Page 85 of Burner Account

I blinked. “Meaning?”

“Meaning…” Again, she paused to think. “He’s so young, honey. And he’s…” Mom pursed her lip as if she didn’t know how to finish that thought. “Well, he’s young. You two seem to really like each other, but he might not want anything permanent at his age.”

“He’s twenty-six. Dad was twenty-three when you two got married.”

“Yes, but you’re thirty-five.”

“So?”

“Well…” Again, she didn’t seem to know how to say what was on her mind.

I sighed. “It’s different because he’s a young, rich athlete?”

She dropped her gaze. Yetagain, not exactly a no. “Young men like him—they live a different lifestyle than the rest of us. I just don’t want to see you get hurt again when he decides to move on.”

Wow. Nice to know everyone in my family thought so highly of me.

From the back of my mind, that voice wormed its way in:

Just because you don’t want to hear it doesn’t mean it’s a lie.

Fuck off, Keith.

I’m right. You know I’m right. The evidence is right there on your left hand.

I absently thumbed the bare spot on my left ring finger, and I swallowed the lump trying to rise in my throat.I’ddumped Keith.Iwas the one who’d decided not to marryhim. The absence of that ring was a sign of me taking control and refusing to take his abuse anymore. Not that I wasn’t good enough for someone.

Whatever helps you sleep at night, Isaiah.

My mom opened her mouth to say something, but I quickly said, “Do you want me to bring out some more chips?” I gestured at the cabinet. “I think the bowls were getting low.”

“Honey, we—”

“We need some more of the queso dip too.” I busied myself getting it all out, hoping to God she didn’t notice that my hands were shaking. I didn’t want to talk about this anymore. Not with Brandi. Not with my mother. I was fuckingdone.

Mercifully, she let it go, at least for now. We put some chips and dip in bowls, took them outside, and went our separate ways to rejoin the party.

I loved my mom. We generally had a pretty good relationship. It just hurt to realize she was on the same page as my sister about this. On the same page as my ex-fiancé, honestly.

Were they all on to something? Was I setting my sights too high? Was I out of my damn mind, thinking Tanner and I had any kind of staying power?

Right then, Tanner appeared beside me. “Hey.” He slipped his hand into mine. “You okay?”

I felt like absolute shit, and I wanted to say that, no, I was far from okay. That this felt a lot like the aftermath of going a couple verbal rounds with a bully when I was a kid. Like I was angry but also couldn’t deny the truth at the core of all the insults and taunting. Or in this case, the concerned comments from my mom and sister.

But the second I locked eyes with Tanner, that all just… faded away. It was still there, but like the scar on his lip, I had to look close to see it. It just didn’t matter anymore.

I smiled and touched his face, and when I spoke, I was completely honest: “I’m good.”

“You sure? You just seemed… I don’t know…” His brow furrowed. “Ever since you went inside with your sister.”

All those shitty feelings made a valiant effort to surge back to the surface, but they quieted as I pressed my lips to Tanner’s. “I’m fine. My sister and I don’t always see eye to eye on things, so some friction is kind of inevitable.”

He didn’t seem to completely buy that.

“I’m fine,” I repeated. “Just butting heads a little with Brandi.” I kissed him again, letting it linger for a second longer this time. Not enough to be inappropriate with people around, but hopefully enough to derail his worries.

I was pretty sure it worked, too—when I met his eyes, he looked a little dazed, and the concern was quickly melting away.

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