There was silence for a few seconds, and I wanted to ask why Barb said Kamryn never called her, and why the start of the call was already weird as shit.

“Is Kinlee with you?”

“No. I, uh, we’re on our way to Kinlee’s house, though,” Kamryn responded and glanced at me.

“Well, all right then. Who is ‘we’?”

Kamryn started breathing roughly, her chest moving up and down rapidly.

Squeezing her hand, I waited for her to look at me. “Kam,” I prompted her when she didn’t.

Her head whipped to the left, her eyes were wide and worried as she tried to control her breathing.

“Kamryn, honey?” Barb asked.

“You don’t have to do this,” I whispered. “I’m sorry.”

Kamryn bit down on her bottom lip and squeezed my hand back. “Barb, do you remember when I told you that Kinlee kept trying to set me up with that guy Aiden?” she began, her blue eyes locked on mine. “And I was trying to explain to you why I didn’t want to be with him?”

“Yes,” Barb said cautiously.

“Do you also remember me telling you about Kinlee’s brother-in-law?”

“Kamryn, no.” Barb gasped and whispered something I couldn’t make out. “Baby girl, tell me you didn’t do anything with that married man.”

“Barb, you have to understand, I love him—”

“Kam, young lady, do you realize what you have done?”

Kamryn covered her mouth as a sob worked its way out of her chest, and though Barb couldn’t see her, she nodded her head.

“He is married. He made a vow before God, and you helped him destroy that vow! You think he will leave his wife for you? And even if he does, how do you know that he won’t go and do the same thing to you?”

Kamryn cried harder, and I grabbed the phone from the cup holder, took the call off speaker, and spoke to Barb through the phone.

“Ma’am, this is Brody Saco, and I know I’m probably the last person you want to hear from or speak to, but right now Kamryn’s too upset to respond to you, and I need you to understand something.”

“You should have never approached that young girl, do you hear me?”

“I know you can only think the worst of me right now,” I said calmly. “But you have to know I’m in love with Kamryn. I married the woman I did because she got pregnant, and before you ask, I do not have a child with her—he died almost five years ago. But she and I stopped loving each other long before we got married, and for the last five years she’s been manipulating me into thinking she was suicidal and bipolar so I would stay with her. Her parents’ attorney has been threatening me into staying with her, and recently I’ve come to find out that there’s absolutely nothing wrong with her and she’s been cheating on me with numerous men . . . including men her family used to try to get me fired.” I paused, waiting to see if Barb would yell at me some more, but when she said nothing, I continued. “I have been trapped in a marriage. I have felt like I was drowning for almost five years now, and it wasn’t until I met Kamryn that I finally knew what it felt like to be alive again.”

Kamryn reached over to grab my arm, and I looked back over at her.

“It’s my fault Kamryn had to keep our relationship from you, and for that I’m sorry. I know you can’t think highly of me because of the little you knew about me before. But please, don’t be upset with her about this. Kamryn saved me. And despite how we may come across to people because of how we began our relationship, I will cherish her and love her until the day I die.”

“While that was a well-thought-out speech, sir, you will have to understand why I don’t trust you,” she said after a few beats of silence. “Please put Kamryn on the phone.”

It felt like a weight settled in my stomach as I handed the phone over to Kamryn.

“Barb? . . . I—yes, ma’am.” Kamryn blew out a deep breath as she ended the call and put her phone in her purse.

“What’d she say?”

“That she hoped I knew what I’d gotten myself into, and that she needed time to think about it,” she responded, her voice completely monotone.

“Fuck,” I whispered. “I’m sorry. We can go back to the condo—we don’t have to tell my parents right now.” I leaned forward to put the SUV into gear, and Kamryn sat up as she cleared her throat.

“No. You were right. I want to get all of this over with at once. And your family is already expecting to see you. I know your mom is going to be so upset if you don’t show up. So let’s do this.”

Cupping her cheek with my right hand, I leaned forward and kissed her forehead gently. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Come on,” she said and sat back. “I’m ready. Let’s do it.”

Putting the car in drive, I drove down the last couple streets to Jace’s house and breathed out heavily when I got out of the car. I wasn’t worried. Whatever they said wouldn’t affect me. I’d gone years with them hating whom I was with. I was just terrified of what their response would do to Kamryn.

Walking up to the door, I grabbed her hand, hoping to reassure her, but her body continued to tremble the closer we got. “Breathe, Kam. We’ll get through it togeth—”

The door was flung open, revealing my mom and dad, and Jace with an apologetic expression. My mom glanced down at our joined hands, looked up at me, then over to Kamryn, and screamed excitedly as she threw her hands up and rushed us.