Chapter 2
Before I got zapped back in time, I'd ditched my dream of attending University of Eldridge Police Department just to stay close to Cary.
I tagged along to Lumora Military Academy, his obsession.
Let me tell you, that place was hardcore—way tougher than any cop training.
The drills were endless, and I was wiped out, body and mind. Pure misery.
What really got under my skin, though, was watching Cary and Holly make goo-goo eyes at each other right in front of me.
I was green with envy, but I zipped my lip. After all, I was the one crashing their little love fest.
Then, boom—Holly got the boot from the academy.
Cary was dead sure I had something to do with it and gave me the silent treatment from then on.
After we graduated, he dragged his feet on marrying me, despite his promises.
That was, until Holly's wedding invite landed in our mailbox.
She'd run off and married some spoiled rich kid to burn Cary for good.
It crushed him. At our wedding, he was like a shell of himself, just going through the motions.
Once we were hitched, Cary turned into a ghost.
He'd stay away for years, barely stepping foot in our house.
When I'd swing by the base to see him, he'd pick up extra shifts for his buddies rather than crash with me in the barracks.
Simona kept blowing up my phone, asking if I was "expecting" yet.
She even sent me some skimpy lingerie, dropping not-so-subtle hints to heat things up and give her grandkids, stat.
Desperate to win Cary over—and to shut Simona up—I slipped into that lingerie, cheeks burning, and climbed into his bunk in the duty room.
Big mistake. Cary pointed at me and called me trashy.
That was the last straw. I hightailed it home that night, ready to divorce his sorry butt, no matter what.
He came groveling back, all sweet talk and apologies.
He made up for our three-year-late honeymoon night, and wouldn't you know it—I got pregnant.
Twins, no less.
I thought kids would make him step up as a husband and dad.
Nope. Kids could keep me tied down, but only Holly had Cary on a leash.
Even when he found out I nearly died giving birth—thanks to Holly's nasty taunts—he still had her back.
To "make things right," he begged me to forgive her, and—got this—stabbed himself twice to "pay" for her mess.
I was still in the hospital, my babies in incubators, and he didn't even ask about them.
Not once. Didn't even pop in to see them.
The second I got home, Holly sent me a video.
There she was, all over Cary, dancing in a way that'd make my heart race.
Simona caught me glued to my phone when she swung by after her night class.
When she saw what was up, she lost it.
"That jerk!" she snapped. "Dumping his fiancée to mess around with that hussy? I'm gonna whip his hide!
"And Holly? That shameless tramp! Cary's engaged, and she's still grinding on him? I'm storming over to her parents' place tomorrow and giving them an earful!"
Holly's dad was the school security guard, her mom a janitor.
Simona, the school director, usually cut them some slack.
But when she found out Cary was sneaking around with Holly, all bets were off.
Simona was all about "marrying up," and Holly's folks? They didn't make the grade.
She always hoped Cary would end up with me.
Because my dad was a major, my uncle ran a top-tier high school, and my cousin was a big-deal official.
To Simona, I was Cary's ticket to the big leagues.
To split up the lovebirds, Simona nitpicked Holly's parents every chance she got.
She just wanted Holly to know her place and keep her distance from Cary.
But Holly and her folks clung to Cary like gum on a shoe.
In my previous life, Simona and I teamed up, but we couldn't shake Holly loose.
I burned out, Simona got old and worn down, and Holly? She won.
She married Cary and even got my two awesome boys.
This time, I wasn't gonna block their path.
But I wasn't about to leash Simona either.
If Holly wanted to be Mrs. Cary, she'd have to survive his mom first.
*****
Simona's way of keeping Cary in line was old-school: a feather duster to the backside.
One whack, one red stripe—tough love, for sure.
I figured he'd give me the cold shoulder, thinking I snitched.
But instead, he showed up, looking sheepish.
"Hey, I'm sorry," he said, eyes locked on mine. "It was just a dance with Holly, I swear. Nothing shady. You don't gotta worry—I know who I am, and I ain't stepping out of line."
He sounded like he meant it.