Love Heals All (Once Broken Book 2)

by Alison Mello

  “Fine, the middle outfit.” She struts to my closet in search of the shirt I told her she could borrow.

  I laugh and grab the other clothes to put them back. “Good, that’s the one I was feeling too.”

  “Then why did you ask me?”

  “To see if we were on the same page.”

  She shakes her head and rolls her eyes. “Brooke, you act like you have a single outfit in all of these clothes that wouldn’t look amazing on you.”

  I shrug and say nothing. You always look at other people’s clothes different than you look at your own. “Come on. I want to curl your hair.” I grab her arm and pull her toward the bathroom across the hall. One of the upsides to this house being empty is I don’t have to share the bathroom with my brothers, and soon I’ll have a bathroom of my own. I finally heard back from my landlord, and of course I passed my background check, which means I get to sign the lease on my house Monday after work. I’m so excited and can’t wait to tell Vaughn tonight. Courtney and I are going to go furniture shopping this week with Mama. She wants to come with us, it’s going to be so much fun.

  Courtney plops down on the toilet facing the wall and I get busy curling her hair. I’ve already done mine, but I promised her she could do my makeup. While I was in school there were so few days I would get to go out that we would make the most of them, and since I love doing hair and she likes doing makeup, it’s sort of been our thing to swap off.

  We both stare into the mirror, happy with our appearance, and in plenty of time for us to get over to the base. Courtney and I are riding together. I told her I would most likely be spending the night at Vaughn’s house, since he hasn’t mentioned a nightmare in a while. We’re meeting the guys at Callen’s place, where she’ll leave her car, and we’ll ride with them to the bowling alley on the base. “Let’s roll.” She flings her long hair over her shoulder and walks out the door with a sense of purpose.

  “Are you two off to your bowling night?”

  “Yeah, I’ll see you tomorrow, Mama.” I kiss her on the cheek.

  “Okay, dear. You two have fun, now.”

  We both giggle like schoolgirls and walk out the door. I put my bag in her trunk and climb into the passenger’s seat. “What’s up with you and Callen?” I question as soon as she’s taken off.

  She huffs. “I don’t know. He seems like a nice guy and all, but come on, let’s be real. You know my history.”

  “I do, and all your history means is you haven’t found the right guy yet. Now I’m not saying Callen is him, but you won’t know unless you give him a fair shot.”

  “I’m trying. We’ve talked on the phone a few times and he’s taken me to dinner, but it really hasn’t gone much further than that.” She stops at a red light and glances over at me. “When we do stuff like this he acts thrilled to see me, but then I don’t hear from him for a while.”

  “Have you told him about your ex?”

  The light turns green so she takes off again. “Yeah, he said the guy was an asshole for cheating on a great girl like me.”

  “Well, there you go. Maybe he’s just afraid to rush you.”

  “I guess, or he’s really not interested in a relationship and is just trying to get into my pants like the others.” She sounds defeated.

  I need to change the subject, otherwise our night is going to be ruined. “I don’t think that’s the case at all, but I don’t want to depress you. We’re supposed to be having fun.” I turn up the music and we both start dancing in the car. It’s one of the things I love about Courtney, we both love to dance.

  We finally pull up to the base and she rolls down the window. “Callen Johnson is expecting me.”

  “License,” the guy mutters, sounding miserable with his job.

  She slips it from her wallet and hands it to him. He looks it over and tells her to have a good day. She puts it back and pulls through to the gate toward Callen’s house. When we get there, Callen and Vaughn are sitting on the porch waiting for us. I jump out of the car, really excited to see him. “Are we late?”

  He wraps me in a hug. “Nah, we were just chillin’, waiting for you.” His tone is somber. He sounds off, and it makes me nervous. I hope something didn’t happen, setting him back. Not because I wouldn’t be able to stay with him, because although that would suck, I’d be more concerned over how he was handling the setback.

  “Are you ladies ready?” Callen hits the alarm button on his car, unlocking it.

  Courtney gives him a shy smile. “Sure, let’s get going.”

