I bit my lip, willing my emotions to remain under control. “This would help them get on their feetfaster.”
“How long, Brenna?”
I opened my mouth to answer, but apparently, the question was rhetorical.
“How long are you going to prioritize every other person over me? I am yourfiancé.I deserve more than a couple of text messages and a call a week. Don’t blame my job or your job. You would make time if it was important to you.”
My lip wobbled. “I know. I’m sorry. I’m just overwhelmed. I never meant to hurt you, Jack. Please believe me.”
“It’d be easier to believe if I knew when you were coming home. Can you tell me that?”
I couldn’t, especially not with this new wrinkle. I wasn’t sure how long I needed to stay in Middlebury, something I still had to tell my mom and Molly. They didn’t expect me back for a few days, so I kept putting it off. Mom would want to know how they’d get by without my income, who would take over the chores, drive Molly to hockey practice, something I signed her up for when I moved in.
I was letting every single person in my life down.
Even today at the café, I wasn’t able to back up Nathan with Allison. Their argument had me retreating to a less emotionallydraining location. For all my work, all my strategies, I still failed at the most basic of human interaction and relationships.
“We need space, Brenna,” Jack said after a minute of silence. “Ineed space. To figure out what I want. You should do the same.”
“Okay,” I whispered, relief washing over me that this fight was ending and I’d have a reprieve from the discomfort of our relationship.
Jack let out a heavy sigh. I’d said the wrong thing. I didn’t say what he wanted to hear.
“I’m sorry,” I said immediately, hating the feel of his pain.
Jack ended the call.
12
NATHAN
Now
By the time Brennawalked through the front door of the house, I was well into my third beer and the Palmer City Wolves had a 1–0 lead in the second period.
Seven fucking hours after I left her outside the café.
If she’d come home sooner, she would have found me hard at work, sorting through my childhood bedroom, reliving the happy years before everything went to hell. The shitshow of a conversation with Allison had motivated me to get to work. The quicker I worked, the sooner I could leave.
“I didn’t know you were a hockey fan.” Brenna came into the room and parked herself on the large comfy chair in the corner.She curled her legs into a pretzel, apparently still her preferred position for relaxation. I took note of her puffy eyes, but the last person she’d want to confide in was me.
I shrugged. “I like it enough. It’s the only game on right now. But we don’t have to watch—”
“No… I want to watch,” she said quickly. “I’ve been watching games with Molly. My sister.”
“I know who Molly is.”
Brenna inhaled sharply. “Right.”
Molly had been a sensitive issue between us from the time her mom became pregnant to our last conversation at her high school graduation. We thought we shared a half-sibling—it was years later we learned it wasn’t true—and Brenna resented me for keeping my distance.
When I grew up and realized how badly I’d bungled the entire situation, I understood her anger. It wasn’t Molly’s fault she was born into a messed-up family. I should’ve put my feelings aside and understood that bonding with someone I thought was my sister didn’t mean I was being disloyal to my mom.
But I was a kid. I screwed up.
Brenna said she’d never forgive me for it, and I didn’t blame her.
“Are you… okay?” I asked, unable to take the silence or resist my need to know who hurt her. Every limb in her body was locked with tension. For so long, having her back was my role, and it was hard to shed the protective feelings.
