Lila had pulled her hand back when I reached for her. She had stepped away from me at the door, avoiding my touch.Tears had been streaming down her face as her voice broke. And she’d been right about not needing to compete for space in our relationship. I hated that I’d made her feel that way.
But there was no denying the truth—I hurt her.
Not because Kaylee manipulated things. This was my fault. Somewhere along the way, I’d stopped hearing what Lila was trying to tell me.
The realization sat heavily in my stomach. My chest tightened painfully, and a wave of nausea rolled through me. I leaned forward, my elbows on my knees as I pressed the heels of my hands against my eyes.
I had made the woman I loved feel like she was secondary in her own relationship. I’d dismissed her valid concerns until she had no choice but to walk away.
As I started to spiral from the regret and guilt, my phone rang. Hope surged until I saw my mom’s name on the screen.
I was exhausted and emotionally wrecked, but I knew she’d keep calling if I didn’t answer. Or even worse, she’d show up unannounced to check on me in person.
“Hey.”
“Did you sleep?”
I looked down at the untouched coffee sitting on the table in front of me. At some point, I’d made a cup without really thinking about it. Now it had gone cold. “Not really.”
“Have you heard from Lila?”
My grip tightened around my phone. “No.”
There was a short pause before she muttered, “Good.”
I sat up so fast my neck protested. “What?”
“Don’t sound so offended,” she replied. “I’m not saying I’m happy she’s hurting. I’m saying I’m glad she isn’t answering if your plan was blowing up her phone until she picked up.”
I leaned forward, rubbing a hand over my face. “Mom, I want to fix this.”
“Reid.” Her voice softened, but only a little. “Did you sleep?”
“No.”
“Have you eaten?”
“No.”
“And you’ve probably called her what? Ten times by now?” she guessed.
“More like a dozen,” I admitted.
Mom sighed again. “You’d be better off putting that energy into coming up with a plan for you to prove to Lila that she can trust you to really listen to her going forward. That you’re willing to learn how to put your relationship where it’s always belonged, at the top of your priorities.”
I didn’t have an answer for that because I was starting to realize that loving Lila and making her feel loved weren’t necessarily the same thing.
“I hear what you’re saying, Mom.”
“But are you actually listening?”
“Yeah,” I rasped.
“Good, because if she gives you another chance, it’s almost definitely the only one you’ll get.”
And with that truth bomb, she ended the call.
The conversation had been tough, but she’d told me what I needed to hear.
