Page 107 of When Stars Fall

“Maybe if we put some effort into finding a solution, we can come up with something that’ll work.” She kisses me.

“Was Anna there by the time you left the trailer?”

“No. But I met Camila. I like her, actually. Makes sense how someone like her would have been good for you.”

She’s liked very few of the women I’ve associated with either before, during, or after our relationship. My high tolerance for women who weren’t genuine irked her, but I grew up surrounded by those types of people. I understood them. They’re easy to deal with.

Ellie mystified and intrigued me because her upbringing was so different from mine, but we got along so well. I only kept the women who came after Ellie around if they didn’t remind me of her. None of them were Ellie, and I didn’t want them to be.

“She’s still good for me. It’s why she’s still in my life.” Something occurs to me and I frown. “She didn’t say anything to you, did she? Is that why you changed your mind about Anna?”

“I had time to consider what I’d asked for this morning before I left the trailer. I don’t know Anna anymore. There might be other avenues.” She’s saying the right things, but each time she says them, she avoids looking me in the eye. Finally, when she glances up, her dark depths brim with tears.

“Hey.” I bend to graze her forehead with mine. “Ellie . . .”

“I want you and the kids safe. If we can do that, then we can help Anna too.”

“But you’re crying.” I kiss her forehead. “It doesn’t seem like you’re okay with your suggestion.”

“I cried a lot last time I was pregnant too,” she says. “I thought it was because of you.” She shrugs. “Maybe I’m just a hormonal mess.”

At the mention of the last time she was pregnant, I gather her closer. The whole experience will be different this time. If I have to watch her cry and give her tissues every day for the next six months, that’s what I’ll do.

“You’ll tell me if your feelings become more than that, right? You asked me to watch out for you, but I can’t do that if you’re not telling me the truth.”

“I don’t want Anna to die.” Her tears have left streaks down her face, ruining her makeup.

“Die?” Inside, my anger simmers. “So Camila did talk to you.”

“Wyatt.” Ellie frames my face with her hands when I go tense.

“She shouldn’t have done that.”

“Maybe not. But if you want honesty from me, then I need it from you too. When I asked you, instead of acting like youthoughtAnna might do something to herself, you should have been firm.”

“I don’t want to put my sister’s choices on you. If you need Anna away from our family to feel safe, if you think Jamal’s in danger being with her, I need to listen. And then I need to do something about it.”

“If doing something leads to Anna’s death, you’ll never recover.” Ellie grips my winter jacket in her fists.

I stare out at the snow-covered ground, and the evergreens surrounding today’s location. Camila didn’t hold back, apparently. “You can’t decide that for me.”

“So you’d be perfectly fine if she died?”

“No, of course not.” Frustration leaks into my voice. “But I don’t want to lose you.” My voice breaks, and I clear my throat. We’re building a family, and I’m not sacrificing her or our children for my sister and my nephew. We’re surrounded by curious crew, and any second James is going to amble over here to put us to work. This isn’t the right place for this conversation.

“And what I’m telling you is that you won’t.”

“I can’t guarantee Anna will ever be clean.” We might end up in the exact situation she didn’t want: Haven exposed to an erratic addict.

“I understand.”

“Do you?”

“Maybe not, but I’m trying. Don’t talk to Anna until we have a chance to come up with some ideas. There has to be a way to make this work.”

“All right, lovebirds, break time’s over,” James yells from across the set.

I grit my teeth.

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