“He ignored me,” I said, the words tumbling out before I could stop them.
Dixie winced.“Damn.”
Mavis tilted her head.“Ignored-you ignored-you, or professional-wall ignored-you?”
“Professional.Controlled.Like I’m just...someone who works here.”
Dixie tilted her head.“That bad, huh?”
I dropped my notebook onto a chair and exhaled.“Did you two plan this?”
Mavis glanced up then, unbothered.“We call it being proactive.”
“And supportive,” Dixie added.
I shook my head, my chest tightening now that I wasn’t alone.“He barely looked at me.”
Mavis nodded once.“Sit.”
I didn’t argue.I walked behind my desk and sank into my chair like my body had been waiting for permission to give out.
“What was the temperature of the room?”Dixie asked.
“Arctic!He barely acknowledged me.Like I’m just...another executive.”
Mavis clicked her tongue.“That man does not do ‘just.’If he’s icing you out, it’s because he’s hurt.”
“That doesn’t make it hurt less,” I snapped, then sighed.“I know I screwed up.”
Dixie stepped closer.“Yes, but Peyton, the Vincenzo threat is over.”
“I know,” I said quietly.“They’re gone.”
“Good,” Mavis said firmly.“Because I was not prepared to keep Googling Italian crime families.”
Despite myself, I let out a weak laugh.
Dixie smiled.“You and the girls are safe.That matters.”
“It does,” I agreed.“I’m grateful.I just didn’t expect safety to feel so...empty.”
Mavis leaned forward, elbows on her knees.“Because it cost you Creed.”
My throat tightened.“I didn’t trust him.”
“No,” Mavis corrected.“You tried to control fear instead of surrendering to love.”
Dixie winced.“Damn.”
“I kept secrets,” I whispered.“I thought I was protecting him.”
“And meanwhile ...,” Dixie began, “...he paid off a mob debt like it was a utility bill.”
Mavis snapped her fingers.“Through the Barone family.I stalked that family online.Fucking billionaires.That’s not small, Peyton.That’s power.That’s commitment.”
“I didn’t ask Creed to do that.”
“I know,” Mavis said softly.“That’s why it shattered him.”
