Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 95712 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95712 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 479(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
When I got to the hospital, a doctor gave me the news that my daughter had been killed instantly, and Caroline had broken her left leg and hand.
Nothing in my life was the same after that. The accident hadn’t been Caroline’s fault, but she’d blamed me for causing her to take Brooke and leave the house. She withdrew into herself, stayed in bed for days at a time, and essentially ignored our son.
Our marriage hadn’t been on a solid foundation when the accident happened, and it crumbled completely not long afterward. In the end, it wasn’t hard for me to decide to file for divorce and ask the court for full custody of Rhett. Caroline hadn’t argued; she’d already moved out of the house and into an apartment. Sadly, Rhett not only lost his sister, but his mother as well.
“I’m doing the best I can. Trying to be there for Rhett and make life as normal as possible.”
Caden nodded. “Is he still having nightmares?”
I nodded.
“Hopefully, the new surroundings will be good for him and for you.”
“Yeah,” I said, hearing the sadness in my own voice. We hadn’t returned to River Falls very often over the years because Caroline couldn’t stand the small town. When we visited, it was only for a weekend, and I hardly had time to see anyone. My mother and father visited Denver as much as they could, but with my dad being the only veterinarian in town, it was hard for him to take time off without feeling guilty if he couldn’t find someone to cover for him. Caroline’s parents had visited often, so at least that was good for Rhett.
Caden cleared his throat. “Have you heard from Caroline at all?”
Caroline had been served divorce papers three weeks ago, and I was still waiting for her to sign and return them.
“I can’t remember the last time I spoke to her. Once she signed over custody to me, and the judge granted it, she stopped all communication. It was harder on Rhett than on me. He doesn’t understand why Caroline left us. He overheard us arguing one night, and Caroline saying it was my fault that Brooke died. That was hard for Rhett to hear, and he came running into the room, calling her a liar. Yelling that it was her fault because she forced Brooke to go with her.”
“Forced?”
I nodded. “Brooke didn’t want to go with Caroline that night, and she was crying, and repeating my name over and over. Rhett watched the whole thing.” I closed my eyes and drew in a breath before looking at Caden again. “She was screaming for me when Caroline walked out. The sound of her calling out ‘daddy’ haunts me every night. I should have taken her from Caroline. Better yet, I should have admitted the marriage had long since been over and left with the kids.”
Caden shook his head as he put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “Levi, it wasn’t your fault.”
“A part of me knows that. But another part of me can’t seem to let it go. I blame myself for letting Caroline take Brooke. I guess I figured she would blow off some steam, go for a drive, and calm down. I should’ve known better. Caroline wasn’t the best mother, Caden. I hate saying that, but it’s the truth. She cared more about herself than our kids. And the bad part is, now Rhett is old enough to understand that for himself. But still way too young to have to deal with this.”
“Have you thought about therapy?” Caden asked.
“He’s gone a few times, and I think it has helped him some. He misses his sister, I think, more than his mother. It’s sad for me to even say that, but there it is.”
Caden sighed. “We sure know how to pick ’em, don’t we?”
I let out a humorless laugh. Caden had been dating his high school sweetheart, Rachel, since their freshman year. Caden and I were like brothers and spoke almost every day, so when they broke up, I was the first person he spoke to about it. When she eventually realized she wasn’t going to have the wealthy lifestyle she thought she deserved, she broke things off—but didn’t bother to do it until Caden was down on one knee, asking her to marry him. Ever since then, Caden had been withdrawn. He hardly ever went out, just stayed on the ranch. And as far as I knew, he hadn’t dated since Rachel left him.
“Are you dating anyone?” I asked.
He’d motioned for us to start heading into the barn. He glanced at me with a blank look. “I have no interest in dating anyone.”
“Caden, it’s been almost what? Two years since she left you? When are you going to move on?”
He shrugged. “I have no desire to go through that again.”