Page 99 of What If I See You

He really loves me?

He hasn’t said those words to me.

Does she really know?

What does she mean by that?

Does she know everything?

There’s no way Griffin told her and didn’t tell me.

Guilt consumes me.

Griffin’s parents are some of the most compassionate and loving people I know and we’re lying to them. Okay, maybe not really lying, but we’re not telling the whole truth either.

I don’t know what to do.

I want to tell her.

I want to tell her everything.

She feels like someone I can trust.

But what if I’m totally wrong?

My mom’s voice rings through my mind.

“If you think we’re going to help you out of every fucked-up situation you get yourself into…”

“You’ll never amount to anything…”

How can I have any real relationship with Gail if I’m not one hundred percent honest? And if I don’t have a great relationship with her…what will Griffin think? He’s head over heels for his family. Hell, I’m head over heels for them too.

“Gail?” I say with a huge lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. Hearing the vulnerability in my voice she turns to look at me. She lays a hand on my arm and tilts her head.

“What is it, sweetheart?”

I inhale a huge breath and look out at the man I’ve come to know over the past month or so. The man who has given me more love and kindness in such a short time than anyone has ever shown me before.

The man I’m falling for.

“I need to tell you something,” I murmur as to not pull the attention of the guys. “And it’s kind of a big something.”

Gail studies me for a moment and then narrows her eyes a bit before asking, “Is this a wine-drinking kind of conversation? I feel like maybe we need wine. What do you say?”

A smile spreads across my face because somehow even when the world feels like it’s about to swallow in around me, Griffin’s mom sees the trepidation on my face and works to put me at ease.

“Wine would be great, yes.”

She winks at me and turns to grab two glasses while I pick two different bottles of wine from the fridge. I pour a glass of white for myself and red for Gail and then we make ourselves comfortable against the counter to chat.

“It’s my fault,” I tell her. “Everything that’s happened in the past couple of months is my fault. Please don’t be upset with Griffin.”

“What do you mean?”

“The wedding…our marriage.” I shake my head. “Mrs. Ollenberg, we didn’t get married because we were in love.” I swallow. “We got married because I lost my job at the hospital and showed up here that night. The team was here and Corrigan Hicks is my best friend.”

“Coach Hicks’s daughter?”

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