Page 191 of Steamy Ever After

She shut the book. “Nothing good.”

He turned her to face him and looped his arms around her shoulders, pressing his forehead against hers. “It’s in the past, Erin. None of us were totally happy then. And I don’t know anyone who’s doing everything they thought they’d be doing now.”

“You are. You’re following your dreams and perusing a comedy career.”

“I bombed my last show.”

She frowned, guilt slicing through her. “At O’Malley’s?”

“No. A show I did in the Bronx.”

“When were you in New York?”

“Last week.”

“You left?” The steadiness she usually found in his arms disappeared as a sense of having the rug pulled out from under her left her emotionally flailing for reassurance.

Panic welled in her. He’d left the state without even telling her? He hadn’t even said goodbye.

“Only for two days. The show didn’t go well.”

“You were gone for two days and didn’t tell me. What if the show had gone well? Would you have stayed?”

“If they offered me another gig, I probably would’ve taken the job. This is how I make a living, Erin.”

Just like that, he would have left. No goodbye, no note.

A knock came from the door. “Dinner’s ready,” Mariella called.

Erin turned to leave and he grabbed her arm. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“You just left.”

“For a job. I came back.”

Her mind flashed to a forgotten memory and she was standing in her father’s bedroom staring down at her mother’s empty drawers. Then she was crying on the front porch watching Harrison drive away. “I can’t have this discussion here.”

“What discussion? Erin, I’m a little confused?”

“Me too.” She left his bedroom and visited the powder room to wash her hands before dinner.

As she stared in the mirror at her reflection, she noticed how shaken she appeared. She needed to pull herself together. His family was out there, and it would be nice if she didn’t make a bad impression for a change.

Blowing out a breath, she stuffed down all her insecurities and tried not to worry about how much time she and Giovanni had left before he moved on. She didn’t say much at dinner, but there was never an awkward silence. The food was delicious, but she didn’t have much of an appetite.

On the drive home, Giovanni kept looking at her, his easygoing expression morphing into a straight scowl by the time they reached her house.

She went straight to her room and changed into a T-shirt for bed. Giovanni watched her from the doorway, his fist still gripping his keys.

“Do you want to explain what I did that was so damn wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“Oh, bullshit, Erin. You’re pissed and I have no idea why.”

“I’m not pissed.” She was upset. All the pressure she’d been carrying in her chest lately started to swell and her body felt like it was going to burst open. She wanted to scream and cry or throw something, but she couldn’t explain what the hell she was feeling or why her insides shook with the force of a hurricane.

She pushed past him to go brush her teeth and he caught her arm, forcing her full attention. “Talk to me.”

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