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“What else would he be doing here?” I demand.
“Sam is Kylie’s uncle! We still talk to David’s family, you know, and she deserves to see them. I don’t have to explain any of that to you. Who the hell do you think you are, coming to my house and accusing me of cheating?”
“What am I supposed to think?” I ask. I’m so angry, I can barely think straight. But I’m hurt, too. And somewhere at the back of my mind, a small voice screams at me that I might have this all wrong, that I am blowing it out of proportion. But that’s what happened with Nicole, too. When I thought she was fucking around behind my back and I confronted her about it. She made me feel like it was all in my head and I was being paranoid.
Until I found the son of a bitch in my bed, on top of her.
I squash the small voice. I don’t have time to think. I can’t question myself. I have to look out for myself. No one else will fucking do it.
I thought she was different.
“You’re supposed to believe me when I say I’m serious about you,” Natalie says. “And you’re not supposed to be an ass about it.”
“You won’t tell me what’s going on and now he’s here in your house when I’m not allowed—”
“Stop it,” she snaps. “I’m Kylie’s mother and I’m doing the right thing by allowing what’s left of David into her life. But it’s my job to protect her, and if you can’t handle that, if you can’t wait until I’m ready to introduce her, then we shouldn’t be doing this. I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but I shouldn’t have to justify myself to you, and I don’t have to deal with this bullshit.”
She’s right. Of course, she is. But I’m not going to back down.
I know what it’s like to be made a fool of. When Nicole slept around and I found out about it, I felt like the idiot who was stupid enough to believe that everything is fine. Even when Iknewit wasn’t fine. Because I was the asshole who believed it when she made her big puppy dog eyes at me and asked me how the hell I could think something like that of her.
Natalie doesn’t look like that. I’m comparing her to the same thing that happened years ago.
But fool me twice.
“Maybe we should call this off,” I say tightly. “You want me to trust you, but you’re keeping things from me—”
“Because they have nothing to do with you—”
“Either you want to do this, or you don’t,” I snap. “You can’t have it both ways.”
“There’s only one way!” she cries out. But then she shakes her head. “But you’re right. Maybe we shouldn’t do this. I can’t handle this on top of everything else. If I have to look after your fragile feelings when I have the rest of the world on my shoulders…I just can’t, Mason.”
“You don’t have to look after me,” I say. “I can do this just fine by myself.”
“Well, that makes two of us, then.” I clench my jaw and glare at her. And she glares right back at me, her green eyes shimmering, showing emotion she’s trying desperately to swallow back.
My emotions are in there somewhere, swirling, hurt, broken. But I won’t allow myself to feel them. I push everything away and focus on protecting myself. No way in hell am I walking the same road twice. I promised myself I would never let myself fall into the same trap again, and this is me making good on that promise.
“I know you won’t believe me,” she said in a brittle voice. “But I’m serious about you.” Her eyes well with tears, and for a moment, she looks like she’s going to tell me we can talk, we can figure it out. It’s all I need—I just want to explain myself.
But then she shakes her head. “But this is for the best.”
She turns toward the house.
I want to pull her back, to wrap my arms around her. But I don’t. I can’t.
She walks toward the house without looking back and disappears.
I want to run after her. I want to yank that door open and get her back. But I can’t do that—Kylie is in there, and Natalie’s first reaction is to protect her. If I barge into her life, she’ll just shut me out.
Besides, it’s better this way. Safer. If I walk away now, it’s with my pride, my dignity, and my heart still intact. I can’t do this shit. Why did I think loving someone again could work? I’m an idiot for allowing myself to fall for someone again, for believing I had a shot at this when I’m just not cut out to be with someone.
Whatever. I can deal with it. I’ve done it alone for this long; there’s no reason to change it up now. I have other shit to focus on, anyway.
I’ll just keep doing what I do best—go at it alone.
Chapter 28
