Page 148 of Never Started
“I can’t say,” he says in a hushed tone, holding back.
“I know damn well the ranch can’t survive as is... Someone had to have bought it. What aren’t you telling me?” My anger is rising to the surface, and I’m trying to remain calm, but it isn’t necessarily easy.
“Have you spoken to Izzy?”
Ander’s question pierces through my chest directly to my heart. Why is he bringing her up? It feels cruel.
My eyes narrow on him. “No. She never responded to me, so I stopped trying. She hates me. You already fucking know this.”
He shakes his head, appearing angry.
“She doesn’t fucking hate you,” Ander snaps. “She’s hurting. There’s a difference. But I’m telling you, brother, giving up on her isn’t the right choice. She needs you, and she needs you to keep trying. She needs to know you won’t give up—”
“Give up?” I scoff bitterly. “Ander, I’ve been trying for years. I fucked up. The best thing I can do for her is to let her go.”
“Don’t be a fucking idiot, Jett. She choseyou!” he says, voice rising.That night, when she met with Maverick... It was to end things with him becauseshe chose you!”
“Well a-fucking-ware,” I shout back, letting my frustration win. “I kept things from her. Secrets that almost took her life. I don’t blame her for hating me. She should.”
Ander growls, “Oh, come on. You know that’s bullshit. Neither of you are perfect, Jett. You fucked up, yes. But who doesn’t?”
“What do you want from me?!” I snap.
“I want you to stop giving up. I want you to be the man she needs! I want you to be the hard-headed, determined, annoyingly persistent asshole that I know you are. Stop running from this shit.”
“Ugh,”I groan. “Where the hell is all of this coming from anyway? Since when did my personal life become your business? And what the fuck does this have to do with me asking about the ranch?”
“It has everything to do with it!” Ander yells, fisting my shirt in his hands. “She saved us!She saved YOU!”
“What the hell are you talking about!?”
He shoves away from me. “Izzy received money from Maverick’s life insurance policy. He left all of it to her. She chose to use it to buy the ranch. She did a gift deed, taking Mom and Dad off of it, and putting solely your name on the title. It was her one condition.She did it all for you.”
‘W-what!?” I’m faced head-on with confusion and unsure how to process this information.
I haven’t heard from her since that night. She walked away and out of my life, ignoring me ever since. Then, turns around and saves the day. What do I even make of that?
Does this mean there’s hope for us after all? Should I not read into it?
Fuck, I don’t know what to think.
A wave of shame washes over me. I tried to keep us afloat for a year and failed. Yet she catches wind of it all and finds a way to settle it.
It’s so…her.Always thinking of others. She could’ve done anything with that money, but instead more or less gave it to me.
“Yeah, so let that sink in,” Ander mutters in a calmer tone. “And then try to remind yourself why you shouldn’t give up on her.”
“I don’t get it... She hasn’t spoken to me in—”
“Bro, you and Iz have always been explosive together. Everything about the two of you is always so fast-paced.” He brings a hand to my shoulder, squeezing once. “I can bet all of your messages were apologizing and begging for her to forgive you.”
“Of course they were. Hell, I know I fucked up. I’m owning up to it.”
“I mean, have you ever tried taking it slow?”
I scoff. “How the hell am I supposed to do that? You tell me… After V came back into your life, were you able totake it slow?”
“Careful, that’s my wife, motherfucker.” Ander snorts a laugh. “My point is that you shouldn’t stop trying. She needs and deserves you to try. She needs you, Jett.”
