“Holy shit!” Zoe gasps and Kendall’s eyes go wide in shock.

I purse my lips and nod, my cheeks reddening. “Yes.”

“Oh my God! This is so much better than the Housewives of Orange County.” Zoe grabs the remote and shuts the TV off. She shifts her body and faces me. I flash her a playful scowl and she smirks.

“I’ve let him in closer than I’ve ever let a guy before. It felt foreign, weird, and I was scared. But after finding out the horrible news about my sister and dealing with my mom, he still never left. He just kept reminding me how much he was here for me and it was so much different than I was used to. No one’s ever really been there for me like that before.”

“He sounds like a keeper,” Kendall admires with wide, doe eyes.

“Wait,” Zoe interrupts. “So what’s the matter? Are you scared to let him in all the way?”

“Well, it wasn’t easy at first, but he managed to break down my walls and little by little, I was letting him in. In fact, everything was going perfectly.”

“Then what?” Kendall asks, taking a sip and locking her eyes on me.

I lower my eyes, trying to keep it under control, but it’s a struggle. “Then I broke up with him.”

Kendall spews her wine all over her lap as I blink the tears away that threaten to burn my eyes.

“Jesus, Kendall,” Zoe complains, shifting away from her and laughing.

“Well, what the hell, Aspen? I thought this was a happy story.” She knits her brows, wiping away the wine off her clothes.

I narrow my eyes at her and point to my wine glass. “Would I be drowning myself in bottle after bottle of wine if it were?”

“Well, what the hell happened?”

“Someone caught us,” I finally say. “She said she’d go to the board and get my scholarship and grad school references stripped if I didn’t break it off with him.”

“What a jealous bitch,” Zoe blurts out. “Why didn’t you tell her to fuck a duck or something?”

I snort, shaking my head. “Because I actually need to get my degree and graduate, or I’ll be stuck here, living next to you guys,” I tease.

“Well, besides that.”

I shrug. “I don’t know. Maybe because a part of me really is scared to let him in all the way. Hurting him and breaking it off now was just easier than waiting for the inevitable.”

The truth in my words feels like a knife twisting in my heart.

“So you’re going to let some desperate housewife, who’s clearly not getting laid, dictate your future?” Kendall challenges.

“What choice do I have? He’s raising his niece all by himself. He could get fired and then what?”

“I just don’t think you should run away because of her or because you’re scared what will happen. That doesn’t seem right at all,” Zoe insists, the wine making her a bit too loose.

“It’s not,” I agree. “But it’s a lot to risk. And then what if I risk it for nothing?”

Kendall sets her glass down and sits up.

“Sometimes it’s letting them in that helps you feel whole again. Even if you feel like a mess yourself. Maybe it’s not meant to last, but maybe it is. You’ll never know if all you do is run away.”

“Even knowing how it ends up?” I inquire.

The corner of her lips tilts up slightly. “Yeah. Being in love is one of the greatest feelings in the world. You risk your heart, but it has to be better than going through life without it at all.”

“All’s fair in love and war,” Zoe says.

“Love is a battlefield,” Kendall adds with a giggle.

“Okay, okay, I get it. No more clichés needed.” I laugh into my wine glass, finishing up the last sip.

I think about everything they said while we sit and watch movies. I wish it were just my own insecurities to work through, but knowing that someone knows about us with the potential to destroy us both—I can’t do that to him.

MORGAN

Nothing makes sense.

Not without her anyway.

Seeing her, pretending my heart isn’t shattering every time I look at her, is getting harder and harder.

But I do what I do best in times like these. I distract myself, drowning myself in work, hang out with Natalia and sleep.

Mostly sleep.

I’m trying to understand it all, but I just can’t. I fight back the tears, but after a while, I give up and surrender to them. I don’t care anymore.

As I’m making dinner for Nat and me—as she’s glued to the TV watching some game show—the doorbell rings. And then it rings again. Nat barely even flinches.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get it,” I over-exaggerate. But the moment I open the door, I wish I hadn’t.

“Fuck…” The word comes out before I can stop myself.

“Guess I deserve that.” Jennifer stands across from me, pursing her lips in a please don’t slam the door on me look. I won’t lie, it sounds tempting as much as the sight of her makes my blood boil, but trying to be the better man, I don’t.

I shake my head. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.”

“It’s all right.”

We stand there, silent and awkward.

“So what are you doing here?”

“I was hoping we could talk,” she says sincerely. “I promise I won’t stay long.”

“Did my mother put you up to this?” I narrow my eyes, trying to read her.

“No, I swear she didn’t.” She sounds genuine, so I push the burning hatred in my heart aside for now.

After a beat, I open the door wider and let her in.

“Smells good. Have you learned to cook since you left California?” she asks, taking off her coat.

“I’ve been practicing.”

Natalia comes strolling in and snickers. “He lies.”

“Nat, go to your room. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready.”

“What?” She gasps. “Why do I have to leave?”

“Because I have a guest, and I don’t need you eavesdropping on our conversation.”

She smirks and shakes a finger at me. “Getting smarter, Uncle Morgan.”

Jennifer furrows her brows as she watches Nat walk down the hall to her room.

“What was that all about?”

I shake my head and walk toward the kitchen, her following behind. “She thinks I don’t get women.”

She snorts. “Well…”

“Trust me, I know. Apparently, I know absolutely nothing at all.” My chest tightens as I think about Aspen. I busy myself by the stove and direct all attention back to her. “So, tell me why you’re here.”

She sits at the breakfast bar and lowers her eyes. “I want to tell you what happened,” she begins, but I’m quick to cut her off.

“Jen, don’t. It’s been five years. I’m trying to move on.”

“I know. And I want you to move on. That’s why you need to hear this.”

I inhale, sighing, as I don’t feel prepared at all to have this conversation. “If I let you talk, no more uninvited visits.”

“Deal.”

“All right. Well, dinner will be ready in ten minutes. So make it quick.”

“I don’t know if you ever knew, but Ryan and I didn’t stay together after you left. We stayed friends, but that was it. I know you don’t want to know anything about us, which I don’t blame you at all, but I think you need to know that Ryan beat himself up every day about what he did to you. He knew it was the ultimate betrayal and he hated himself for it.”

My throat tightens, unable to say anything.

“Up until then, he was in a really bad place. Once you left, he went and got himself help. He went to therapy and wanted to be the best dad he could be for Natalia. He wanted to be a better person. He loved you so much, Morgan. Even though he was older, he looked up to you and valued your opinion on so much. After a few years, you hadn’t come back. He started to lose himself again, but Natalia helped him stay on track. When your mom mentioned the will to him, he refused to change it. He knew you were the absolute best person for her and you really are. You’re everything and more to that little girl.”

I tilt my head up to the ceiling, not wanting to release the tears, but her words are so genuine and soft, they burn right through me.

“Why are you telling me this?”