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She furrowed her brow. “Who else would it be?”
“I-I—” I promptly shut my mouth. I knew exactly who our anonymous benefactor could be, and it sure as shit wasn’t Jude.
“Please tell him thank you. Oh—” She held the letter to her chest. “This is incredible. I told you he loved you.”
I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. And while I was grateful to Knox, he should’ve talked to me first. Now my mom thought…
I grabbed my keys and headed for the door.
“Where are you going?” My mom’s attention snapped to me as I took the letter from her dresser, but she looked so happy that I couldn’t burst her bubble.
I’d let her believe the bill had been paid, but I couldn’t allow Knox to do that for us. He’d already given me so much. This was…too much. First the Range Rover, then the clothes, the jewelry, and now this?
God, I felt sick even thinking about the amount of money he’d just handed over. Without a second thought. For me.
“Kendall?”
“Work,” I blurted, knowing it wasn’t a total lie, unlike the rest of my life. “Emmy’s here if you need anything. I’ll be back later.”
When I returned to the kitchen, Emmy had finished putting away the groceries. “Everything okay?”
“It will be. Can you stay with my mom for a little bit?”
“Of course.”
“Thanks,” I said then darted for the elevator.
When I arrived at the stadium, I took the elevator straight to the top floor. “Hey, Kendall,” Brenda, Knox’s receptionist, called.
“Hi!” I waved at her and smiled, hoping she couldn’t tell it was forced. I strode into Knox’s office without knocking, closing the door behind me.
“Hey.” He grinned, standing. “This is an unexpected surprise.”
“Mm,” I said, unamused. “I suppose it’s only fair after the surprise I received today.”
He tilted his head to the side, leaning his hip against the desk. “A good surprise, I hope.”
I slid the letter from the treatment center across his desk. “What were you thinking? Paying off my mom’s medical expenses.”
He straightened, ignoring the letter and coming over to me. “Kendall.” He rubbed his hands up and down my arms. The motion was soothing. Momentarily distracting me from what I wanted to say. “The money means nothing to me. But you…” He placed his finger beneath my chin, lifting my head so I was forced to meet his gaze. “You mean everything to me.”
I sucked in a jagged breath. Hearing him say those words while looking at me with such intensity, well, I wasn’t sure I could handle it.
And I knew he expected nothing in return. It was one of the kindest things anyone had ever done for me. And it wasn’t about the amount spent; it was the fact that he’d wanted to do something to alleviate my stress. To make my life easier. Even if it wasn’t his responsibility.
“Knox…” I shook my head, taking a step back. Taking a breath. “It’s—thisis too much.”
“You know I’d do anything for you—or your mom. So what’s really bothering you? Is this about the money or something else?”
All of it, but I found myself saying, “I told Emmy about us.”
“I figured,” he said. “And I’m glad you have someone you can trust to confide in.”
I appreciated that. But… How was I going to tell him this? “My mom thinks Jude paid her medical bills,” I blurted.
“What?” He jerked his head back. “Why?”
“Because she thinks we’re back together.”
