All Chapters of The Long Road : Chapter 1 - Chapter 10
12 Chapters
Chapter 1
“You’re my little supernova, Nova Jane. Never forget how bright you shine, and never let a boneheaded boy get under your skin and dim that light.” My daddy must have had the sight. He must have known that someday I’d make a choice, that led to choices, that led to my nova fading out to black. I wish I had taken his words to heart the first time. The first time I felt my light flicker, but I kept talking myself out of it. So now I don’t have a clue how to get out.  So now here I sit, on the steps of our condo, while the boneheaded boy or man-boy sleeps peacefully as if nothing just happened and all is right in his world, which I suppose it is. I light another one of his cigarettes and count how many are left in the pack. There are only five now, and there were nine when I brought them out here. This has become a ritual for me. I secretly took up smoking after he falls asleep, and I know if he finds out, if he notices his cigarettes are missing, then he’ll
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Chapter 2
There are times in your life that you never forget. Times when you learn an important lesson but one you never wanted to learn. I could have gladly gone my whole life without some lessons I've learned. They aren't the type to make you grow and blossom in life. No, they are there to make you understand that some mistakes you never come back from. You'll never be innocent of. I've learned what it feels like to realize I cannot protect myself. I know how fragile I am and how fast someone can make me feel that. I've learned that someone can take away all control I have over my own life. But, I've also learned that I can be stuck there with no way out.  The night I realized there was no way out was when Rob had thrown a glass vase at me, and it exploded off my wrist when I threw my arm up to deflect it. He was on a rant about something, and I can't even remember what it was anymore. There's always something, but I managed to get my phone and run out of the condo calling the
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Chapter 3
Sharky's with Doug and Melissa started ok. We ordered and had had some drinks and appetizers when the beer started working on my bladder, and there was no ignoring it anymore. I had to visit the ladies' room. Rob stood up to let me slide out of the booth, but I tripped over his foot when I stood up. It scuffed my shoe, and I said, "Shoot! I love these shoes." Rob looked down at my shoe and then looked at me with a mean look on his face, "Don't think that you're going to run out and buy a new pair tomorrow! You spend all of our money on clothes and shit while I work my ass off to keep a roof over our head. I can't even get your ass to go to work!"I stood there in shock. I don't know why I was shocked. I should know that nothing is across the line for Rob, but somehow I still get shocked. I could feel my face turning a bright red, and sweat broke out on my neck. I had not bought myself anything new in a little over a year, but this was Rob's way. Make everyone thi
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Chapter 4
It's been a few weeks since Sharky's date night, and Rob has finally found a new job. He's very excited about it. This job is perfect for him, he says. Rob is, of course, the absolute best at it, and they can already see this and are talking about moving him up. I keep the eye roll on the inside and agree that this will be perfect for him. Something else about Rob is that he is always the best at everything, even when he's not. You agree and get on with it. No one else knows what he knows, and they're all a bunch of idiots. Rob starts to rant about the old boss and how stupid he was to let him get away, and I agree that that wasn't a smart move on his part while my eyeball twitches, but I get it under control. Thankfully there's a game on, and Rob gets sucked into it.  I take a blanket out to the small balcony and curl up in a chair to watch the small section of the gulf coast off in the distance. I love the smell of the ocean. It smells like home and me
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Chapter 5
Wyatt's voice telling me Grams had passed, still ringing in my ears, and all I could think about was getting to my mom. We were a tight-knit family, and mom and gram had been very close. I couldn't imagine losing my mom and what my mother must be going through right now.  It's now three o'clock in the morning, and Rob is agitated and yelling because he says we don't have the money for me to take off of work and run to my family. So much for a bit of sympathy that I had just lost my Grams. My Grams was the shit. I loved the mess out of that lady, and knowing I'd never have another chat with her on the porch with a glass of her delicious sweet tea was tearing me up. Grams, conversations, and tea were life-changing. The woman had lived and learned, and she always had a wise piece of advice to impart.  After arguing that I needed to be with my family and him getting angrier and angrier then lapsing into his condescending voice like I'm a child and I just don't
