Page 49 of Falling for You

“Any reason you took the day off?”

Looking away, I consider lying and telling him no. But I think better of it. “It would have been my mom’s birthday today.”

“Ahh, shoot. I’m sorry.”

Shrugging, I know my smile is sad and am embarrassed when I feel my eyes well with tears. “It’s okay.”

His hand cups my chin, gently lifting my face toward his. His thumb swipes away a tear. “It’s okay to cry. To be sad. To miss her.”

“Doesn’t bring her back.”

“No. But thinking of her and your memories is good. Healthy. Want to tell me about her?”

He drops his grip on my face, sliding a hand down my rib cage until it’s settled on my thigh, turns me so my back is to him and he tucks me in close.

Taking in a deep breath, I think about how much I want to tell Rex about my mom. The woman who was my best friend for my entire life. I don’t want to think about her admission right before she died, or how I reacted to it. Especially on her birthday. Don’t want to focus on the fight we had and her sadness that I wouldn’t listen to her when she begged me to meet my half-brother so I wouldn’t be left without family after she was gone.

When she told me about the baby she had walked away from, I didn’t want to admit my mother had lived less than a perfect life or could have hidden something so huge from me. We told each other everything. She was the first person I told when I lost my virginity, when I had my first broken heart, when I had friend troubles or something amazing happened.

I was okay with knowing — or rather, thinking — that she was the one wronged by her parents. Even though I’d grown up feeling guilty that I was the reason she didn’t have a relationship with them, it was easier to believe it was my fault somehow; to take on that blame and feel grateful that my mom chose me over them.

For some reason, it felt different than if she’d given him up for adoption, even though that’s essentially what happened. It’s taken me a long time to realize that she made the hard decision forhimrather than for herself.

Then, a few months after she died, the guilt set in heavily. I had my mom around me every single day and this guy never had the chance to even know her. Worse yet, I didn’t give him the chance to know me, his only link to his mother.

I’m a terrible person, but I feel like I’ve lost my chance. I made the decision and have to deal with it.

“Chloe?” Rex’s soothing voice snaps me back to reality.

“Huh?”

“Did you want to talk about your mother?”

I paste a smile on my face that I’m sure doesn’t look real, because it sure as hell doesn’t feel real. “She was great.”

The look on his face tells me he’s not sure how far to push or argue. It also screams understanding.

“Can I tell you why I came over here in such a good mood?”

Oh man. Yes, please. He’s offering up a distraction and I couldn’t be more grateful. I nod, leaning my head on his shoulder.

“I just blocked my family members’ numbers from my phone.”

He doesn’t miss the sudden intake of breath I take, he only rubs up and down on my arm. “Why?”

“Well, let’s just say I’m not exactly how they pictured their son would turn out but my brother certainly is.”

For the next twenty minutes Rex explains what his childhood was like, what his brother continually did to him and how his parents treated him like a leper because he didn’t fit into a specific box they had planned. Finding out how his relationships all ended shines so much light on why he’s notorious for one-night stands. His girlfriends have always ditched him for his brother. What dipshits because he sounds like a monumental jackass.

“When I wouldn’t give in and save my brother from his enormous fuck up, she told me they didn’t love me. I basically thanked her for finally being honest with me, told her good bye, blocked all their numbers, and all but sprinted over here.”

“Rex,” I whisper, sympathy clouding my voice. I can’t imagine growing up thinking my mother didn’t love me, but to have her confirm it would be devastating. I don’t get how he can be okay with it.

“You know, one of the funniest parts of all this is, he always acted like he was doing me this huge favor. Because he exposed the girls’ truth. And half of me believes that but the other half knows that he always pursued them because he didn’t like me to have something he didn’t. He’s just a piece of shit for a human. A narcissist.”

“I don’t like him.”

He chuckles. “Yeah, babe, me either.”

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