Keep This Promise

Keep This Promise ROSE CANYON: BOOK THREE CORINNE MICHAELS Contents Preface Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 Chapter 21 Chapter 22 Chapter 23 Chapter 24 Chapter 25 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Chapter 35 Chapter 36 Chapter 37 Chapter 38 Epilogue Bonus Scene Books by Corinne Michaels About the Author Keep This Promise Copyright © 2023 Corinne Michaels All rights reserved. ISBN ebook: 978-1-942834-80-9 ISBN print: 978-1-942834-81-6 No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written consent of the author. This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or publisher. Cover Design: Sommer Stein, Perfect Pear Creative Editing: Ashley Williams, AW Editing Proofreading: Julia Griffis & ReGina Kaye Photographer: Nicole Ashley Photography Dedication To Nina Grinstead, thank you for always being in my corner and kicking me in the butt when I need it. Dear Reader, It is always my goal to write a beautiful love story that will capture your heart and leave a lasting impression. However, I want all readers to be comfortable. Therefore, if you want to be aware of any possible CW please click the link below to take you to the book page where there is a link that will dropdown. If you do not need this, please go forth and I hope you love this book filled with all the pieces of my heart. Click here to find any CW for this book Chapter One SOPHIE “No, no, please, Theo, fight,” I beg my husband, clutching his hand. “Please don’t give up.” He squeezes it back, his blue-tinged lips attempting to lift. “You be brave, Sophie. You have to be.” I can’t be. I don’t know how to survive in a world without him. Theodore Pearson has been my best friend since we were nine years old and my husband for the last three and a half years. He stepped in and saved me then, and I can’t do it for him now. His heart is failing, and there’s no chance of a transplant anymore. “How do I live without you?” “You—” He gasps, closing his eyes before forcing them back open to stare at me. “You are stronger than you believe. Find someone to love you the way I never could, Sophie. You have to take Eden and go.” I shake my head. He keeps repeating this, but I will not leave him. Not now. Not at the end when he’s literally dying. “You can’t make me leave you, Theo.” I have been by his side, praying for a miracle that I knew would never come. Theo was born with a congenital heart disease. When he was seven, he had his first open-heart surgery. When he was eleven, he had his second. The last one was a year ago, and that was when he went on the transplant list, but we’ve been waiting and hoping, but there is no match. Time has run out, and he wants me to leave him to die alone. I can’t. “If you . . . love me . . . you have to . . .” Theo coughs several times and then inhales deeply. “Go.” None of this makes sense, but three days ago, he started demanding I pack without any explanation. He said it was life and death. So, I did as he asked because it settled him once I agreed. But this is crazy. I am not going to leave him on his death bed. I push back, confused as to why he keeps saying these strange things. “Why? How can you want me to leave you now?” A tear falls down his cheek. “Because he’ll come for you.” “Who? Who is coming? None of this makes any sense.” Theo reaches for my hand, entwining our fingers. “You are my best friend, Sophie. When you got pregnant, I married you, took care of you, and did everything I could to protect you. Now I’m asking you to do this for me. Take Eden and follow the directions.” My jaw trembles as I try to push back the tears. “Yes, you did that, but it was your idea! I didn’t ask you to do those things. You are my best friend, Theo. You did all that, and now you want me to let you die alone?” “Yes. I need to die alone.” “You can’t be serious? I can’t leave you now. I refuse to . . . you can’t ask this of me.” “I won’t be alone.” “You will.” His parents will never come. They walked away from Theo six years ago when he refused to work for his father. They hated the choices he made, so we haven’t heard from them since. I called them a week ago, left a frantic message explaining his situation, and his mother’s assistant called to tell me that they were out of the country and that they sent flowers. They are horrid people. “I have not asked you for much, Fee.” He uses my childhood nickname, and a tear falls down my cheek. “You owe me for forcing me to marry you.” I let out a laugh, but it sounds more like a sob. “You have always wanted to be with me.” He rolls his eyes. “We were never like that, love.” No, we weren’t, but when I came home from Vegas pregnant, Theo didn’t hesitate. He offered to marry me and raise Eden as