Shattered: A Salvation Society Novel Bella Emy (best ebook reader for laptop .TXT) 📖

for you to find out the truth. She made a promise to your mother before you guys left Cali.” She pauses, taking a breath. “I’m sorry you found out like this, Lexi, but you have to believe me that I had no idea. I would never keep a secret from you. You’re my best friend, and I would never imagine hurting you. I know what you went through after you and Kalen split up, and I would never dream of adding more pain to your heart. I’m sorry.”

I consider her words, and yes, of course I know she’s telling me the truth. There is no reason for her to lie or to pretend like she had no idea about the letter. I know she didn’t.

I feel my nerves beginning to calm just as Joanna passes my desk, waving. I smile at her and wave back. She mouths that we should grab lunch later today, and I nod. Sure. We can go out for lunch. She smiles and then walks back to her office.

“Lexi, do you forgive me?” Erin asks after a few minutes.

I shut my eyes tightly as the stinging of tears threaten to spill over. All these years, all this time, and I never knew any of these things I’m finding out until recently.

“Yes, of course, I forgive you, girl.”

Erin lets out a chuckle. “Good, because there is something important I really need to tell you.”

I smile genuinely and giggle. Nothing can beat what I just found out so it can’t be bad. “Oh, yeah, that’s right… you had mentioned that when I called. What’s up?”

Erin clears her throat. “Well, you may want to prepare yourself because Kalen is on his way over to see you.”

Chapter Thirty-One

“What?!”

Erin giggles, but I’m not finding her little joke amusing.

“Come on, stop messing with me. What is it that you really have to tell me?”

“Lexi, I’m not joking. That’s what I was going to tell you. Kalen is on his way to Jersey to see you today.”

My eyes widen. “What? You can’t be serious. And if you are, how do you know this?”

“Because he stopped by my place last night… he came looking for you. He was hoping you hadn’t really left Cali like you said you were going to.”

I furrow my eyebrows. “After all this time, he thought I was still going to be there? Why?”

“I don’t know. I guess he was just hoping to see you.”

I look around the office. It’s pretty dead for a Monday morning. But then again, it typically is around here anyway. “I don’t know if I believe you…”

“Lexi! Why would I lie? He should be there really soon… he said he was going to take the first flight over this morning.”

I scoff. “He’s a billionaire… if he was really trying to see me, he could’ve hopped on one of his jets and came to see me.”

“His pilot is on a break… he wasn’t expecting to have to fly out anywhere anytime soon, so he had to book a flight the old-fashioned way.”

I roll my eyes and chuckle. “Right, because people like us are beneath him.” Figures that’s the way he thinks. He definitely forgot where he came from.

She lets out a gasp. “Lexi! He never said that.”

I shrug. “He never had to, but even if he did, I wouldn’t believe a word that comes out of his mouth because we all know the guy is a jerk and a liar so—”

“Lexi, that’s not fair. Kalen loves you.”

“What?” Now I really don’t believe her. Sure, he said it to me before I left him on his boat, but as I said before, the guy is a liar. He told me he loved me years ago, too, and look at what happened.

And then my mother’s words in her letter come crashing back to the front of my mind.

I know you love Kalen, and when you read this, you'll be so angry at me learning that I’m the reason he pulled away from you. But one day you will understand. Kalen comes from a poor family. How will he ever make enough to help you and raise a family with you? It can’t be done, Lexi, and I’m sparing you from the heartache that would come later... 

“He told me, Lexi. He told me he loves you and he doesn’t want to lose you ever again. You should have seen his face. He was definitely telling the truth.”

I suck in the tears. I can’t take this. “I-I just don’t know, Erin. There’s been too much hurt, too much time that passed.”

“He’s a good guy, Lexi. Give him a chance. Now that you know the truth about everything that happened, give him the chance to prove to you that he loves you and that what you guys had is real… have is real.”

“Nope. You were right…. had.”

“No, Lexi. Have. Have because I know just as much as he cares about you is exactly how much you care about him.”

I know I still love Kalen, and I know that it will take me a very long time to get over him, if that’s at all possible. Even though so many years passed, my heart still longs for him, and I know deep down inside that I love him more than anything else in the world.

But can I give him one last and final chance? Would I freak out if we were to get together one last and final time? I don’t know. I don’t have any of these answers right now.

“Erin, I don’t know if I can do it. If he does show up—”

“He’s going to show up, Lexi. He texted me when his flight touched down an hour ago. He should be pulling up to Elmers & Elmers any minute.”

I look up at the ceiling. What am I going to do if he does show up at my job?

It’s at this very moment that my desk phone starts ringing, and upon looking at the caller ID, I see it’s Mr.