  She slips into the front passenger’s seat and Vaughn and I sit in the back. I’m trying to get him to look at me, but he’s practically ignoring me, even though he’s holding my hand. He and Callen are talking about work and the guys that are coming today. They’re arguing over who will be on whose team. There are eight of us, so we can divide up evenly. Apparently this guy Tommy is coming. He never seems to go out with the guys because he’s married and has a kid, but they convinced him to come today. Vaughn told him he could bring the family, but he told him it would be just him.

  We pull up to the bowling alley at the same time Nolin, Max, and Liam arrive in Nolin’s car. We all get out and say hi, and then head in to see if Tommy is here as well but we discover he’s not. Callen gives his name, and tells the guy he’s registered eight of us for the event. The guy tells us we’re on the last two lanes. The event fee covers three games, and we’ll be served our food in between the second and third game. He lets us know the waitress will bring us the options we can choose from and begins getting us shoes. Tommy walks in as the guy behind the counter brings Liam his. He quickly gives the guy his size and we head to the end lanes.

  When we get there, Callen sits in front of one screen and Vaughn in front of the other. Vaughn programs the names. Our lane consists of Vaughn and I, Liam, and Nolin. Callen’s lane is he and Courtney, with Max, and Tommy. The guys quickly introduce us to Tommy, and then we all start looking for balls to throw. I find a pretty purple ball that is a size 8 and Courtney grabs a pink one that also has an eight on it. All the guys are grabbing blue and black ones that are much heavier balls. The guys listed us first in the list. I think it’s because they want to see what we’ve got before they have to throw, but they try to say it’s a ladies before gentleman type of thing.

  I’m glad to see Vaughn is loosening up a bit. I was starting to think it was going to be a crap night, but he’s laughing and seems to be having fun. I step up to the lane, slowly walk to the line, and throw my ball. It slowly curves down the lane and I only manage to hit two pins. I turn around with a pout and the guys laugh, but Courtney made me look good, because she threw a gutter ball. Callen tries to encourage her, but I’m not sure it’s working. Liam and Max go next. Liam gets a spare and Max gets a strike. The guys are really having a great time. They’re egging each other on, and joking around, and before we know it, the first game is done and we’ve lost by ten pins. Vaughn is never going to hear the end of it if we don’t win a game. “We’ll take the next one,” I taunt Callen.

  “Yeah, we’ll see about that.” He hits the button to start the next game. The waitress brings us another round of drinks. They sell alcohol but because people have to drive, we’ve all agreed to stick to soda or water. I kick off the second game with a spare, while Courtney only gets a six.

  I stick out my tongue at Callen and take a seat next to Vaughn. “Hey, are you all right? You’re awfully quiet.”

  “I’m fine. I’m having a great time. Are you?”

  “Yes, this is a blast.” I’m full of excitement.

  He gives me a tight smile. “Good.” He gets up to take his turn and he gets a strike. It’s puts a bit of a pep into his step.

  It’s my turn again and I really want to get a strike. I’m really focused when Callen decides to be a dick and shouts, “Look out.”

  I flinch, nearly dropping my ball. I turn around and give him a look that screams fuck off. “Dude, my girl is going to fuck your shit up
if you keep that up.” Vaughn punches Callen in the arm.

  “Shit, dude. My bad. I thought it was funny.” Callen rubs his arm.

  “Go ahead, sweetie, take your time.” I line myself up and focus on my shot. This time Callen is smart enough to keep his mouth shut. I throw my ball and it hits perfectly, knocking all ten pins down. I jump up and down, full of excitement. I step down from the lane and Vaughn gives me a high five. “Nice job, sweetie.” I wiggle my brows at him and take my seat.

  Our food arrives just as we’re finishing the second game and things are getting competitive. I’m almost afraid to see what the third game will be like. My arm is getting tired, as is Courtney’s. Neither of us are used to repeatedly throwing an eight pound ball around, and who would have thought it could be so exhausting.

