Page 86 of Tainted Tempos

“Hey, Marilyn,” I manage. “Do you mind if Allegra and I have a chat in the visitation lounge?”

Marilyn smiles as if I’ve earned a sticker or a house point or some shit. “Absolutely,” she says cheerfully. “I’ll show you the way.”

Allegra rolls her lips together, trying not to laugh, as we follow Marilyn toward the visitation lounge. It’s a supervised space with an approved list of snacks and beverages.

“You want a tea? Coffee?” I ask when we enter.

Allegra nods. “A coffee would be great.”

I gesture toward a table where she takes a seat while I head to the coffee bar to fix her a cup.

When I sit down across from her, she smiles tentatively. “How are you, Mav?”

“I’m doing okay. The past two weeks have been kind of hellish but I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

“Good. I’m proud of you. I know this isn’t easy.” She gestures around the rehab facility. It’s a setting she knows well, having gone through this with her brother, Levi.

I take a sip of my tea and lean back in my chair. “How is she?” I hate that I can’t stop myself from asking but I need to know.

How is my angel?

“She’s okay,” Allegra says.

I give her a look, arching an eyebrow.

Allegra sighs. “She’s struggling. She’s…missing you.”

I snort. “She’s better off without me.”

“She doesn’t feel that way, Mav.”

“Really? Because I almost died, and she feels guilty? Or because she truly doesn’t feel that way, A? If I didn’t go off the fucking rails, do you think she’d be worrying about me the way she is?”

“That’s not fair,” Allegra says, two patches of pink dotting her cheeks.

“I know. But I also know, she is better off without me. Whether she believes it now or not. I meddled when she askedme not to. I pushed too hard when she asked for space. I didn’t respect her wishes, and I crossed a fucking line.”

“Bran is back in Texas,” Allegra replies.

“What?” I lean forward.

A nods. “Whatever information you shared with Mr. Byrne helped. Bran withdrew from BU and is back in Houston with his family.”

I narrow my eyes. “How’s Mckenna taking it?”

“Honestly? I think she’s more torn up about you than she is thinking about Bran.”

I scoff. “You don’t have to spare my feelings, A.”

“That’s the last thing I’m doing, Mav. I’m trying to spare Kenny’s.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache coming on. “Listen, Mckenna was always out of my league. We started off as roommates for fuck’s sake. Then, I caused a massive scandal, and she agreed to fake date me. We got married, a night she hardly remembers, in Vegas. Please, stop me whenever this sounds like the foundation of a happy marriage.”

“You love her,” Allegra reminds me.

“Yeah, I do,” I agree. “But Mckenna was right. Sometimes, love isn’t enough.”

Allegra shakes her head. “I wish you could see yourself the way the rest of us do.”

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