Page 23 of My Heart to Keep
“Maiken, I love you,” Mom said. “And I’m very proud of you. I know if your dad were here, he would be too.” Her voice cracked on the last sentence.
“I know he would.” A tear stung my eye. “I miss him.”
“We all do. But remember what I told you—he’s with you every step of the way.”
My chest hurt whenever we talked about Dad. “Love you too, Mom. I need to go. See you this weekend.” I hung up before I started bawling like a baby.
I glanced around and tried to shake off my emotions.
The hotel peeked out from behind the shops on Main Street. A few people went in and came out of the coffee shop next to me.
I inhaled and waited for the crosswalk sign to light up.
My mind worked overtime, rifling through the pros and cons of attending Greenridge or staying at Kensington. The only pro I could come up with for Greenridge was their basketball program.
Despite the tension between Quinn and me, I didn’t want to leave her. I didn’t want to break her heart. Yet I’d made a decision to pour every ounce of energy I had into basketball. So now was the time to buck up.
Igawked at the beautiful rolling green lawn of Greenridge Academy. In some way, the campus reminded me of the farm, but without the scent of manure and hay.
I walked up to the edge of the parking lot, where the grass met the asphalt. A handful of cars were pulling in. Maiken’s mom had wrangled Jasper, Marcus, Ethan, and Emma into a small huddle behind me, talking family stuff that I didn’t need to hear.
I was desperate to see Maiken. He didn’t know I was coming. I’d asked his family to keep it to themselves, although I didn’t know if any of the boys or Emma would blab to their brother. I suspected Marcus would since he and I weren’t on good terms.
Nevertheless, I wanted to surprise Maiken, and if I were being honest, I was afraid if he knew I was coming, he would tell me to stay home. We hadn’t spoken since he’d left. However, we had swapped a few texts. Nothing of great substance filled our messages back and forth except that he was learning a lot. I owed him an enormous apology. I’d acted like a huge brat that day he’d shown up at the hospital.
A car door slammed a moment before Emma sidled up to me. She flipped the tail of her ponytail over her shoulder and let it drape down her chest. Her light-brown hair was off-the-charts long, and she’d grown at least two inches since school let out. Before long, she would be as tall as Maiken. She was already approaching Ethan’s height, which was about two or three inches shorter than Maiken, who was six foot two. Marcus and Jasper weren’t far behind either.
“This place is pretty lit,” she cooed as the sun glinted in her big brown eyes and sparkles of her makeup glistened.
I hated to agree with her. I didn’t want to see Maiken leave Kensington or Ashford or me, but as excited as Emma was about attending a rich private school, I was afraid Maiken would jump on board with her and the rest of his siblings. I’d learned on the way up that he was considering the move, something he hadn’t mentioned to me, not even in a text, which was adding to my fear, nerves, and brooding.
No one in the car had revealed which way Maiken was leaning. Their mom didn’t even know. Or maybe his family was afraid to tell me, although I hadn’t asked. I was too frightened of the answer.
As I took in the beautiful campus, which reminded me of a place fit for a king and his court, I had a feeling Maiken would follow his brothers and sister.
I was ready to bawl and beg him not to leave. Actually, I’d cried for two weeks straight after he left me standing in the hospital with my mouth hanging open and a hole in my heart. Even though we had kept in contact with one another, I felt as though we were growing apart.
“I don’t like you drinking. It’s not something I’m going to deal with.”His words had been on repeat in my head.
“Give him space,” Momma had said when I’d cried in her arms the other night.
Momma and Daddy were still beyond livid at what I’d done, and I was still grounded until further notice.
The only good news was that Celia was doing well and was out of the hospital. The doctor had mentioned that she might not remember much, but she did. She’d told me every detail of that night, including jumping on Sloane’s back. Since then, though, she was taking it easy. We hadn’t done much of anything. I couldn’t even have Celia over to hang so she could help take away my misery over Maiken.
Emma slipped her hand in mine. “My brother loves you, you know?”
I squeezed her hand. “Thank you for that.” Her words were like a balm to my somewhat broken heart. But I would rather hear the sentiment from Maiken. I’d thought many times since Maiken left for camp that he didn’t love me anymore. “He hated seeing me tipsy.”
She giggled. “You mean flat-out drunk.” She laughed again. “You shocked all of us. Good Girl Quinn did something no one ever expected.”
“I’m not sure I’ll do that again either. My dad would keep me locked up forever.” I wasn’t kidding. I inhaled the scent of fresh-cut grass. “You’re excited about going here, huh?” It was time to change the subject. I would rather not talk about the hell I was going through or think about how Celia could’ve died from her head injury.
Emma glanced around. Her happy expression and the gleam in her eyes said it all. “They have a great volleyball program. But it’s more than that. My family hasn’t settled since our dad died. I hate leaving my mom and my little brother and sisters, but I think us older kids could use a place like this.”
I captured my trembling bottom lip in between my teeth. “Maiken included?” I knew her answer. I just had to hear her say it.
“Yeah. Sorry, Quinn. I believe he needs a school like this more than any of us. He’s bottled up all his feelings over Dad’s death, and he’s put everyone but himself first. If he wants to play ball and focus, this is the place for him to get his shit together.”
