Page 11 of Beyond Repair: Part One

Darting forward, I cut her off and slam my smaller body into hers. I never did surpass her 5'9" curvy frame. Years of malnourishment and PTSD keep me far thinner than anyone would consider sexy. I'm nothing but a 5'6" waif in my mom's trembling arms.

"I love you, Mom." I don't tell her I'll be okay, because I don't think I will. But I can express with all my heart that I love her and show her in my tight hold how much I'll miss her.

Her answering words shatter me. "I'm proud of you, sweetie." And her parting statement puts me back together as she steps out of my new home. "I love you. Always and forever."

"Always and forever," I choke out and when the door closes behind her, I become weightless. My knees crashing into the hardwood floors jar my teeth and shake my sobs free.

If anyone has the ability to make me love so much it breaks me, it's my mom. And quoting our favorite show solidifies that I didn't realize how much I would actually miss her until this moment.

That same sorrow shoots adrenaline through my wobbly limbs, allowing me to stand and rush for my bay window. I watch my dad guide my mom into the passenger seat of their Lexus, and when he kisses her gently as he buckles her in, I can't stop my smile.

Memorizing their features like it could be the last time I see them, I study the way my mom wipes her cheeks and rummagesaround in her purse. Dad nods at her when he gets into the driver’s seat and starts the car.

I so badly want to be with them. Rarely do I add my own thoughts to their conversations, but to just bask in their presence is healing.

My eyebrows relax and my lips part on a sigh as I witness the normalcy that are my parents.Take me with you, I want to shout, but I hold it in. If they think this is best, then I'll trust them, but only because I agree they deserve an empty nest after everything I've put them through.

The relaxation I feel takes a nosedive into a deep frown when Mom presses her phone to her ear.Who's she calling?

Jolting at the sound of the oven letting me know it's preheated for my tortillas, I turn away from the window. My appetite is crap, but I can always make an effort for a taco.

Chapter 9

Trevor

Ican't explain the reason my heart drops beyond trusting Henry's instincts. Whatever he's feeling at the sound of my ringtone has the blood draining from his face. And because my friend is already a pale guy, well, let's just say I'm fucking terrified of the picture he's painting.

Where Henry looks like he's about to pass out, Ridge hasn't looked away from my cell on the island between us. Kai's eyes are darting around like he's not understanding our reaction, but when he reaches for my phone, I bark at him to stop.

I can’t tell who or what is on the other side of the line, but if I can shield my brothers from it, I will. Shoving my hesitation to the recesses of my mind, I snatch the device.

"Speakerphone," Henry pleads in a voice so monotone it makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

Glancing at the other two, they nod mutely, making my decision to protect them from this null. I swipe to accept the call.

"Trevor speaking."Please, for the love of fuck, let there be a flood in one of the bathrooms at one of our hotels.

No such luck.

My stomach twists itself even tighter when a sniffle adds to the mystery of the unknown number.

I clear my throat. "Hello?"

"T-Trevor, honey? Is that y-you?"

Ridge stumbles away from the kitchen island, Kai gasps, and Henry stiffens. At the sound of Meg Solace's voice, I wobble. My free hand is the only thing that catches me while my phone clatters onto the counter.

"Trevor?"

Everything in me screams for the man I once considered more like a father to me than my own blood. I want to shout at Will and demand why he stopped answering my calls.

"Son?"

At that, I grunt. "Will?"

"Shit, Trev. I'm so sorry. So, so damn sorry," Nina's dad says gruffly, all the while I can hear his wife's cries in the background.Or maybe it's Nina?

"Where—" I can't ask.

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