Where Promises Die: A Second Chance Romance

by R. C. Stephens

  “Why are you telling me this? Jacob is your brother too,” Eisav asked warily, especially after he noticed her message him earlier.

  “Because I was witness to yours and Grace’s love story. That girl adored you from the day she landed on our doorstep. I may have not have much romance in my life, but I’m a romantic at heart,” she said, turning her mouth down. “I believe Grace is your happy ending, not Jacob’s. Gosh! I remember when you two connected and Grace would return to our room late at night, all giddy. That was love, Eisav, real, true, gritty, searing into your soul love. Don’t walk away even if she’s trying to push you away. She’s hurting. She’s been hurt. Those wounds need time to heal. I do believe she’ll come around if you keep at it. She feels let down by you too. You need to prove to her that you want back in her life for good. I mean if that’s why you’re here … to get her back …”

  Eisav leaned in and gave his sister a peck on the cheek. “Thank you, Marie, and yes, I’m here to get her back, but I also want you, Greta, and Ida in my life too. I’ve lived a long time on my own. I want my family back. That’s if you want to stay in touch.”

  With tears streaming down her cheeks, Marie flung her arms around her brother. “Of course. I’ve missed you and Ida so much.”

  Eisav squeezed his eyes shut.

  “Thank you, Marie,” he finally answered. Then he pulled away and ordered another gin and tonic and Marie another beer. “We need to work on finding you a happily ever after too. You’re no old maid. You shouldn’t talk like that.”

  Marie winked. “With Father gone, I plan to work on it.”

  The siblings fell into easy conversation for the rest of the night. To Eisav it felt like the air had been cleared between them. His phone vibrated in his back pocket so he pulled it out to see a message from Ilana.

  How ya doing, big fella?

  Could be better.

  Need a friend? I could be on the next plane.

  As Eisav gazed at the text message he gave Marie a sideward glance before responding.

  I need a friend. Charge the ticket to my account. I’ll send you the address.

  Wooohooo!

  Are you ready for Sade?

  He could only imagine what was going through Ilana’s mind. She really was a good friend. She knew how unaccepting this town would be to someone gay, and yet she was coming to provide her support. He would have never made it through the last two and a half years without her.

  The next message caused Eisav to laugh out loud.

  Oh ya, baby! Sade, Iowa, the lesbian is coming!

  While Eisav was texting, Marie slipped her own cell phone out from her back pocket to read a text. She then slipped her phone back into her back pocket. Whatever she read seemed to bring her relief because she blew out a breath.

  “What’s so funny?” Marie inquired, wanting in on the joke.

  “My assistant Ilana is coming to Sade. I can’t wait for you to meet her.”

  “The gay assistant?” Marie asked with a long bob in her throat.

  “The very gay and very pretty assistant. Yes. This is going to be fun, Marie.” Eisav winked and threw back more gin and tonic.

  The next morning Eisav awoke with new vigor. His talk with Marie the night before had done some good for his soul. He was relieved to hear Grace and Jacob were not as tight as Jacob made them out to be. He was happy to have heard that his sister tried to contact him. The mere attempt made the large gap filled with loneliness feel a little smaller.

  Ilana texted when she landed in Des Moines, saying she would be cabbing over once she collected her luggage. He couldn’t wait for his mother to set eyes on her. With half of her blond head shaved and ink running down her left arm, she didn’t exactly fit into the narrow-minded idealism of Sade.

  Needing a shower, Eisav grabbed a change of clothes and left his bedroom in a pair of boxer shorts. He had been living on his own for a long time now, and Isaac wasn’t around to berate him. Strutting down the hall to the bathroom, he thought, Fuck you, Isaac Duncan. What would the only father he had known think of him waltzing down the hall half naked with his beloved Grace sleeping across the hall.

  As Eisav passed Grace’s room, his heart picked up speed as the bedroom door opened and his eyes landed on Grace, wearing her old, worn bathrobe. “Hey.” Eisav paused, giving her a panty-melting grin.

  Grace’s cheeks flushed and she came to a dead stop, her eyes dropping to his chest, veering a little lower to his abdomen before shooting back up to his eyes. “Hi,” she murmured, and he noticed her throat bob.

