Page 18 of Begin Again

“I just said where you worked, nothing more.”

“He knows you’re divorced,” Abby asked.

“Yes. He told me that, when he’d found out the house was sold, he’d heard the name and would have remembered if it was mine. He went back to see if it was anyone he knew.”

“And saw it was a different last name. When will you go back to Sherman?” Abby asked.

“Soon. I didn’t want to do it until I bought a house. I knew it was going to take some time and I didn’t want it to mess with my credit or anything. I’ve got to change all my cards over and everything. Now that I own the house, I can start that process.”

She’d been scared she couldn’t get the loan even though she’d been pre-approved due to the money she had in the bank.

Pre-approval didn’t mean it’d go through though.

“What’s the next step? “Abby asked. “Did you exchange numbers or are you going to see each other again?”

The drill stopped and she looked around to make sure her father wasn’t close by.

“I’m going to his place for dinner tonight. He said since I showed him my place that I’m rehabbing, he wanted me to see one of his.”

“Sounds like a line to me,” Abby said.

She frowned. “I don’t know.”

“Hey,” Abby said, grabbing her hand. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for and I didn’t mean he was playing you. Just that maybe it was a good excuse to see you again.”

“Could be,” she said. It was hard to get out of her own way at times.

“He’s nothing like Tanner. Don’t think that,” Abby said.

“I know.”

“What did you tell him about Tanner?”

“Nothing,” she said. “I don’t want anyone to know.”

Abby sighed. “Dad is going to be so upset if he ever finds out the truth.”

“There is no reason for him to. He thought I was heartbroken over the marriage ending. Let him believe it.”

She was more heartbroken over being a victim and allowing it to happen in her life.

Before her ex-mother-in-law, Donna, had shown up, Liz was going to go to work as usual and then make a plan for leaving Tanner. She didn’t think she could just pick up and go and get away.

It was probably better that Donna did get involved and it made it less painful on that end.

No matter when she left, it was going to be painful though. She knew that.

“I hate keeping it from Dad,” Abby argued.

“It does nothing if he knows now, right? Nothing changes.”

“No,” Abby said.

She knew that because her father felt bad that he wasn’t there for her when her marriage was going bad. If her father knew she was in an abusive relationship, who knows what her father would have done?

She didn’t need that on her shoulders.

“What are you girls talking about in here?” her father asked. “Just like old times. I’m doing all the work and you’re gossiping.”

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