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The last few days with Dad and Melinda had been super awkward. They were all over each other. Dad constantly held her hand or she sat in his lap. And the kissing. God, it was gross seeing my dad make out with this woman.

It felt like a betrayal to Mom, being here and seeing all of that. And supporting this new relationship felt like a betrayal to Melinda, too. Alyssa told me one time at lunch that once someone cheated they usually did it again. Did Melinda know what she was getting into with my dad? How would Adabelle handle another divorce? It was really freaking hard on my siblings and me. My mom too.

Mom seemed lonely, just going to work and coming home and maybe hanging out with Mia sometimes. But when Alyssa sent me the picture from Dallas’s main gossip blog with a giant picture of my mom sitting with her boss and his siblings at a romantic restaurant, her hand on his thigh, I felt like everyone had been lying to me all along.

The headline read SINGLE MOM BAGS HER BILLIONAIRE BOSS.

The betrayal of it all made me want to punch something.

How long had this been going on?

I dialed her number, needing to hear the truth, for once.

“Hey, Levi, how’s the beach life?” she asked.

She sounded happy. Was it because ofhim? “Mom, are you dating your boss?”

The line went silent for a moment, leaving me alone with the sound of the beach and all the happy people around me. I checked the phone to make sure she hadn’t hung up, but seconds just kept ticking past.

Finally, she said, “Yes, I’m dating him. His name is Gage Griffen.”

I froze where I stood, the packed beach sand suddenly feeling like sinking sand instead. “When were you going to tell us? When you got engaged and he moved in? Oh wait, he’s rich, so you’ll probably lug us all to his mega mansion, huh?”

Anger kept spiraling in my chest, flaring out like a wounded animal. I’d been so furious on her behalf that Dad moved on, and here she was dating some rich guy!

“Honey, I hear you’re upset and probably even feeling a little betrayed, but I need you to take a deep breath.”

Tears pricked at my eyes, but I ran my forearm over them and took a breath. “Now what? Another lie?”

“The truth,” she said. “I am dating Gage, and yes, I have real feelings for him, but I didn’t want to introduce you to him until I was sure he was someone who would stick around.”

My fists balled at my sides. “So two surprise engagements in a year from my divorced parents? Great.”

“There is no engagement,” she said. “We are dating, like two single adults are allowed to do. And you will meet him... soon. But only as my boyfriend, nothing else. He won’t be moving in with us. We won’t be moving out. But he may come over for dinner from time to time or come cheer you on with me at a summer game.”

My legs felt shaky as the anger faded into another feeling I didn’t want to deal with.Fear. My dad had already left us, clearly cared for Melinda and Adabelle more than us. Who would we have left if Mom got all wrapped up in this new guy?

I took a few steps away from the packed wet sand and sat on the softer beach, drawing my legs in. Resting my elbows on my knees, I held the phone to my ear.

“So you’re dating,” I said, hiding the shake I felt in my chest.

“I am,” she replied. “But Levi, you have to know that you and your siblings will always come first. Remember what I said to you at your dad’s house?”

My throat got tight.

“You and your siblingsare the loves of my life,” she repeated.

I wiped at my eyes again, trying to rid myself of saltwater that belonged in the sea. “This family vacation is totally fucked.”

“Language,” she said with a halfhearted chuckle. “But I know. I didn’t want you to find out about Gage this way.”

“Were you going to tell me at all?”

“I was, when I knew he was someone worth bringing around.”

I blew a soft laugh through my nose. “You sound like a hard-ass. I mean, butt.”

“When it comes to my kids, I’m as protective as a mama bear... And speaking of my cubs, are you okay? I know it’s a lot of information all at once.”