Page 27 of Shifting Winds
She shrugged. “Why wouldn’t I be? Everything changes, doesn’t it?”
I walked over, doing my best not to hunch over in agony. “It does,” I agreed. “But that doesn’t mean we want it to. Sometimes change takes us by surprise and it’s difficult to adjust.”
Her silvery eyes glimmered. “But he will still be here, won’t he? I’ll still see him every day.”
Moira and I exchanged a glance. “You will, but things will be different now. At least a little.”
Tess’s face took on a contemplative look. “Like no kisses anymore?”
“Right. No kisses and probably no sleepovers if you ever had those.”
Tess frowned. “I liked Ash’s kisses.”
Moira closed her eyes for a brief moment. “I hope you two can still be friends after this.”
Tess let out a merry laugh. “Why wouldn’t we?” She shook her head. “Ash is still my best friend.”
Tears sprang to my eyes. Tess wasn’t stupid, but she had a way of dealing with the world that wasn’t always the healthiest. “Ash may need more time to think about things,” I said gently. “Breakups are usually harder for men than they are for women, so it’s important you respect his boundaries until he’s ready to tell you how he wants to move forward.”
The banshee looked at me, then Moira. “You don’t think he’ll want to be my friend anymore?”
“That isn’t what I mean,” I rushed to say. “You and Ash were still friends when you were boyfriend and girlfriend, but now you aren’t anymore. He may need some time to get used to the fact that things are different.”
Tess slumped. “They don’t have to be,” she said softly. “I can’t help the way I am. It bothers Ash. I think he wanted me to be different. Not me anymore.”
I picked up Tess’s cool hands. “This is an important lesson. Our first love isn’t usually our last, but every relationship teaches us something. If Ash can’t accept you as you are, then good on you for not allowing him to try to change you. Eventually you will find someone who loves you exactly as you are.”
“He loved me that way when we were friends. And you love me, don’t you?”
I gathered her in a hug and took a shaky breath, ignoring the shards of glass feeling in my abdomen. “Yes, of course we do.” I leaned back and took her face in my hands. “But a boyfriend or girlfriend or husband or wife should love you in a different way than we do. And if they can’t, then they aren’t the right one for you.”
Tess nodded against my shoulder. “I understand.”
“Good.”
“Do you love the Lord that way?”
Leave it to Tess to aim a question like a dagger. “I am not sure how I feel about Caelan, but I know I care about him very much.”
“Does he try to change you?” Tess’s silver eyes glimmered with tears.
I thought about it. “No. He does other things that make me question the longevity of our relationship, but he’s always accepted me.” I shook my head. “More than accepted me and my quirks. I have no complaints in that department.”
“Do you think he’ll be your husband one day?”
I blinked.
Moira chuckled. “If it’s up to Caelan, he’d marry Evie today.”
“But you don’t want to?” Tess asked.
“Things are complicated,” was all I said. “If I marry someone, I want to ensure it’s of my own volition, and I’m not pressured to make the decision.”
“I think Ash wanted that,” Tess said with a sigh. “But I’d leave him if I faded into the mist, and I don’t want him to be sad.”
I stilled. “The mist?”
“Your mother has been calling us home, back into the mounds behind the mist.” Tess bowed her head and toyed with her fingers. “The shop wards help me resist.”
