Page 75 of If You Love Me

“Calm down, Iona. He’ll never take you back if you ruin his things.”

I took a deep breath and looked around the space. I had three cameras, so I needed good hiding spots for them. I decided on spaces that he spent the most time in. The first one went into the wall vent in the living room. Tyrion had changed the filter a few weeks ago, so there was no need for him to go up there anytime soon.

The second camera went in the kitchen on top of an old China cabinet gifted to him by his grandfather. Lucky for me, the design had holes at the very top that made it easy to hide the camera and still leave enough visibility for me to see clearly.

The third was going in his bedroom. When I opened the door, I was shocked to see a whole other bedroom set from the one I remembered being here. Lifting the covers slightly, I saw that he had new mattresses too. I stood there for a moment, stewing in anger at the fact that he’d gotten rid of the set we’d made love on so many times. Was he trying to erase my lingering presence completely? I guess his pretty little wifey was too good to sleep in a bed he’d fucked me on.

Closing my eyes, I took several deep breaths to calm myself before the urge to grab a knife and rip this shit up took over. Finally able to focus, I hid the last camera on the built-in bookshelf. It was only used for decorative things like fake plants, pictures, and little trinkets that matched the decor of the bedroom. I positioned it right at the bed, giving me a clear view.

Once the cameras were in place, I walked room to room with the footage on the app to make sure I could hear and see everything. Satisfied with my work, I double-checked that everything was as he left it before slipping out of the house as easy as I’d gotten in.

23

Evenie

“Are you okay with spending the night?” my mother asked as I packed my small suitcase.

It was Friday, and true to his word, Tyrion wanted to celebrate me getting my job back. He’d requested that Summer and I stay with him this weekend. I had to admit that I was a little nervous. Things felt different between us. Every day this week, he’d met me at my parents’ house to follow me as I took Summer to school.

It warmed my heart that he wanted to make sure that I was settling in okay. I was beginning to feel better about going back out into the world. I’d been finding things to do to keep me busy while Summer was at school. I’d started by breaking the habit of retreating to my closet.

Instead, when I returned from drop-offs, I studied to get myself caught up on the latest trends in the design world. I wanted to be on top of my game when I started working again. My parents allowed me to transform their bedroom as a practice project, and I’d finished yesterday.

Today, I’d treated myself to getting my nails and feet done. My mother had accompanied me, and it felt so good to get back to a mother daughter day. The only thing that could have made it better was if Summer Rose had been there to enjoy it too.

“I’m good, Ma,” I answered.

“How are things?”

“They’re… different. I’m not so angry with Tyrion anymore. Before you ask, it’s not because he and Iona are no longer together.”

She gave me a look. “Sure.”

“Okay, so maybe that has a little something to do with it. Cut me some slack.”

She giggled. “You can keep it real with me. Isn’t that what you kids say?”

“Well, I don’t know what they say these days, but I’m keeping it real. I can’t lie and say it hasn’t been peaceful without that woman’s lingering presence. She just gave me bad vibes, Ma. I don’t care how good she was to Tyrion and Summer. Something about her spirit just doesn’t sit right with me.” I looked back at her. “You’re a good judge of character. What did you think about her?”

She came in and sat on the edge of my bed. “Honestly, I wasn’t around her if it wasn’t for Summer, like holidays and birthdays. It was… it was too much. I love Tyrion, and I wanted him to be happy, but seeing her in the home that belonged to you, living the life I knew he wanted with you… it hurt. I felt like he’d given up on you.”

She swiped a tear from her eye, and it made me put the shirt in my hands down. I sat next to her and rested my head on her shoulder.

“Thank you for not giving up on me, Mama.”

She kissed my forehead. “I could never give up on you. You’re my baby, my only child. A mother knows her child, and I knewin my heart that you hadn’t perished. I could always feel you. So could your father.”

I smiled. “I got lucky to have you two as parents. I know you wanted more kids, but I’m glad I don’t have to share you. I would have bullied your other kids.”

She giggled. “There isn’t a mean bone in your body.”

“I ain’t no killer, but don’t push me.”

“Mommy!” Summer called, running into the room.

Her being here meant her father was here since he picked her up from school. She dove on me and her grandmother, and we pretended to fall back from the impact. That made her laugh.

“What are y’all doing?”

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