The Day Our Promise Breaks (Charles and Evelyn) novel Chapter 232

‘No way!’

‘That's not true!’

Charles shook his head on instinct. The moment the idea that Charlie might actually be gone hit him, and his gut reaction was to flat-out refuse it.

Charlie couldn’t be gone! How could a perfectly healthy kid just up and die because she waited a bit too long at an amusement park? No, that was just not possible!

That was it—impossible! Evelyn must have said that because he bailed on her. He had left Charlie waiting there all on her own at the park. Evelyn was too crushed over Charlie and too mad at him for always picking Sandy over everything. That was why she’d say something so outrageous.

Charles couldn’t let himself think about it any more. He couldn’t pick apart how thin his excuses were. It was almost like he was running on autopilot, dodging the thought. Dodging the chance that Charlie really was gone.

He couldn’t face it. Didn’t want to. He was terrified... terrified that everything Evelyn said might be true. And terrified... that it might already be too late.

It hit him all at once how much he had let Charlie down. He was only now starting to get what it meant to be her dad and figuring out how to love her right. Besides the amusement park surprise for today, he’d been planning so much more. He was ready to make up for every lost moment over the last five years and then some. Everything was set. He was just waiting for Charlie to show up.

Once Charlie was back, everything would be perfect. He wouldn’t let her down again, wouldn’t ever break a promise to her. From now on, he wouldn’t treat anything regarding Charlie as something minor. Everything about her mattered, and he’d put his heart into it.

No matter what happened with Evelyn, Charlie would always be his little treasure, cherished and adored.