Page 88 of The Professor's Wife

Tristan didn’t speak, but he watched me.

I didn’t speak, either.

We packed up in silence. I folded blankets, rinsed dishes, and avoided his eyes. He kept glancing at me like he wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. I didn’t offer any.

I had fallen asleep long before he came to bed, and he was up before I opened my eyes.

There was a strange distance between us. One that hadn’t existed yesterday. I wondered if Forrest’s words had sunk into Tristan. If he was starting to second-guess everything.

The thoughts made my heart race.

We hit the road again, the van humming beneath us like it always did. The trees blurred past. I stared out the window, trying to pretend I wasn’t unraveling.

Thinking.

Figuring out my next move.

The next town came into view.

Here we go again.

“You’re quiet,” Tristan said finally.

“I’m fine,” I lied.

He didn’t respond right away. “You’re not.”

I turned toward him. “What do you want me to say?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “Something. Anything. You’ve been shutting me out all morning.”

I looked back out the window. “I’m just tired.”

“No,” he said, his voice rising. “Don’t do that. Don’t deflect.”

“I’m just saying I’m tired.”

“No lies. For fuck’s sake, what are we even doing, Daisy? Driving around like this? You won’t talk to me. You won’t let me in. What the hell is this? It’s bothering the shit out of me.”

My chest tightened. “I didn’t realize we had a label.”

“That’s not what I mean,” he snapped. “I thought we were past this. I thought we agreed—we’re running from our pasts together. Not separately. Together.”

I swallowed hard. “Tristan…”

He pulled the van abruptly onto the shoulder. Gravel sprayed, the tires skidded, and we jolted to a stop outside a tire shop. Workers inside the open garage looked our way curiously.

“Talk to me,” he implored, turning to face me. “Right now.”

I stared at the dashboard. “I can’t.”

“You won’t,” he said. “There’s a difference—”

“I heard everything last night.”

The words didn’t bother him like I thought they would. He merely blinked at me, digesting them before he nodded.

“I wasn’t trying to hide anything.”