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Chapter 6
Brodie Seeing her after so many years was a shock to my system even though Wyatt had told me she was coming, and I knew she wouldn't be able to run and hide from me this time. I wasn't prepared for the enormity of the feelings it would stir up. We've got to have a talk and put it behind us, and that's going to happen before she leaves. We're family, and now that I'm living in the town, we need to hash it out, move on from the past. I'd fucked up. I knew it, but she's married now, and I can't turn back the wheels of time.  Damn, she's still beautiful. She looks even better with age. She's twenty- eight now, and I'm thirty. It doesn't seem even seem possible.  I walk out to her car with Wyatt to bring her bags in and see her purse and phone lying in the front passenger seat, so I open the driver's side and sit down to gather them up. I notice a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, and the car stinks of cigarettes.  "Hey Wyatt, when d
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Chapter 7
I had climbed into bed with momma, and we talked in whispers about Grams; then I had made her a plate, and she ate a little bit. She perked up a little seeing me again after two years, and that made me feel guilty that I had not done this sooner. I should have just left like I did today and came to see my family. I put on a set of joggers and a shirt and blow-dried my hair. Spending so much time thinking and fantasizing about Brodie is vastly different than having him here and all up in my space. Also, sleeping under the same roof. Nothing for it but to barrel through it. So left my room to meet Mr. Bossy on the porch.  Brodie was on the porch swing again and patted the space beside him when I walked out on the porch. I ignored it and sat in one of the chairs instead. He smiled and shook his head, then twisted the top off a beer and handed it to me.  "How have you been?" he asked conversationally. "Great, and you?" Lies, I'd probably be tell
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Chapter 8
I woke up to the smell of bacon cooking, so I brushed my teeth and made my way to the kitchen. Momma was sitting at the island with Ms. Patty, and Brodie was at the stove making french toast and bacon.  "Nova! It's so good you're home, dear. Your mom has missed you so." Ms.Patty hugged me and kissed my cheek. "So good to finally have you both home." "Yes, Brodie told me he moved back. That's wonderful." I smiled and kissed her cheek. Then made my way to momma and gave her a squeeze and kiss.  "I told him I was perfectly capable of making breakfast in my kitchen, but he ordered me to sit like I'm one of his commandos." Momma shook her head and smiled.  "Comando's?" I was puzzled. "Those handsome security men that work with him. If I were young again, I would snatch one up!" "Momma!" I busted out laughing.  "You laugh but wait until you get a gander at one," she raised a brow then wiggled it.  I h
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Chapter 9
I’ve decided on Oklahoma City and I'm using mom’s laptop to try to find a cheap place to stay. I might already have a job. The black escalade was gone when we left the funeral home and I haven’t seen it since. There hasn’t been any strangeness going on with Brodie and Wyatt, so it must have been my anxiety causing me to be suspicious. They had no idea about Rob or Wyatt would be in my face about it. I still haven’t contacted Rob. I don’t have it in me to deal with him and  I want to enjoy my time away from him and not have him ruining it. It has been days now of having my family and soaking in every fabulous moment of it. It felt so good that I never wanted to leave. But, of course, Brodie was always hanging around.  He went to work but would constantly be dropping in, and he spent every night on the couch. I still wasn’t comfortable with it simply because it made me so happy. Too safe physically yet not safe at all emotionally. I knew better than to like i
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Chapter 10
Brodie Wyatt had told me about Nova not taking their conversation well, but when I got out of the shower the following day to find her gone, I was pissed. I hadn't had one of the guys on her because I was in the house with her. I didn't think she'd bolt while I was taking a shower. I went to my phone and found her note. That's when I knew what made her desperate enough to leave. She still should have come to me, and that made me angry. I picked up the phone and called Wyatt to give him a heads up about what was going down, and he mentioned that she had been doing something on Cheryl's laptop and said that she might already have a job somewhere. I went to Nova's room, and the laptop was on her dresser, so I opened it and checked the history, but she had deleted it. It was a good thing I put a tracker on her car. It would take time if I had to wait on Tyson to retrieve the information. I looked around her room but didn't find anything except a box under her bed full of
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