Chapter 233

Chapter 233
Sadie's POV

The air left my lungs.

I couldn't look at him. Couldn't look at the faint line of scar tissue barely visible beneath his hair, the permanent reminder of the night Phoenix Brooks had—

"No."

Jake's voice cut through my spiraling thoughts, firm and absolute.

I forced myself to look up. He was staring straight at my mother, shoulders squared, no hesitation in his eyes.

"Mrs. Brooks, Sadie's not an extension of him, not responsible for his choices, not defined by his mistakes. She's her own person. She's Sadie Brooks, and she's the only person in this world I've ever wanted to build a life with."

His hand found mine, fingers lacing tight.

"What Phoenix did—that's his crime. His burden. Not hers. I would never, could never hold her accountable for that." His jaw set. "And I sure as hell won't let it affect how much I love her or how badly I want to marry her."

The room went very quiet.

Mom's eyes were shining. She blinked rapidly, looking away for a second, and when she looked back her whole face had softened.

"Okay." Her voice was thick. "Okay. Good. That's—" She cleared her throat. "Good."

She stood up, and Jake rose immediately, instinctively respectful. Mom stepped close to him, and for a second I thought she might actually hug him, but instead she reached up and gripped his shoulder. Firm. Maternal.

"Take care of my girl, Jake Montgomery."

"I will." His voice was rough. "I promise, Mrs. Brooks. I will."

"Then you have my blessing."

Something inside my chest cracked wide open. The tears I'd been holding back spilled over, hot and fast and relieved, and I didn't even try to stop them.

Mom turned to me, opening her arms again, and I fell into them. Over my shoulder I felt Jake's hand settle warm against my back, and for the first time in three years, maybe longer, everything felt like it might actually be okay.

---

By the time Brooklyn launched herself at me in the bar's private room that night, I'd almost stopped crying.

Almost.

"SADIE!" She hit me like a linebacker, wrapping me in a hug so tight my ribs protested. "Oh my god, oh my GOD, you're actually here, you're real, I'm not hallucinating—"

"Brook—can't breathe—"

She pulled back just enough to grip my shoulders, shaking me slightly. "You look skinny. Did you eat anything in London? Was the food really that bad?"

"I ate." I laughed, wiping at my eyes. "I promise, I ate."

"Liar." She poked my shoulder accusingly. "You always forget to eat when you're stressed."

Guilty.

She stepped back fully, crossing her arms, and her expression shifted. Hurt flickered across her face, quickly masked by forced sternness.

"Sadie Brooks." Her voice cracked just slightly. "If you ever disappear like that again without telling us, without even saying goodbye properly, I swear to god we are done. Finished. Over."

The words hit harder than I expected.

"Brook—"

"Do you know what it was like?" She wasn't yelling, but her voice was shaking. "Coming to class and seeing your empty seat? Going to lunch and there's just this gap at the table? Your bed in the dorm just sitting there, stripped, like you were never even there?"

Oh god.

"We were so worried." Her eyes were getting red. "Maya kept checking your Instagram like fifty times a day even though you weren't posting. Zoe tried to call you, like, every week. And I just—I kept thinking, what if something happened and we didn't know? What if you needed us and we couldn't—"

"I'm sorry." The words burst out of me. I grabbed her hands, squeezing tight. "Brook, I'm so sorry, I was such an idiot, I shouldn't have just left like that, I should've talked to you guys, I should've—"

"Yeah." She sniffled, swiping at her eyes angrily. "You really should've."

"I know." I tugged her closer, making my voice go soft and playful. "But look, I came back, didn't I? And I brought presents from London. Really good presents. Expensive presents."

Her mouth twitched.

"Brooklyn Martinez." I batted my eyelashes dramatically. "My beautiful, wonderful, most favorite person in the entire world—will you please forgive me?"

She tried to hold onto her glare. She really did. But then her lips curved despite herself, and she let out a huff of reluctant laughter.

"You're so annoying."

"But you love me."

"Unfortunately." She flicked my forehead lightly. "Fine. Forgiven. But seriously, Sadie—don't do that again."

"I won't." I crossed my heart. "Promise."

She studied me for a moment, then pulled me into another hug. Gentler this time. "I really did miss you, you know."

"I missed you too." I squeezed her tight. "So much."

When we finally settled onto the couch, drinks in hand, Brooklyn kicked her feet up onto the coffee table and gave me a long, assessing look.

"So." She took a sip of her cocktail. "You gonna tell me what actually happened? The real story?"

I traced the rim of my glass, not sure where to even start.

"It's complicated."

"It's always complicated with you and Jake Montgomery." She raised an eyebrow. "But I've got all night, babe. Start talking."

So I did.