms are empty. He catches my attention, and I glance over my shoulder long enough to see him walking down the hall.
“I’ll never stop asking you if you still think this was a good idea,” he says with a heavy breath. “This place is fucking hot as hell.”
I laugh, pointing at his clothes. “It is when you’re dressed like that. Leave it to the man from Minnesota to still be wearing jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt when it’s nearly a hundred degrees out.” This time I give him a genuine smile.
“Hey, I’m not the one who decided to move to a different state where they know absolutely no one.” Liam arches his eyebrows, sarcasm dripping from his tongue. I let his comment slide, knowing how hurt he is that I’ve decided to leave Minnesota.
I look down, keeping my arms crossed over my chest. I frown, dragging the tip of my sandal across the concrete. “There’s nothing left for me up there, anyway.”
“That’s not exactly true.” Liam frowns. “But I can understand how you would feel that way.”
I can sense part of him is still angry about what happened between me and my ex. He’s always been protective of me. While Liam’s anger still boils, mine has been reduced to a mere simmer. To some degree, I still feel what he did. Don’t get me wrong—finding my fiancé fucking my best friend on our dining room table was enough to make me carry an entire life of hatred, but I decided to move on, to attempt to start a new life. The past few months have allowed me to transform the knots twisted in my chest into nothing but loose unraveled tendrils. My old life has now become a memory, a recollection of what used to be. The pain doesn’t cut me the same way it did when I found out about Cole’s affair. I’ve simply learned to live with it.
Liam’s eyebrows knit, sadness pooling in his irises. “You still have me and Mark.”
Liam is my brother, but not in the traditional sense. His mom married my dad when I was three years old and Liam was four. Since we were so young when our parents married, I don’t remember a time when he wasn’t in my life.
I nod but can’t bring myself to look at Liam. I’ll miss him and his husband, Mark, but I know deep down this was the right choice. For the first time, I feel like I’m finally grabbing my life by the horns, directing it exactly where I want it to go. Which is here, in Texas.
“I promise, this is where I’m supposed to be. I may not know anyone yet, but I will. I have plenty to do around the house, and I’ll start looking for a summer job to pull in extra money. I’ll be good, don’t worry.” I cross my arms over my damp chest and nod my head back toward the house.
“I’m sorry I keep asking you.” He sighs. “I’m just going to miss you, that’s all. I’m glad you were able to find a job quickly.”
“It wasn’t too difficult to get certified here in Texas. I’m just thankful I was able to snag the third-grade teaching position in this school district. My commute doesn’t seem too awful.”
This coming school year is the first year I’ll be teaching out of college. It was only a week after graduation when I found out about Cole and Brenna’s affair. As horrendous as it was, Cole’s indiscretion came at the most opportune time. Finding a job such as this one in Austin is nearly unheard of for a teacher fresh out of college, and I consider myself lucky—lucky and relieved. I truly am starting my life over in every sense.
“That’s good.” Liam nods, pressing his lips into a thin line. The corner curls into a smirk. “Plus, you’re right about this place. You’ll have plenty to do around here. It’s missing that Sloan Montgomery touch.”
I shrug. “I’ll see what I can do. She might not have had the best taste in design, but this is a nice house.” I clear my throat. “At least it’s one thing I’ve learned about Ellie that I didn’t know before. In fact, it’s the only thing.”
“You have a good point.” Liam nods in agreement.
I narrow my gaze, attempting a smile. Standing here with Liam has become more weighted and emotional than I expected it to be. “The offer still stands, you know. You and Mark are always welcome to move down here. I bet Mark would love it here.”
“Maybe.” He frowns, considering the idea. His eyebrows dip and the thoughts clearly swirl in his eyes, but disappointment fills his expression when he tilts his head. “I don’t know, Sloan. It’s a big deal. I’d have to talk to Mark.”
I nod, unraveling my arms and sliding my hands into the front pockets of my shorts. “I understand, but you will both have to at least visit. I won’t accept anything less.” I smile, hoping this offer cheers him up.
“Are you kidding me? Of course we will.” He grabs my hand and holds it between us. Tears well in his eyes. After a heavy sigh, he clears his throat and releases his grasp. He bends down to pick up another box, but I stop him.
