I looked at her.
Really looked at her.
And suddenly I understood.
Drew had been right.
I was trained.
But training could be broken.
My fingers closed around the bracelet.
“You and I need to talk,” I said.
“Oh, baby,” she said, sighing like I had inconvenienced her. “Tell me you didn’t let him leave.”
Something inside me went very still.
Not numb.
Clear.
“Let him?” I asked.
“Well.” She came into the room and closed the door behind her. “Men like that require management. Especially young ones. They’re emotional. Proud. You can’t just?—”
“Stop.”
Her eyes widened.
She wasn’t used to that word from me.
Not like that.
“Isa.”
“No.” I wiped my cheeks with the heel of my hand. “You don’t get to come in here and talk about Drew like he’s a portfolio.”
Her brows pulled together. “A portfolio?”
“A prize. An upgrade. Something I bagged.”
Her lips parted.
I laughed once.
It was not a nice sound.
“You said it on the patio. He heard you.”
For the first time all morning, my mother looked genuinely caught.
Then she recovered.
Of course she did.
“Oh, baby, I was trying to make you feel better. You were heartbroken over Tristan, and then you brought home someone wonderful. I’m proud of you.”
