Heartbreak Lover (Broken Hearts Academy #2) - C.R. Jane Page 0,76

life it turned out to be.

“You can now recite your vows, Jackson,” Reverend Calhoon said with a smile.

Jackson blinked, tears gathering in his eyes as he gazed down at me, more love than I could ever comprehend in their depths.

“I promise to never forget that you are my dream, the best thing that has ever happened to me, and will ever happen to me. I promise to always put you first, to remind you every day that you are loved. I promise to listen to you, to be there for you, to love you far beyond my last breath. I promise you, Everly James, that I will always do my best to make all the rest of your days happy ones. I love you, Everly. Always.”

A soft sob was in his words, and I promised myself I would remember his vows and keep them close to me…always.

“Everly,” the reverend prodded with a soft smile after I continued to stand there, just staring at Jackson and wondering how it was possible to feel this much love for one person.

I cleared my throat, knowing that no matter what I did, my words were going to be threaded with tears.

“Jackson. My heartbreak prince,” I started, eliciting a small laugh from Jackson’s beautiful mouth. “I vow to stand by you no matter where life takes us. To find you in the darkness and always bring you home. I promise to be true to you and never forget that our love is one that I’ve fought almost my whole life to get to keep. You are my beginning and my end. My daylight in a life once filled with only night. I’ll love you, Jackson Parker. Always.”

Jackson went pro his junior year at Rutherford, and I followed him to New York City, where he was the starting quarterback for the New York Giants his rookie year. They allowed me to take my classes online, since Jackson was such a big deal. I changed my major to English Literature, realizing that the last thing I wanted was to spend the next ten years in school.

I wanted to write.

And write I did.

The first book I published was our love story.

Jackson, my golden prince, did his best to fill all my days with happiness, just like he’d promised.

But sometimes, despite our best efforts to forget, something would remind us of Caiden and we would both cry over the beautiful brown-eyed boy that we couldn’t save.

And sometimes, in dreams, I would meet Caiden in sweet conversations, reminiscent of our childhood and the boy I’d thought I knew…and it wouldn’t hurt.

The years took their sweet time erasing the memory of Caiden.

And maybe that was okay.

Maybe we were supposed to remember the good, the bad, and everything in between.

Just so we never forgot to treasure what we had right now.

Days filled with so much joy and love that they seemed like a dream.

And as Jackson stroked my rounded stomach, whispering to the little girl we’d be having in two short months, I smiled, wondering how the girl from the wrong side of the tracks had ended up with the prince after all.

Like I said, it was a beautiful life.

The End.

Caiden POV-Extra Scene

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C.R. Jane’s Acknowledgements

Sad, Beautiful, Tragic.

I hope the imagery of this book was as clear in your head as it was in mine. I didn’t start off knowing that Caiden would die. But then I was listening to Sad, Beautiful, Tragic…by Taylor Swift of course, and I saw it. I saw Everly kneeling by that grave. I saw the rain falling down. I saw Jackson and Everly mourning the boy they couldn’t save.

It gutted me.

I agonized and tossed and turned at night debating what to do.

And eventually I just knew this was the only way this book could end.

I love to write those moments that hurt the soul because they’re so beautiful and terrible at the same time.

This duet will haunt me for a long time.

I hope I made you feel…and that you don’t hate me too much.

A huge thank you to Summer E. for beta reading the hell out of this book. I had fun ending excerpts on the worst possible cliff hanger so she was constantly screaming at me. Summer, thank you for your insight, encouragement, and love for my book baby. You are incredible.

Another thank you to Caitlin, the best P.A. and friend a girl could ask for. You’re loyal, hard-working, and you let me vent. You’re