Air wouldn't move through her trachea.
He'd made his choice and it didn't involve Mariah. There was no need to say anything more. No need to beg, no counterarguments. This was it. Done and done. She needed to do something about the fist squeezing the hell out of her heart before she passed out.
You don't fit in with my family...
No way. She would not break.
She locked her knees and shoved an invisible ramrod down her spine. His crappy speech sucked, but she would not give him the satisfaction of seeing any reaction.
"All right, then." He dusted his palms together, like he was washing his hands of her. "Glad to see you're okay. My apologies for all that you had to deal with recently. Take care."
With a light step out the front door, he eased the door closed. No slamming, no storming off. No drama.
Nothing.
Which was exactly what they had all along.
A fleeting headache came and went.
The truck engine fired up, headlights throwing lurid shadows on her wall as he backed out of the driveway. Dropping to the carpet on her knees, she curled forward, hand pressed to her chest, mouth open in a silent cry.
