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impossible to read, so I just decided to continue on.

My knee bounced as I said, “She wasn’t happy with

her ring. She made me buy another one and redo the proposal. It was crazy. There I was professing my love and commitment to her, and Melody just wanted a flashy ring and public proposal. Nothing had changed, but I felt stuck… trapped.

“Melody started planning the wedding. She turned

nasty, making demands and threats. I threw myself into hockey and refused to engage with friends and family. I wouldn’t even tell them about the shit she’d say.

“It got even worse because my dad got so sick. I

didn’t talk to him as much as I used to. My dad was dying,

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Aife… and I wasn’t really around.” Tears filled my eyes. “Everything was falling apart, and I never said a true goodbye. I barely remember the flight to Texas. He was in a coma, bad stroke after the cancer progressed to stage four. And Melody… barely was there for me. My dad died, and she didn’t care.

“One day, I just lost it. I overheard her say I was

only good for my wallet. This was after I’d found out she’d cheated on me. No idea why I stayed after that. I went off, screaming, cussing… the works. At one point, I even punched a hole in the wall. She threw the ring back at me and called me a Texan bastard. That was nearly two years ago now.”

The room was silent as Aife took in my words.

“Thank you for sharing.” Her thumbs began to circle on another. “My turn, I guess.”

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CHAPTER 17: BEING A BURDEN

AIFE

Talon finished his truth. There was so much to

unpack and process. The man had been used, cheated on, and manipulated by a woman he was deeply in love with. I couldn’t even fathom that level of betrayal. At least, not like that. Loyalty mattered to me and clearly him too.

“Aife,” Talon said quietly and reached for my hand.

It was warm and comforting against my cold palm. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Sighing, I nodded and pulled my hand from his.

Once I shared my story, Talon would view me as everyone

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else did: a burden. The word always made my stomach turn over. It was a vile word.

“I’ve always been considered sickly. In some cases,

it was surgery and in others, accident or injury prone. I’ve had ten separate surgeries. All unrelated. Like I said, I’m accident and injury prone.”

I paused. He would understand better if he could see