The Day Our Promise Breaks

Brooks drove Evelyn home. Since Charles had shown up, Evelyn's mood had visibly taken a nosedive. Sensing this, Brooks, ever the considerate one, decided to steer clear of any talk about their relationship.

When they reached Evelyn's place, she lingered in the car for a moment, stealing glances at Brooks, words teasing her lips but not quite ready to leap out. She was wrestling with how to put her feelings into words. She knew Brooks was a genuinely good guy, but the scars from loving Charles ran deep, leaving her hesitant to dive into love again. It was that classic case of once bitten, twice shy.

"Evelyn, don't stress about it. Maybe I rushed things. I'll wait for you as long as it takes, just as long as you're willing to think about it."

He'd already been waiting for years.

"Brooks..."

The kinder and more understanding he was, the more it tugged at Evelyn's heartstrings.

"Go on up and get some rest. Try not to dwell on it too much."noveldrama

Brooks leaned over and gently unbuckled her seatbelt. Evelyn opened the door and stepped out. He walked her to her door, making sure she got in safely before heading off.

...

Evelyn leaned against the door, her mind a chaotic swirl of thoughts. In the two years since Charlie passed, she hadn't had the heart to tackle this issue. She couldn't figure out if it was because she was consumed by the need for revenge for Charlie, leaving no room for love, or if the wounds from Charles ran too deep, making her scared to start anew.

Just as her thoughts were spinning out of control, a knock jolted her back to reality. Without much thought, she assumed Brooks had forgotten something and come back. She swung the door open, "Brooks... wait, what? You?!"

Her gentle tone iced over the moment she saw Charles. Instinctively, she tried to slam the door shut, but Charles was quicker. Before she could close it, he pushed his way in.

"Bang!" The door shut behind him as he wrapped an arm around her waist, pinning her against the door with his body. His arms caged her in, his gaze intense and unyielding. "Eve, did Brooks ask you to be with him?"

He knew that two years ago, Eve and Brooks faked a relationship to fool her grandmother. Even now, they hadn't officially started anything. But today, seeing them hold hands...

Eve, who always had clear boundaries with men, seemed comfortable with Brooks being so close. That was something Charles just couldn't stomach. He feared she might have feelings for Brooks, and that thought drove him wild.

This was his Debbie. Even before he realized she was Debbie, the idea of her with someone else was unbearable. Now, it was unthinkable.

"Charles, let go of me!"

Evelyn's eyes flared with anger as she struggled, pushing and kicking. But Charles seemed impervious to the pain, standing his ground until he got the answer he sought. "Eve, have you agreed to be with him?"

"Let go!"

Evelyn was relentless, her strikes growing more forceful. "Charles, are you deaf?

Let

go

of me! I said, let go!"

"Eve, just answer me-did you say yes to him?"

Charles's voice was firm, refusing to

let go of the question. Exhausted,

Evelyn stopped fighting, leaning heavily against the door, breathless. The faint scent of blood lingered in the air-she'd reopened the

she had inflicted on Charles earlier. Cóntent belongs to

His expression didn't waver as he pressed on, "Eve, did you or didn't you?"

"Yes!"

Evelyn hadn't planned to entertain this madness, but Charles seemed hell-bent on not leaving without an answer. She'd hit him, cursed him, but she was worn out. All she could

do was give a cold, hard answer.

"Charles, listen up. There's no chance of anything happening between us.

Whoever I'm with, it won't be you."

"Get out of my home!"

Her gaze was icy and unyielding.

The future with Brooks might be uncertain, but with Charles, she was sure. He was tied to Charlie's death, and for that, they could never be together.

Charles felt each cold look like a stab to his heart since discovering Evelyn was

Debbie. How could his Debbie look at him like that?

"Eve, you can't be with Brooks. I won't let it happen!"

His voice was strong, but there was a tremor of fear. Fear that Debbie might truly leave him.

"Charles, you mean nothing to me. I don't need your permission to be with anyone! Now, get out!"

Evelyn looked at him as if he were out of his mind.

"What do I have to do to stop you from being with Brooks?"

"Eve, I'm begging you, don't give Brooks a shot. Please, just give me another chance?"

In front of Evelyn, Charles's demeanor softened, his plea almost desperate.

"You can yell at me, hit me, curse me, just don't leave me!"

He took Evelyn's hand and pressed it against his face, unwilling to accept that she might truly leave him.