  “How was your night?” Eisav continued, wanting to hold onto this moment for as long as he could. He liked being this close to her. He liked feeling the effects he had on her, even if she was determined to hide it.

  “I’ve had a lot on my mind. I went to bed early,” she answered as if Eisav should understand her.

  “Yeah, I went to the Dirty Dog with Marie. I was hoping to clear my mind with some gin, but what I found out was so much better,” Eisav responded with a wink. “I hope we can catch up later,” he said with a salacious grin. Grace furrowed her brows, and Eisav stalked off with a shit-eating grin.

  “Eisav, we can’t. Jacob is old fashioned. He wouldn’t want us spending time together,” she called out to him.

  He turned around to close the distance between them. “What do you want, Gracie?” Eisav retorted, taking another step toward her. She took a step back and now it was his turn to furrow a brow. Grace remained quiet. “If I remember correctly, you wanted to go to art school in New York,” his voice lowered.

  “Sometimes dreams change. They get replaced with new dreams,” Grace replied. Eisav tried to decipher her meaning, but failed.

  “I don’t want that for you, Gracie. I want to make all your dreams come true. I won’t let you sit here and accept this as fate.” He took another step closer and couldn’t resist brushing his thumb along her jaw, feeling that familiar electricity from just one small touch.

  Grace’s breath hitched and a long moment passed before she could recollect her thoughts. “Things are complicated. I can’t just pick up and run off into the sunset with you. I told you I want to be with Jacob. I wouldn’t have agreed to marry him if I didn’t. Please respect my wishes.”

  “I’m not backing away, angel,” Eisav quipped, brushing his thumb in a rhythmic motion back and forth along her jaw.

  She didn’t try to pull away. She seemed frozen, or maybe mesmerized. She finally lifted her gaze to his cobalt eyes, and he sensed something stirring in the depth of her irises.

  Something warm stirred in Eisav’s stomach too.

  Grace shut her eyes tight, remaining quiet for a moment before she opened her eyes and spoke, “I belong to someone else now.”

  “It doesn’t have to be that way. I plan on winning you back. I won’t back down. I’ll show you, you can trust me. I’ll make all my promises come true. I’ll put my entire life on hold for you until you realize you were truly only ever mine. Mine, Gracie,” he repeated before leaning forward and placing a gentle kiss on her cheek.

  The feel of her warm skin against his lips caused his heart to flutter. Grace remained still, as if she were frozen. Then he pulled away and strut off toward the bathroom for a shower, leaving her standing in the hallway.

  Grace’s knees felt wobbly and her heart beat fast as she trudged back into her bedroom. She truly believed he would never return. He had left her behind, and she hated him for it. Now with a little attention from him and a small kiss, she was a wanton mess. She wondered if Father Joseph had really broken her or her problem of not getting turned on sexually had to do with the fact the Jacob wasn’t Eisav. Just the feel of his lips on her cheek had sparked things inside her she thought had died long ago. Her feelings didn’t matter, though, because she was committed to Jacob, and it was a commitment she didn’t plan on backing away from. Jacob was everything that Eisav wasn’t. He was reliable and transparent. With Eisav you never knew what you were getting, with Ja
cob you did.

  Eisav’s dick was hard like a rock as he thought of what Grace was wearing underneath her robe. His stiff cock had become too familiar with his right hand over the years, but somehow it had been manageable—until now. Having Grace in such close proximity, pressing his lips to her warm skin, ignited his passion tenfold. His psychiatrist back in LA had made the diagnosis that his depression and sense of loss had suppressed his sexual appetite. It didn’t seem reasonable to the good old doctor that someone in Eisav’s position could completely abstain. He had the most beautiful women falling at his feet, and he had rejected them all. There had been moments when he wanted to give in to passion, but then he remembered the look on Grace’s face years ago when she had found out about his trips to Des Moines at night. She had looked defeated, sad, and possessively jealous. He didn’t want to cause her that kind of pain again. Now he would have to make himself come hard just so he could calm down enough and clear his head in order to win her back.