“You don’t have to do any more, Liam. I’ve got it from here.”
He straightens his back, swiping his hand across his forehead the same way I did a few moments ago. “It feels like you’re trying to run me out of here.”
“I’m not, but I know Mark needs you back at home, and you only have about two hours before your flight leaves.” I place a reassuring hand on his shoulder. My fingers stick to the sweat on his back, and I immediately regret placing it there. I move it away and wipe it across the front of my shorts. Liam’s eyes follow my hand before he looks down at his shirt, scrunching his nose.
“Do you mind if I take a quick shower before I head out? I don’t think I should be going on a plane when I feel and smell like this.” The corners of his mouth dip in disgust.
I laugh. “Of course you can.”
“Okay.” He gives me a small smile and runs out to the truck to grab his bag. When he comes back inside, he heads for the stairs but stops when he lands on the second step. “I can still reschedule my flight. I can leave tomorrow instead.” He’s grasping at straws.
Liam and I both drove down here in the moving truck, my car attached to a trailer behind it. We made it just in time for his return flight home. The longer he stands here, the more I realize how much I’m going to miss him.
“Seriously, Liam. I’m fine.”
A dot of sweat slides down his cheek, or maybe it’s a tear. I can’t tell at this point.
He clears his throat. “Right.” He doesn’t offer up any other reasons for me to question my move here before he disappears upstairs. Once I hear the shower running, I start to dig through one of the boxes piled in the front entrance. I start with the easy box, labeled Blankets. I lift all of them out of the box and carry them to my bedroom.
Not only did my mother leave me her house in her will, she also left me everything inside of it as well. This includes her bed. Part of me feels odd using it, not knowing a single thing about the woman who slept in it. The same applies to every bit of furniture in this house. Eventually I’ll replace it all with my own furniture, but I don’t have a choice tonight, at least not until I have the time to take a trip down to the mattress store. Cole kept ours after our breakup, and I’ve been sleeping in Liam’s guest bedroom. It will feel good to have a bed of my own. For tonight, this will have to do.
On the way back downstairs, I avoid looking at the pictures lining the wall in the upstairs hallway. There are only a handful framed and nailed to the wall and only one containing a picture of my mother. The other pictures are all scenic. Mountains, palm trees, beaches, you name it. It’s an odd, eclectic collection of photographs, but so was my mother it appears. The one picture of her is the only time I’ve ever come close to seeing what she looked like. Her head is tilted back in laughter, leaving only half her face visible. Although her eyes are closed, it’s her smile I notice first. I only know the woman in the picture is my mother because it’s the same as mine. I stare at the photograph as a pit grows in the bottom of my stomach. I take a deep breath then walk away, hoping the feeling will pass.
When Liam is finished with his shower, he finds me sitting on the couch in the living room. I have my feet propped up on the coffee table, and I’v
e been scrolling through social media on my phone, the reality of my new life staring me directly in the face. He grabs a glass from one of the boxes in the kitchen and fills it with water from the tap without speaking a word. We both know it’s time for him to leave.
“Are you all set?” I carefully ask him. Even though Liam and I are adults, it still saddens me to know he won’t be a quick five-minute drive away anymore. We’ve never lived so far apart.
“I think so.” He smirks, glancing around at all the boxes scattered throughout the first floor of my house. “Are you?”
I follow his gaze and study each box, taking in all the work I have ahead of me. There’s no denying there’s a lot for me to go through and set up, but part of me is looking forward to it. I’m building a life of my own, one without anyone else. I look Liam in the eyes and nod. “I am.”
“Good.” After grabbing his bag, he tosses it over his shoulder and heads to the front door. I follow him out to the driveway and catch up to him. He wraps his arm around me, keeping me close. We walk quietly, listening to our feet drag across the pavement.
Once we make it to the truck, Liam opens the door but abruptly stops. I wince when his elbow jabs into mine, his stare focused out on the street. “Oh my god.” His jaw drops and I follow his gaze, trying to see what he’s looking at.
The Rules of Heartbreak: An Enemies-to-Lovers/Next-Door Neighbor Romance (The Heartbreak Series Book 1) Page 1