Page 78 of Enticing My Off Limits Billionaire

And my mom...that almost hurts the worst.

"She spent my whole childhood warning me about how you can't trust a man," I mumble, looking out the window so I don't have to see the sympathetic look on Andrea's face. "And she felt validated when my dad lied to me and slept with Kylie...then she just stopped talking to me when we reconciled, and she..."

I've only texted her once since everything started with Quinn, and she didn't even bother responding.

"She doesn't like me being happy, I think," I murmur. "Or at least, she doesn't like me being in a relationship."

Andrea nods. "So let me get this straight—your parents divorced when you were a little girl, and your dad went AWOL. Your mother raised you and moved to New York with your father's help for graduate school. Your best friend met your father, and they started a secret relationship, which they lied to you about...and then you agreed to be your friend's maid of honor anyway. Now, you've started a relationship with your father's best friend, who is pregnant with your sister..."

I laugh. "That about sums it up. Somehow, you just summarized an hour's worth of conversation into what—a minute?"

"Madison." Andrea clears her throat, and I look over at her, twisting my hands in my lap. "You are very kind. You know that, right? On some level, you know that."

I shake my head, tears pricking at my eyes. "I don't feel very kind."

"But you are," Andrea insists. "You've been hurt so badly by the people you love, yet you still show up for them. You still try to understand them. You're here in therapy, trying to work through your own pain instead of lashing out at others."

I shrug, feeling like I'm not deserving of her praise. "I don't know about that."

"You've been putting up with a lot of pain and hurt for a long time. It's time for you to start putting yourself first and taking care of your own needs."

I nod slowly, taking in her words. "How do I do that?"

"Well, for starters, let's talk about your relationship with Quinn," she says, leaning forward in her chair. "How is that going?"

"It's going great," I admit with a pained smile forming on my lips. "He's...amazing."

"So why the grimace?"

I wince.

"Well...he's gone," I say. "He had to take his brother to rehab in Europe, and last time we talked, he said he was going to be there longer than expected."

"And how do you feel about that?"

I swallow hard, not wanting to cry and feeling like it's inevitable. "I um...I have some serious abandonment issues because of my father and Kylie and... well, my mom, too, I guess. And now Quinn is gone, and it just feels like I'm..."

I pause, trying in vain to collect myself as tears spill down my cheeks.

"It feels like I'm being put last again," I say. "Everyone else has priority. And I know that's selfish--"

"Madison," Andrea interrupts gently, "it's not selfish to want to feel important in someone's life. You deserve to feel valued and loved."

I nod, feeling the weight of her words. "I just don't know how not to feel like I'm constantly being left behind."

"It's going to take time and patience, Madison," Andrea assures me. "But let's start by exploring where these feelings of abandonment come from. We can work through them together."

I take a deep breath, feeling a glimmer of hope for the first time in a while. "Okay," I say, wiping away my tears. "Let's do that."

Chapter twenty-six

Quinn

Ishouldhaveknownthis whole thing was some stupid game my parents were playing, but I wanted it so badly to be real. It becomes obvious, though, that this was just a stunt to save their own reputation.

After I leave the rehab facility, I have my parents' driver take me to their house, more than prepared to confront them. Of course, they're not there; in fact, they haven't even arrived, and they've organized this whole thing without planning on seeing us at all.

So I sit...

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