Page 119 of Happily Never After

“Good morning, ladies,” she said, far too chipper for the chaos that had just unfolded.

“Brianna! How are you?” Alice swooped in for another strangle hug. Claire mouthed a thank you over Alice’s shoulder, and Brianna smiled.

Claire glanced at the front door behind her. One hand hesitated on the knob. She could totally run away before Alice noticed. Alice turned around and shook her head. Holy shit. Had she taken up telepathy now? Claire sighed and trudged into the kitchen.

After an hour of chatting about her new project, Bri left to meet with her trainer.

Then the ranting began. Eggs jiggled in a frying pan on the stove as Alice paced in the kitchen.

“I can’t believe the police haven’t been more proactive. They know about your history. Surely your father has spoken to them. And now Luke has had to hire private security just to keep you?—”

She must have noticed the grimace Claire made at the mention of Luke’s name.

“Where is Luke, sweetheart? Working already?”

Claire slid the pan off the burner and took a deep breath. She addressed the spatula. “He left. Pretty much right after I was abducted. He said he couldn’t be with someone who didn’t care if she lived or died.”

There was a small gasp behind her. Claire turned to find Alice’s enormous sky-blue eyes watering cinematically. “He didn’t.”

She offered a flat smile. “It’s okay. I think I was just too much for him. It’s better to know now than in five years, right? Besides, he spent the last month bossing me around. Telling me I can’t leave the house by myself. I’m not a child.” Despite the casual nature of her words, thousands of daggers pierced her insides. She had opened her heart again, and look where it got her. Maybe she really was meant to be alone—a starry-eyed spinster creating happily ever afters for everyone but herself.

Alice collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table. She seemed lost in thought. “It’s not like him to just leave. He must have been really upset.”

Claire wrenched the refrigerator door open. She needed to focus on something else, or she was going to lose it. The fancy kombucha Luke had requested sat on the bottom shelf, mocking her. She yanked the glass bottle out of the fridge and twisted the top off. The scent of vinegar was strong in the air as it swirled down the drain.

Words bubbled up on their own. “I still can’t believe he said that to me. You know? That I don’t care if I live or die. Who isso casual about their existence? OfcourseI don’t want to die. I just want things to go back to normal. I’m tired of being hunted like an animal. I’m tired of waiting to see what twisted way ESA is going to try to ruin my life next. I’m tired of putting everyone around me in danger all the time.” She slammed the bottle down on the counter and whirled around. “They’re threatening Brianna and Charlie. And they almost took you from me.”

“Sweetheart, put the knife down.” Alice’s hand closed over her wrist.

She had picked up the chef’s knife without even noticing.

Claire dropped the knife and sank into another mom hug. Patchouli and vanilla infiltrated her nose as Alice squeezed her tight. She had come perilously close to losing the strongest woman she knew. Alice had spent Claire’s formative years lecturing her endlessly on personal safety. Without her mother, she wouldn’t have been able to slip her bonds that night in the parking garage. The emergency tool wouldn’t have been in her purse. Her mother had prepared her for the worst, and she had survived because of it.

“You’ll never lose me, darling.” Alice whispered. “And I don’t think you’ve lost Luke either, for what it’s worth.”

Claire withdrew and went back to the pan. She couldn’t think about Luke right now.

Alice hovered behind her. “Sweetheart, you’re tough. Like me. I know you didn’t have the best childhood, and I’m sorry about that,” she said.

Oh boy, an impromptu therapy session. Had she not suffered enough? If she didn’t head it off now, they’d both spend the entire day weeping and eating ice cream out of the container.

“Mom, that’s?—”

Alice put a hand on her cheek. She smiled, but there were tears in her eyes. “I fell to pieces when your dad left. You and Charlie held things together. I relied on you both too much, Iknow I did. You were such a sweet girl, even then. Making sure the bills were paid and making grocery lists. You’re used to having to be tough. And I think in some ways that’s served you well. You have grown into a miraculous woman. You are kind, fierce, loyal, independent, silly, beautiful, all the best things a person could be.”

Claire bit her lip. Crying was not on the agenda for the day, but the tears were welling up of their own accord. Damn it, Mom.

Alice’s hands cradled hers, cool and soft. “You’ve been through so much, Clairebear. You’ve been hurt, in more ways and by more people than most of us will ever experience.”

Now her lip was quivering. Deep breaths.

Alice squeezed her hands and continued. “I know you hate that he was trying to tell you what to do. But imagine you were him. Wouldn’t you want him to do everything he could to be safe when you weren’t physically with him? He told you to stay home because he can’t protect you while he’s gone.”

Claire opened her mouth, ready to protest that she didn’t need anyone to protect her. Alice silenced her with a stern look.

“But you left anyway,” she continued, “knowing full well that there’s a group of crazed idiots out there hell-bent on killing you, and look what happened. You keep putting yourself in danger for no reason. He loves you, sweetheart. It’s no wonder he’s upset.”

Claire frowned and pulled her hands away to cross her arms. Even if her mom was right, it was no reason to just leave.

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