Page 91 of At the Edge with You

“I am not,” she answers through gritted teeth. Richie comes to stand beside his wife and looks over at her for answers. Elena just shrugs, waving Fable off as if my girl is inconveniencing her. It’s infuriating, and I know Fable is getting even more pissed with each second that passes. I slide my hand along her back to find that she’s shaking. It breaks my heart, so I rub my thumb down her spine and stand beside her with my shoulders back.

As much as these two people broke the boy I was, I won’t allow them to break the man I am today.

Not when I want to be strong for her.

“Did you split us up?”

“When?” Elena asks, her voice so tart.

“After Salt Lake,” Fable asks through clenched teeth.

She waves her daughter off again. “We offered him another opportunity. It was really for him. He loved hockey.”

“Did you tell him you wouldn’t pay for him to skate with me, when you didn’t have to pay for anything?”

Richie exhales, his eyes cutting to me. “We did say that, but we really thought there weren’t any sponsorships.”

“That’s not true,” Fable seethes. “We had sponsorships lined up, interviews, all kinds of stuff. And then it was all gone because you apparently manipulated him into leaving me!”

“There is no need to yell,” Elena says calmly, and I watch as Fable’s hand clenches to the point her knuckles are white. “And he jumped at the chance. He wanted to play hockey more than to be with you.”

“That’s not true. You told me my family would go into debt,” I remind her, but she dismisses me with an eye roll.

“They probably already were,” she says, crossing her arms. “We did you a service, really.”

“You tore us apart!” Fable wails, her tears coming down hard. “You made me feel like he didn’t want to skate with me. Like I was the problem. You said that no one was strong enough to deal with me and that I should just do solo.” I close my eyes and wrap my hand around her stomach, bringing her back into me for the silent support. Knowing she felt that way is another stab to my heart. I should have fought harder. “You sent me away, telling me it was for the best, but then kept the letters he wrote me?”

Guilt floods Richie’s face while Elena just shrugs. “You didn’t need them. All he wanted to know was if you were okay. He didn’t need to know that. He talked about hockey and music, nothing worth a damn.”

Fucking bitch. “But those words were for me. His words were mine and you stole them, just like you stole him away from me.”

“Fable!” Elena exclaims, setting her with a dark look. “We have said this time and time again—he isn’t good enough for you.”

“That isn’t your choice. It’s mine!” she screams, her body jerking with each word. “I would have chosen him then, and I choose him now.”

“Ruin your life. That’s yourchoice,” she says, mocking her daughter. “But when he leaves you after spending all your moneyor learning how damn exhausting you are, you’ll come right on back to us.”

My body shakes against hers as I bite out, “That’s unacceptable.” It’s hard to stay calm, but I need to, when Fable is losing it. “I know you like to lie, but don’t assume that about me. I have no interest in her money. I love her as a person. I let you convince me to leave once, but nothing will keep me from her now.”

Elena scoffs, rolling her eyes, as Richie swallows hard. He looks right at his daughter. “We did it for you.”

“You ruined my life,” she says, tears streaming down her face. “But thankfully, he revived it.”

“I highly doubt it,” Elena says. Her nose is so far up in the air, I’m surprised she can even breathe.

Fable lets out a growl that has me standing straighter. “Apologize to him.”

Her mother laughs, but I’ll give it to Richie. He looks pained. “Fable, we did this for you.”

“Apologize!” she bellows, and that only makes Elena laugh more.

“I won’t. We did nothing wrong.”

“You did,” Kitty seethes. “You tore apart two people who loved each other.”

Elena snorts. “Take off your rose-colored glasses, Kitty. They were young. They didn’t know what love was.”

“I did,” I say as she brings her hateful gaze to mine. “I loved my family and chose them instead of myself. But from now on, I’ll only choose Fable.”

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