I'll Never Love You Again

Chapter 1

Halfway through my meal, Katherine's call came in. Her voice carried a trace of urgency. "Grayson, you saw Leslie's post, didn't you?" "Yep." "I'll come home after celebrating his birthday. Next year, I'll spend it with you. Don't make a fuss, okay? Be the bigger person." There was a time when I would have reacted with shouting and tears, but not anymore. I simply replied, "Okay." The next morning, a little past seven, my phone rang, jolting me awake. It stopped after three rings. I picked it up and saw Katherine's name on the screen. She had always been too lazy to use her key, so she'd call and let it ring three times as her signal for me to open the door. No matter what I'd been doing, I would always rush to let her in. But not today. I tossed the phone aside, pulled the blanket over my head, and went back to sleep. She knew where the spare key was—under the shoe rack by the door. I had stayed up until three last night packing, and my head still felt heavy. The pho...