  Everyone gathers at the table where the waitress has set our food and we dig in. Everyone is starving at this point from the activity, so we eat pretty quickly. Vaughn sits next to me, and again he’s really quiet and distant. His leg is bouncing a mile a minute under the table, and he’s no longer interacting with his buddies. I’m starting to wonder if it was a bad idea for Courtney and I to come today. “Let’s play,” Vaughn announces, and storms off to start the next game. What the hell has crawled up his ass? Courtney looks at me with fear in her eyes, and I simply shrug my shoulders, because honestly I have no idea what that was about, but I’m getting frustrated because he’s gotten more and more distant as the day has gone on. Even after winning the last game he was cranky. I wonder if he’s really not sleeping well and he told me he was because he doesn’t want me on his ass. I shake off my thoughts. There’s no way he’d lie to me like that. “Let’s go, Brooke.” Wow, I went from sweetie to Brooke. Well, all right. I walk up the lane and toss my ball haphazardly, not really caring at this point. I knock down three pins with the first ball and manage a spare with the second, and then I take a seat behind him. I’m watching the others bowl while Callen is giving him shit for his attitude. Tension is getting high, and I’m not sure what to do. I’m about ready to storm off, only I can’t, because I promised I would be there for him.

  The game is going by quickly, and in between throws, Callen tries to get Vaughn to pull his head out of his ass, but it just seems to be making things worse. I take my next two throws, and with only one more turn left for me, I kneel next to Vaughn, trying to be discreet. “Hey, is this attitude because I’m supposed to be spending the night?”

  His head whips to mine and he narrows his eyes. “What are you talking about? I never told you we were going there.” Tears well in my eyes at his nasty tone.

  “When we had dinner…you said that if you were doing well, and you told me you’ve been sleeping, so I assumed…”

  He runs his hand through his wavy hair. “Well, that’s the problem. You shouldn’t have assumed. Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s my turn.”

  I stand up, floored he’s talking to me this way. I’m fighting my tears because we’re with his friends in a public place and I have nowhere to go. I came with Courtney, and her car is at Callen’s still. “Dude, you’re being a dick. What the fuck is your problem, man?” Callen stands off with Vaughn, but Vaughn steps around him and throws his ball down the lane, getting a gutter ball. Now he’s even angrier.

  “I think it’s time to call it quits.” Tommy starts taking off his bowling shoes and the other guys follow suit.

  Vaughn collapses into the chair. With his head in his hands, he looks to the floor and whispers an apology. Callen takes care of everything at the counter while Courtney and I change. By the time we’re done, the other guys have all run off. Callen puts his hand on Vaughn’s shoulder. “Let’s go, man. We need to get the girls back to their car.”

  “You take them. I’m going to walk, I need to clear my head.”

  He stands up and his eyes meet mine. “I don’t know what has come over you, but when you’ve gotten your shit figured out, call me. I’ve tried to be supportive, and to be there for you, and I even understand how I hurt you running out on you after the beach, but that gives you no right to treat me the way you have today. I love you, Vaughn Anderson, but you will treat me the way I deserve to be treated, or you’ll lose me forever.” I hold my head high and walk toward Courtney, who puts her arm around me comfortingly.

  Callen spends the entire car ride apologizing for his friend’s behavior. He tells me that he’s never seen Vaughn look as good has he has the past week and a half, and now all of a sudden he was on edge today. Maybe we were rushing things when we spoke about spending the night, but if so, that’s fine. He should have just said so. I was so on edge the entire time we were together I didn’t even get to tell him the good news, and now, I don’t care to.

  Chapter 19

  Brooke

  I climb out of bed and stroll over to my window seat. Getting comfortable, I sit and stare into the bright, blue sky. It’s a beautiful Saturday morning, and I want nothing more than to spend the day with Vaughn, but I can’t. He pushed me away last week and I pushed back. Now I haven’t spoken to him other than some text messages back and forth that only led to him telling me he was fucked up and not sure when he’d be able to see me again. A tear runs down my cheek as I think about the sweet man I love running around his backyard with Brody, so calm and carefree. I smile remembering the day I met him. He was leaner than he is now, but just as handsome. We spent the entire week sneaking little touches and flirting with each other behind Rem’s back. He was so sweet as we leaned on that tree, and he fed me cotton candy. That night he came so close to kissing me for the first time. I chuckle, but as usual Rem got in the way. I wipe the tears running down my face. Last Fourth of July he was at the house and I was so tempted to talk to him.

