Page 149 of Keep Me Never
Hours go by, and we don’t move. Apparently neither does Chase, as a little after one in the morning, blue and red lights flash against the windows and I lift my head, meeting my grandpa’s gaze.
“They’re just escorting him off the property. Sweetheart…”
I shake my head, pushing up on numb legs and climbing the stairs.
I go right to the window that overlooks the front, and there he is, shoulders slumped as he looks back at the house.
The officer says something, and Chase nods, head hanging as he makes his way down the long drive.
He disappears from sight, and it feels like my heart shatters all over again.
I can’t stand it. I can’t be here anymore.
I tear my gaze away, grab my grandpa’s keys from the counter, and slip out the door, running without another word. I know where I need to be.
I climb into my car and take myself to the only place that can give me a semblance of peace, hoping that I still find it once I get there.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Paige
I have to count as I inhale and exhale. If I don’t, I might not remember to breathe at all.
I might breathe too hard.
I very much think I would pass out.
Everything’s hitting me all at once.
The silence in the air, the ache in my chest.
The uncertainty and the absolutecertaintyit’s warring with.
How could I get it so wrong?
How could it be wrong when it felt so right?
Slamming my eyes shut, I swallow, blowing out a choppy breath before steeling myself and forcing my feet to carry me forward.
The sun is rising now, and I don’t want to see it, so I quicken my steps, weaving around the corner, only to come to a startling stop.
I nearly fall to my knees at the sight, a choked sob tearing up my throat.
The graffiti-covered boards that Carry helped me nail over the windows are nowhere to be found, and in their place are sleek, clean panes. A gorgeous, sweeping circle in the center—my logo. It’s a dusty, soft yellow and lavender with the name in the center.
Paige’s Playground: Youth Dance and Rec Center.
“What…” My sob starts slowly, and I bury my face in my hands as it grows, my limbs shaking.
It’s right where I’d always intended it to be but never got the chance to put up.
And it’s not only the windows and logo—there also are soft, silky curtains drawn closed behind the glass, hiding what’s beyond it.
Reaching out, I hover my fingers over my name, tracing thePbut without smudging the glass.
With trembling hands, I step up to the door. It takes me two tries to get the key in, and then I’m pulling it open.
This time, I do drop, falling against the wall, my hand flying to my mouth as a sob breaks free, my back sliding down until my butt hits the floor—the brand-new, freshly polished beautiful floor.
