Page 82 of Manors & Mischief

She rolls her eyes. Something she despises since she thinks it’s so unbecoming of a person in position. “You should be giving Ember a choice in all of this, and you know it. You say how capable she is, but then you take the decision right out of her hands, Devon Lachey. Newsflash, you’re getting it wrong.”

Mom stands up, flustered. She grabs her coat and purse and faces me. I peer at her, taken aback. I’ve seen her act this way, but never when I was down like this. Somehow, it’s fitting. She might as well realize I’m not anyone’s savior, not even hers.

“I just don’t want you to wake up one day and realize that and wish you could go back and change today. You won’t have the ability to.”

“No chance there. I’m done wishing on things.”

She comes over and squeezes my shoulder. “That’s sad. Life is boring without a little hope and maybe even a wish or two.”

“I love you, Mom,” I tell her, putting an end to the conversation.

“Love you, too. Very much.”

Her heels click across the floor, and she exits the door. It snicks into place when it closes.

As soon as she leaves, I wish she’d stayed. I wish I could’ve even given a modicum of hopefulness to her.

I’m just not sure anything she said made sense for me. I agree that Mom has the best life now, but it doesn’t mean what happened to her could happen to me.

And I agree, Ember should be given the option to make her own choice, but I knew what she would do. I knew she would come to me. I knew she would stand by me. If I let her, she’d be with me right now, and then what? Exactly what I thought would happen. I’d bring her down, too. I’d ruin her dreams.

I’m just a bad luck penny.

“It’s just you and me,” I tell my leg, the brace covering it. And this empty house. And probably binge-watching shows with actors who don’t even know I exist. And copious amounts of junk food to get me through the day.

I should’ve learned my lesson the first time this happened. The universe is really just telling me to sit this one out. It’s done that since I was a boy, but Ember might be my greatest loss yet. However, I’m finally listening to what the universe is trying to tell me. My world doesn’t consist of love and success or even happiness.

It’ll be lonely, but I think I can come to terms with it eventually. Mom’s right. It won’t feel good to see Ember start a new relationship, but even though this is a small town, I’m sure I can avoid it.

Somehow.

Some way.

Unless the universe really wants to be cruel.

30

EMBER

I’ve never been good at hiding my feelings, but for some reason, I’m more mad than upset. The past couple of weeks, I’d put all my faith in Devon. We worked together as a team with one goal in mind. It wasn’t just the manor, or the business, in the back of my head, I was always thinking about us, too.

The way he held me. Loved me. Every touch was a promise of the future, and then he gets one injury and decides to blow it all up.

Fury doesn’t even begin to encompass everything I’m feeling right now.

I stare at the screen on my laptop. The last time I had to write a proposal to Nichols, Devon read it over, tweaking things here and there. This time, it’s all me.

Why am I even doing this? I have no idea. Just trying to save face before I go. Just pushing back the timeline on what I want to do because neither one of the choices sound appetizing if I’m being honest. Go back to Greenville so my parents can think they were right. Or stay here and watch Devon live a life separately from me, knowing how good we could have had it together.

The options are terrible.

At least if I do this, I can get Nichols to change his spots for the next buyer. Use it as a selling feature so things will go smoothly for them.

Yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing because I’m definitely not holding on to hope that anything will still work out for me.

A knock on the door sounds, and I set my laptop on the couch to go answer. Peeking through the curtain, I spot an elderly man on the other side. The door handle is cold when I turn it, forcing the heavy door open. “Hi, can I help you?”

“Miss O’Malley?”