Page 72 of Her Athlete's Wedding Secret

“Benson was able to get us on the next flight out of New York.”

“You need to hold on to that guy.”

“I plan on it,” Tessa said. “I don’t want my marriage to end in divorce like what happened with you and Mom. I don’t want to end up like her.”

“What do you mean by ‘end up like her’?” her dad asked.

“You know, become shattered mentally because of a broken heart.”

“Didn’t your mother tell you? She was already having mental issues before the divorce.”

“She was?”

“Oh yes. That was why the marriage ended.”

“You mean, you couldn’t take it anymore?”

“It felt impossible. Maybe that makes me a terrible person, but I had my limits and she’d crossed them. I’m sorry it had to go that way for you. You would have had a better childhood if your parents had stayed together.”

“I can’t believe I thought all this time that the divorce caused her mental illness.”

“I know it didn’t help things, but she was already extremely sick before I left. You were too young to know what was going on.”

“Thank you for telling me this. I feel a lot better.”

“Did you think that something like this would happen to you?” he asked.

“I found out that he’s still struggling with feelings for his ex.”

“That’s rough. How are handling that?”

“It hurts a lot. I want things to go well for us, but I’m not sure I can handle it.”

“What does he say about it?”

“He says that his feelings for me are starting to eclipse his feelings for Megan.”

“That’s a start in the right direction.”

“I know. I appreciate it. But I want him to feel about me the way I feel about him.”

“I think you need to be patient with him.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“Just do your best to be a good wife, and the rest will fall into place.”

“Thanks, Dad. I needed to hear that.”

* * *

They wentto the hospital to pick up Tessa’s mom the next day. The moment she saw her mom, she ran toward her and threw her arms around her. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t be here for you when you were struggling. I feel like this is all my fault.”

“It’s not your fault. I have a mental illness. It’s like having cancer or any other illness.”

“What can we do to help you get more help?” Tessa asked.

“I’m all set up with weekly group therapy and individual therapy.”

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