  After his shower, Eisav headed to the main floor, wearing a pair of worn jeans with rips in the legs and a black T-shirt that hugged his chest and biceps. He had noticed how Grace reacted to his body, and he was going to use whatever weapon necessary to win her back.

  He made his way into the kitchen and smiled at Marie and Grace, sitting at the table having a cup of coffee. “Hey, where’s Ida?” he asked, turning his head around. He took a few steps to peek into the family room. He should have checked in on her last night but his mind was in overdrive and he forgot. He would have to be more diligent from here on out.

  “She’s outside having a cigarette by the back door. She doesn’t feel like she has to run off to the forest anymore now that we all know she smokes,” Marie explained. “Even though I worry. I mean she smokes like a chimney.”

  “Honestly, Marie, that’s better than doing other shit. At least for now.” Eisav stopped to take a mug out of the cabinet. He poured some coffee from the carafe and walked over to the kitchen table, taking a seat beside Grace. She had been quiet until now but gave him an awkward, sidelong glance.

  “You’re right,” Marie replied.

  “Of course.” Grace smiled slightly, lifting her eyes to the two siblings.

  A knock on the main door pulled their attention from each other. Eisav shot up from his chair and went to open the door for Ilana.

  “Hey.” He smiled, leaning down to give her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

  He didn’t know Grace had tensed behind him and wondered who the woman at the door was.

  “Holy crap is it windy out here. I forgot what it’s like living in the Midwest during tornado season.” Ilana smiled, looking up to Eisav with her sparkling blue eyes.

  Eisav grabbed hold of her suitcases and turned to his sister Marie and Grace. “This is Ilana. She’s my assistant,” was his only explanation. He noticed Ilana eyeing him warily. “This is my sister, Marie, and my friend, Grace.” He tilted his chin to the table where they were seated. “Come, let’s put your stuff in my room,” Eisav said with a demanding voice. Ilana kept quiet and followed.

  Back in his room he fell on his bed holding his head.

  “Why are we roommates?” Ilana asked, holding a hand at each side of her waist.

  “There are no extra rooms in the house. Is it a problem? I don’t hog the covers.” Eisav shrugged his shoulders. His room was a far cry from the lavish hotels Ilana was used to when she traveled with the band.

  “I can make do.” Her voice sounded a little high pitched, and Eisav threw his head back, laughing. Ilana stalked over to the bed and waited expectantly, taking a seat beside him and crossing her legs. “So fill me in.”

  “Seriously, that may take a life time,” he scoffed.

  “So give me the short version.” Her eyes widened, still waiting. She had heard about Grace for the past two and a half years. Now she wanted details.

  “Basically, my parents are a bunch of fucking liars who had affairs and cheated on each other. My father isn’t really my father. And oh yeah! Grace was his daughter and that’s why he was so fucking pissed when he found us that night. And apparently the priest wasn’t actually a priest and he fucked with Grace and my brother, Jacob, saved her and fucking hell my brother is engaged to Grace now,” he blurted out, barely taking a breath.

  Ilana’s jaw fell slack. “That’s some messed-up shit right there, and I thought my family had issues,” she snickered.

  “That’s not all. Ida’s a recovering drug addict. I need you looking into a facility for her. Even though I don’t know if I’m going back to LA. We will get to that in a moment and another thing … my sister, Marie, is a lesbian.” He let out a long breath.

  “Holy mother of all drama.” Ilana fell back on the bed beside him and placed her arms under her head. They both stared up to the ceiling quietly for a few moments. “Your sister is hot.” Ilana finally broke the silence.

  “I thought you’d say that. I figured you know … maybe you two could talk. She’s kind of had a lot of issues about coming out, and I thought you could maybe relate or something …”

  “You don’t have to ask me twice.” Ilana gave him a knowing look.

  “This is one of those times I won’t need details … Remember, she’s my sister.” Eisav rolled his eyes at her playfully.

  “Come on, we better head back down, it sounds like you had one hell of a welcome home with all that info you just dumped on me. I’m sure we’ll have time to dissect all that once we’re back in LA.”