  That wasn’t the man I saw last week, and I want to know where he’s gone. His smile plays in my mind repeatedly, as well as the look of relief on his face when I told him I love him, and I do. Now when I’m finally done with school and ready to have a life with the man I love, he’s pushing me away. It’s time I fight for him, and I think I know the man to help. Remy and Kenzie are coming over for dinner tonight, and I think it’s time I fill him in on what his friend is going through. Vaughn won’t open up to me, but he will to my brother.

  I run off to the shower to get ready for my day. Mama, Courtney, and I are going to my new place to do some cleaning, and then we’re going to pick some furniture before we have to be back here for dinner. As soon as I’m done, I hurry downstairs to find Courtney in the kitchen with Mama. “Hey, girl. How you holding up?”

  “I’m okay. I know it’s only been a week, but I miss him.” She rubs my arm. “Actually, I feel like it’s been longer because the man we hung with last week, that wasn’t my Vaughn. I don’t know who that was, but—” I close my eyes. “That wasn’t my man.”

  She nods. “What are you going to do?”

  I chuckle. “Well, my big brother always wants to come to my rescue, now he can. I know Vaughn won’t open up to me about the things he’s experienced, and I understand. He doesn’t want to fill my head with that stuff. I get it, but he has no reason not to open up to Rem, and if there’s anyone that can help get him on the straight and narrow, it’s Remy.”

  “You really love that man, don’t you?” Mama hands me a bottle of water.

  I look up at her, proud. “From the moment his lips first touched mine.”

  Mama puts her arm around me. “I think you loved him even before that. You know you remind me so much of me, sweetie. Your father and I had a similar situation. He never deployed or served, but we fell instantly in love, and I knew from the moment he first touched me I would be spending my life with him.”

  I rest my head on her shoulder. “Thanks, Mama. I just hope he can see it too.”

  “He will. Men are difficult, girls,” Mama says to both of us. “But when you have someone you love with all your heart, you have to hold on tight and enjoy the ride no matter where it takes you. Love is not meant to be all peaches and cr
eam. There are ups and downs and so many bumps along the journey. It’s how you handle the bumps that make your relationship stronger. You have to learn to rely on one another, and right now that’s the part Vaughn is having a hard time with.” I nod and wipe away a tear that escaped me. “Don’t you fret, your brother had the same problem with Kenzie. He came around and now look at them. They’ll be here later to regale us with stories of their honeymoon. Now no more depressing talk. We need to have some girl time shopping.” I chuckle and the three of us get up from our stools. Mama grabs a basket full of cleaning supplies, and we head out to my house.

  When we get to the house, it’s dark because all of the blinds are closed. The first thing we do after we’ve unloaded the vacuum and mops that I’ve bought is go around letting light in. “Brooke, you start here in the kitchen.” Mama drops a few things for me to use. She hands Courtney a duster. “Courtney, you get to dust everything, and I’m going to clean the two bathrooms.”

  I pull my phone from my back pocket and open up a playlist of music for us to listen to while we clean. I start with wiping down the very top of the cabinets and then move to the inside of the cabinets, down to the countertops and sink, before I clean the lower cabinets. Now there’s dust all over the floor. I grab my vacuum and clean it all up until I’m happy with the way it looks. It’s taken me a while to clean it, but I’m happy it’s ready for some dishes and everything else I’ll need to keep in here. I continue vacuuming into the living room, helping Courtney take care of the dust from having the house closed up. By the time we’re done with these two rooms, Mama is done with my master bathroom. I take the vacuum into the two guest rooms, and then into the master.

  When I’m done, I store the vacuum in the hall closet and get busy mopping the kitchen while Courtney dust mops the hardwood floors in my living room. It’s taken us a good few hours, but the house smells fresh and clean. It’s now ready for furniture to be delivered.