Page 25 of Trade It All

“I did it, babe!” he shouts as he pushes through the crowd toward me, his energy too big, too bright, like it doesn’t leave room for anything else. “I got called up!”

The words land, and for a second, everything inside me stalls. Because this is what he’s been working for. What he’s been waiting for. This is supposed to be everything. So I make myselfmatch it. I pull the smile into place, push the excitement into my voice, force my reaction to meet his.

“That’s amazing,” I say, even though it doesn’t quite reach where it should. “Tyler, that’s—”

He doesn’t let me finish. His arms wrap around me, lifting me off my feet as he spins me, laughing, his excitement spilling over in a way that feels too big for the moment.

“It’s happening,” he says. “I told you it would.”

“I know,” I say, the words automatic. “I’m so proud of you.”

Someone shouts from behind him.

“Go Denver!”

Everything inside me stills. Tyler sets me back on my feet, still grinning, still riding whatever high he’s on, and I stare up at him for a second longer than I should.

“Denver?” I ask. It comes out quieter than everything else around us. But he hears it.

“Yeah, babe,” he says easily, like it’s obvious. “Denver.”

My chest tightens. “Wait,” I say, shaking my head slightly. “You’re… going to Denver?”

He laughs, like I’m missing the point. “We’re going to Denver.”

“I’m not moving to Denver,” I say before I can stop myself. The smile on his face falters. Just slightly. “My job is here,” I continue, my voice steadier now. “My friends are here. Everything I have is here.”

He looks down at me, and the shift is immediate. The excitement doesn’t disappear. But something darker slides in underneath it.

“But I’m in Denver,” he says. Like that should be enough. Like that answers everything.

“We’ll talk about it later,” I say quickly, glancing around the room, suddenly too aware of the people watching, of the way this conversation doesn’t belong out here. “Not right now.”

His hand closes around my elbow. Tight. Too tight. The smile snaps back into place as he turns, pulling me with him.

“Come on,” he says, his tone light for everyone else, his grip anything but. “Let’s go talk.”

I stumble slightly as he drags me down the hallway, his hand never loosening as we pass people who laugh, who cheer, who don’t notice anything wrong because he’s smiling at them like everything is exactly how it should be.

The music fades the farther we go. The door to his room slams shut behind us. And the second it does—everything changes.

“What the fuck, Madison?” The words hit hard, sharp, nothing like the tone he used two seconds ago. I straighten, pulling my arm free from his grip, ignoring the way it throbs where he held it.

“I’m not moving to Denver,” I say, holding my ground. “That’s not something you just decide and then tell everyone like it’s already happening. We should have talked about it first.”

His jaw tightens. “You just embarrassed me out there.”

I let out a breath, disbelief pushing through the shock. “You did that all on your own.”

The slap comes fast.Sharp. Loud enough that it echoes in the room. My head snaps to the side, pain blooming across my cheek before my brain can catch up to what just happened. For a second—I don’t move. I don’t speak. I just stand there, trying to process it, trying to understand how we got from one moment to the next so fast.

Then I look back at him. “I’m leaving.” The words feel distant, like they’re coming from somewhere outside of me. I turn toward the door. I don’t make it.

His hand slams into the wall beside my head causing me to spin around and look at him. His other hand wraps around my throat, pushing me back hard enough that the breath leaves my lungs in a sharp, startled gasp.

“You’re not going anywhere,” he says, his voice low now, controlled in a way that’s worse than yelling. “You’re going to pull yourself together, you’re going to walk back out there, and you’re going to be happy for me.” His grip tightens slightly. “You’re going to be excited about moving with me.”

My hands come up instinctively, fingers wrapping around his wrist, not pushing yet, just… there. Trying to breathe.