Page 36 of The Jealous Girl

Something fluttered in my chest and I turned away, letting my gaze drift to the boats on the horizon.

He was right, the past felt so vivid here, as though it was just within reach. But I also knew how quickly things could change…

Two Years Ago – Mid July

‘Hi, Mum.’ Ryan’s voice was braced as he answered her call. We both knew what was coming. His parents were furious he’d skipped graduation. Hurt he’d delayed his return home.

Part of me couldn’t blame them. In normal circumstances, I’d have envied having a family who noticed when you weren’t there. Who missed you.

But these weren’t normal circumstances. This was two days before our wedding.

Not that his mum knew that. But she was still interfering.

‘W-what?’ Ryan’s eyes widened as his body went rigid.

My stomach plunged.

This wasn’t the same as normal. His mum’s calls always unbalanced him, but not like this.

His knuckles whitened as his grip tightened on the phone, as though he needed something solid to hold on to. ‘Do they know if…’ Ryan shook his head as if he couldn’t bear to finish the question.

Seconds stretched. I strained my ears, desperate to hear the other side of the conversation. I didn’t know what else to do.

‘Yeah, I’ll be there as soon as I can.’

I’ll be there.

The words echoed in my head as I stared at him.

Ryan hung up.

‘You’re leaving?’ The question slipped out before I could stop it.

He didn’t respond. He just lowered the phone to his lap and stared at the blank screen.

Two days. We just needed two more days.

‘Ryan?’ I reached for him, my hand resting lightly on his arm. ‘What’s happened?’

He lifted his head, blinking as he looked at me, trying to focus. ‘My dad—’ his voice cracked ‘—he had a heart attack.’

‘Ohhh.’ The word escaped in a gush of breath, and I instinctively wrapped my arms around him as though that might be enough to steady him.

Ryan stood up abruptly, letting my arms fall, seemingly unaware of their presence.

‘I need to go,’ he said, running a hand through his hair.

Go.

The word was like a slap, sharp and stinging. But the wedding⁠—

I bit back the words that screamed within me.

Our wedding. Everything we’d worked for. Everything we’d wanted.

I inhaled sharply. What was I doing? This wasn’t about me. Not now.

‘I need to get to the hospital,’ Ryan continued, his words growing faster as he paced the small bedroom. ‘I need to see Dad. Be there for Mum. She can’t handle all this on her own. I need to⁠—’