“Please don’t go yet, Uncle Levi.” Alex’s voice cracked, and it broke my damn heart. Here I was thinking he had all he needed with his dad here. But he seemed really broken up over the bombshell I’d just dropped.
I knelt and placed my arms around his shoulders. “I promise to come back and visit the first chance I get, okay?”
Come hell or high water, I needed to stick to that promise, even if things would be awkward between Presley and me. My nephew shouldn’t have to pay for my indiscretions. Despite Tanner being back in the picture, I’d developed something special with Alex, and I wasn’t willing to throw that away, even if I’d forever be second fiddle to his father.
I knew if I could manage to keep what happened between me and his mother secret, my relationship with Alex would remain strong. My relationship with Presley, though? I had no idea what would become of that now that I’d made this decision. But I loved her, and sometimes loving someone means doing what’s best for them in the long run.
“Thanks for making breakfast, but I’m not hungry,” Presley said as she left the room.
My heart ached. I wanted to run after her but had virtual shackles on me with my brother standing here.
With Presley gone, I finally looked over at Tanner.
“Shame you can’t stick around,” he said.
Except his tone didn’t sound the least bit sincere. I wondered if he hadn’t been so oblivious after all.
CHAPTER 26
* * *
Presley
“Do you think you can run to Home Depot and pick up the bolts we need to hang the swing on the porch?”
Tanner’s forehead wrinkled. “The swing I put in the garage the other day?”
“Yes.”
“The bolts to hang it come with the swing. I read it on the box.”
I’d been afraid he might say that, so I’d snuck into the garage a half hour ago, opened the box, took out the bolts, and hid them in my dresser drawer.
I shook my head and reached into my pocket for the directions. “It says they’re supposed to be in the box, but they weren’t. I opened it earlier.” Unfolding the paper, I pointed to the picture of the bolts included with the parts descriptions. “This is the size we need.”
Tanner took the paper. “I’ll pick them up tomorrow. I have to go over to the college and do some paperwork. It’s right down the street from the Home Depot.”
I shook my head. “No. I need it hung tonight. The guy who revamped the website for the inn wants to add a video of it on the homepage before we officially open. Something about giving it movement to catch the eye.”
Tanner sighed. “Alright, fine.”
“Could you also stop at the grocery store and pick up some coffee beans?”
“There’s coffee in the cabinet.”
“Not anymore. I made an extra pot this afternoon and finished the last of it.” Or the can is sitting in my underwear drawer next to the swing bolts.
Tanner nodded. “Okay, sure.”
“And…would you mind taking my car and putting windshield wiper fluid in? Oh, and I told Alex he could stay over at his friend Kyle’s tonight, if you could also drop him on the way.”
Tanner’s brows rose. “Anything else?”
“No, that’s it.” But only because asking you to drive to Florida to get some fresh oranges might be a bit over the top.
Normally I felt bad asking people for favors, though today I’d been incapable of feeling bad for anyone but myself. This entire day had been absolute torture. Tanner hadn’t left the house, and I thought I might seriously burst if I didn’t get some alone time to talk to Levi. So I had no choice but to create a few chores to make it happen. Levi had been scarce all day, holed up in his room with the door closed, like he was right now. So once I got Alex and Tanner out of the house, I went straight to his bedroom and took a deep breath before knocking.
“Come in.”
I opened the door. A half-packed suitcase was laid out on the bed, and Levi held a stack of T-shirts in his hand. The look on his face made my heart twist in my chest. He looked as down and out as I felt. Without a word, I stepped into his room and shut the door behind me.
Levi looked over my shoulder at the door and then back at me.
“Don’t worry. I sent Tanner to run some errands. He won’t be back for at least an hour. And Alex is staying at his friend’s tonight, though I promised I’d pick him up by seven AM tomorrow, because he wants to spend every waking moment he can with you before you leave us.”
If it were possible, Levi’s long face grew even sadder. He raked a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry he’s upset about me leaving.”
I’d been on the verge of tears all day, but suddenly I felt a different emotion. Anger. I put my hands on my hips. “Really? Is it just him you’re sorry about hurting? Did you ever stop and think maybe someone else might be hurt by your sudden announcement?”
Levi blew out a jagged breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m sorry I didn’t get to tell you one on one like I’d planned.”
My voice rose to slightly less than a shriek. “So what you’re sorry for is telling me the news in an inopportune way, not for leaving early?”
Levi just kept shaking his head with his eyes cast down. “I’m sorry. Work called, and I need to go back early.”
“Bullshit. I remember how these things go, Levi. I’m not an idiot. If your contract says you have to report at ten AM on July twenty-third, you guys show up no earlier than nine fifty-nine. And the players union doesn’t even want you to give the team that one extra minute. So this was a choice you made.”
He nodded. “You’re right. It was. I made a choice to go back a little earlier to help out the new receivers.”
I shook my head. Levi still wasn’t looking me in the eyes, so I closed the gap between us. “Look at me, Levi. And tell me why you’re really going back.”
His eyes raised and jumped back and forth between mine a moment before he closed them and took a deep breath. “I’m leaving because things between me and you need to end.”
Sadness wrapped around my heart and squeezed out all the anger. I did my best to blink back the sting of tears, but I knew I couldn’t keep them at bay too long. “Why? Why does it need to end?”
Levi leaned his forehead against mine. “I’m not right for you. You moved back to Beaufort to give you and your son the life you deserve. That life is here for the taking, and it doesn’t include me.”
Tears spilled down my cheeks. “But you said we could find a way to work it out.”
“We got caught up in the heat of the moment. I care about you, Presley. I really do. And Alex, too. But what happened between us should’ve never happened. It was a mistake.”
It felt like someone had slapped me across the face. Saying it had to end was one thing, but regretting it and calling it a mistake was another altogether. I took two steps back. “A mistake? How can you say that? You told me once that you’d never regret us.”
“You should give your family a chance, Presley. Alex deserves to have his father in his life, and you deserve to have someone who can be by your side day in, day out.”