Page 41 of Passionate Hearts

River laughed out loud in spite of herself. She witnessed a flicker of surprise cross Tiff’s face. The expression only lasted for a moment. Then Tiff was back to her casually cool self. Tiff was always in control. But not today, and not with River.

“Are you serious right now?”

“Of course, I am,” Tiff answered. There was a hint of annoyance in her tone which River took as a personal victory.

“We’re done, Tiff. You cheated on me, and you weren’t even a great girlfriend leading up to that.”

River folded her arms across her chest and pinned Tiff with abetter off deadglare.

“That was one indiscretion. A chance to get something out of my system before settling down.”

The amount of ick that River felt was unquantifiable.

“You also left Brianna to take care of me after my accident,” River accused.

Tiff waved her off. Her gesture was almost so casual it was disconcerting.

“Honestly, River, what did you want me to do? Come sit on the couch and watch movies while you recovered?”

River’s heart leapt in her chest. That was exactly what she had wanted. And that was exactly what Brianna had given her.

“Yes,” River said plainly.

“What good would that have done?” Tiff sighed.

“I was hurt, Tiff. I needed someone to show up for me. And you never did, which is one of the many reasons that things would never work out with us. Besides, Brianna and I have started dating,” River announced proudly.

“Brianna? Your roommate? Babe, come on. You can’t be serious,” Tiff laughed.

“Firstly, I’m not your babe. Secondly, I am absolutely serious. And why shouldn’t I be? Brianna is kind, considerate, loyal, and I know that no matter what happens she’ll always be there for me.”

“So would I,” Tiff demanded.

“History would dispute that.”

“I made one mistake,” Tiff said.

“You made several mistakes. And cheating isn’t a mistake. Cheating is a dealbreaker.”

River met Tiff’s eyes and refused to look away. Tiff rubbed the back of her neck with a hand. She sighed and River watched as her face softened.

“Listen, the truth is that I got scared. We were getting really serious. We had started talking about rings and I wasn’t sure if I was ready. And yes, I should have handled that better. But I didn’t know how. It was scary to think that I was the person you were relying on to help you after the accident. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to show up for you.”

“That might be the realest thing you’ve ever said to me. But how are things different now? What makes you able to handle those things now?” River demanded.

“Because now I know what it’s like to lose you. I never want to do that again.”

River sighed deeply. This encounter was proving to be harder than she’d imagined it would be.

“It’s too late. I’m already gone,” River said, her tone softer than before.

“I refuse to accept that. I won’t leave here until I say exactly what I came to say.”

“Nothing you say is going to change my mind. I love Brianna.”

River was stunned when Tiff dropped to one knee. She was even more surprised when Tiff pulled a ring box out of her back pocket. Shit. This was the last thing River needed in her life.

“Tiff, don’t,” River protested, but Tiff held up a hand to silence her.

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