  Eisav took Ilana’s hand and guided her back to the kitchen where Marie and Grace were murmuring quietly when they entered. He didn’t want to tell Ilana that he didn’t plan on returning to LA. He was not going to leave without Grace, and he didn’t know how long it would take for him to win her back.

  Eisav made Ilana a cup of coffee just the way she liked it. As he stirred the milk in the mug, he noticed Grace watching him, her lips pursed together looking deep in thought.

  “So I’ve heard all about you, Grace.” Ilana smiled, taking a seat beside her at the table.

  “You have?” Grace asked with a surprised tone.

  “Yeah.” Ilana furrowed her brows together. “Seriously, have you not heard his songs? Every single one I think is about you in some way.” Ilana smiled. “Give me a minute. I’m going to go up to my suitcase.” She stood up. “I have a collection of his CDs that I always take with me. I’ll bring them down.” Ilana turned to leave the kitchen just as Jacob walked in. She swiveled her head looking between him and Eisav. It was clear they were brothers, but she hadn’t even introduced herself yet and she already had a distaste for the guy.

  “Ilana, that’s my twin, Jacob,” Eisav explained as if he were mentioning the weather. If he had issues with his twin prior to being kicked out of the family, now they were astronomical.

  Ilana responded coldly, “Nice to meet you.” She didn’t even offer to shake his hand.

  Jacob walked over to Grace and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I didn’t hear you come down.”

  “I just got here. I was chatting with Marie,” Grace reassured Jacob.

  Jacob nodded and went to the kettle for some hot water.

  A moment later Ilana walked back into the kitchen holding a pile of CDs. “Our man here has been a busy guy,” she said placing them on the table in front of Grace. “Here, start with this one. It’s my favorite.” She said, pulling out a CD that had the cover of a shirtless Eisav leaning on his guitar with a smoky seductive look in his eyes.

  Grace smiled to Ilana. “Thank you.”

  “What is it?” Jacob walked over to the kitchen table and picked up the CD. He rubbed at his temples. The dark circles under his eyes looked like he hadn’t slept. Eisav wondered if he felt threatened by him. “Seriously, Grace, you want to listen to this stuff?”

  “That’s not stuff, Jacob. Your brother took home an award from the AMA for that album,” Ilana bit back, clearly annoyed with Jacob. The tension in the kitchen had now become palpable. Eisa
v felt the need to diffuse it or maybe diffuse Ilana, who had confused herself with being his guard. Yes, he appreciated her devotion, but the tension in the family was running high as it was without him throwing his career in their faces.

  Grace shrugged her shoulders. “Come on, Jacob. It’s no big deal, just some music.”

  Jacob ignored her and turned to his siblings. “We have to be at the funeral home in an hour for the viewing. Mother thought we should all go together. Show some family unity. You know there probably won’t be many people showing their respects because of the circumstances,” he explained in a heavy, distraught tone. Eisav imagined how let down he must have felt to find out that the man he wanted to be like so much was a fraud.

  “Yeah, sure.” Marie got up and went to the sink to rinse her coffee cup.

  Eisav wasn’t in the mood to be so cordial. He didn’t feel like he owed Isaac any respect, but clearly his siblings did and he wanted back in their lives, so he nodded. “Yeah, man.” He took Ilana by the hand and guided her up the stairs. From the distance he could hear Jacob and Grace talking, and it didn’t sound amicable.

  “Eisav, what are you doing?” Ilana pulled her hand out of his, berating him.

  “What?” Eisav asked with a confused look.

  “Do you want Grace to think there’s something going on between us?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Huh, what? Yes … no … I don’t know …” He pinched the bridge of his nose. “When Grace and I were younger, before we hooked up she came home one day and said she had a date with a really big player from town. The thought of her going on a date drove me completely crazy and through the craze we somehow let all inhibitions fly out the window and we got together. I guess I was hoping she would be jealous and come stalking after me.”

  Ilana shook her head back and forth. “Man, for someone that has thousands of ladies falling at his feet, you really have no clue. You’re damn lucky I’m here because you’re in some serious need of help.”