I shift the car into park and turn toward her. "You don't have to answer."
"I know." The phone continues its insistent buzzing. "But if I don't, he'll just keep calling."
"Want me to take it?" I offer before I can stop myself. The idea of this asshole harassing her makes something protective flare in my chest.
"No, I should handle this." She takes a deep breath and accepts the call. "Hello?"
"Finally!" Brad's voice is loud enough to hear every word. "I've been trying to reach you for two days, Lena. What the hell is going on?"
"I needed space after seeing you kiss someone else on the jumbo screen at my new job." Her voice trembles slightly, and I resist the urge to grab the phone.
"That was... I can explain that. If you'd just come home?—"
"I'm not coming home, Brad."
"You're being ridiculous. Where are you even staying? A hotel? You can't afford that on top of our rent."
Our rent. The entitled tone in his voice makes my jaw clench. From our conversations, I know that he never paid a cent toward their living expenses.
"I'm staying with a friend." Lena glances at me, and I try to project steadiness and support.
"What friend? You don't have friends here." The casual cruelty twists my stomach. "Is it him? That hockey player? Adam thinks you’re dating him. Lena, be serious. Look at yourself. Why would someone like him want someone like you except as some kind of revenge?"
The words land like a sucker punch, echoing my insecurities about Adam so precisely that I raise an eyebrow at Lena, who looks equally shocked by the parallel.
"You don't get to tell me what I'm worth anymore, Brad," she says, a steel entering her voice that I haven't heard before. "I'm not coming home. I'll get my things another time when you’re not there."
"You're making a huge mistake," Brad warns. "You think you can do better than me? That he wants more than just a quick revenge fuck? You're delusional. You're going to end up alone and begging me to take you back."
"Goodbye, Brad." She hangs up, her hands visibly shaking.
The car fills with tense silence. I search for something profound to say, but what comes out is, "He sounds nice."
It startles a laugh out of her, breaking the tension. “I can’t believe I didn’t see it before.”
"Charming fucker.” I hesitate, studying her face. "You okay?"
"Not really," she admits. "But I will be."
I nod, understanding the need for space after emotional confrontation. "Want to walk Gordie with me? River path's pretty at sunset."
Relief crosses her features. "I'd like that."
Inside, Gordie nearly trips Lena in his enthusiasm, which makes us both laugh. I grab his leash, and we head out to the river path that runs through our townhouse community. The evening light turns everything golden, softening the edges of what's been a hard few days.
"He said basically the same thing about me that everyone says,” Lena notes after we've walked in silence for a while. “That nobody would take me seriously as a girlfriend because of how I look.”
A burst of rage hammers into my ribs, but I force myself to suppress it. "Makes you wonder what we saw in them, doesn't it?"
"I've been asking myself that a lot lately."
I pause on the path, watching Gordie sniff intently at a shrub. "I think... I was so focused on being accepted for being bi that I ignored all the other ways he wasn't accepting me."
The admission costs more than I expected, leaving me feeling exposed. However, Lena's understanding nod eases the discomfort.
"I get that," she says. "I was so grateful Brad 'saw past' my size that I didn't notice he was using it as a weapon to keep me believing I couldn't do better."
"You’re fucking gorgeous,” I say, meaning it more than I expected to. "For what it's worth."
