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“Is that what you truly want?” Savannah was going to give Fallon one more chance to change her mind, one more minute where she could come back and tell her to stay, when all of this would change for the better.

“For now, yes.” Fallon stood up and walked toward the kitchen, leaving Savannah in the dust. “Feel free to see yourself out.”

“What?” Savannah asked, knowing that her voice was too quiet for Fallon to hear her. Savannah immediately stood up and followed Fallon. She wasn’t ready to leave, not just yet, notwithout knowing that they were truly through. “When will I see you again?”

“Soon, I imagine.”

“I have an appointment with Athena in a few weeks.”

Fallon gave a wan smile. “I promised Brinley to help her with something, so I’ll see you then.”

“Help her with what?” Savannah furrowed her brow, her stomach plummeting.

“It’s a surprise. I promised I wouldn’t tell you. Just trust me that you’ll like it.” Fallon poured herself a glass of wine. It seemed like forever ago that she’d found that gift. She hadn’t even known if Fallon liked it at the time, but surely that move meant she did. Surely it meant that Savannah had done something right.

“I’m not sure I understand.”

“I’m telling you that our friendship is over.” Fallon took a slow sip of her wine before setting the glass down.

“But you’ll be friends with my daughter.”

Shaking her head, Fallon tensed. “I’ll always be there for Brinley if she needs me in a crisis, please believe that. But after this one promise, I won’t be fostering a relationship with her.”

“Or me?” Savannah asked, even though by now it was very clear what Fallon had meant.

“Or you.” Fallon leaned against the kitchen counter. “I can’t be your friend anymore.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” Savannah stepped closer. “I know it’s something.”

Fallon’s breath caught in her throat, and her gaze dropped from Savannah’s eyes to her lips. Her pupils dilated, her lips parted and quivered. The pulse in her neck thrummed. Savannah saw each and every sign, and she knew exactly what Fallon wasn’t saying. There was too much between them. Perhaps there always had been.

“You’re not perfect,” Savannah murmured, finally understanding what Fallon had told her ages ago. “I’m not perfect.”

“No one is,” Fallon said.

Savannah looked Fallon directly in the eye, the world around her halting. At least this small piece of it. She finally understood. This wouldn’t work. They hadn’t done it right from the start. In fact, everything they’d had from the moment they had met had been off-kilter and out of whack.

“Right.” Sucking in a long breath, Savannah let it out slowly as she took a step away. “I guess I’ll see you around then.”

“See you around,” Fallon agreed.

Walking away, Savannah couldn’t help but wonder—had she made another wrong decision?

twenty-nine

“What are you doing here?” Savannah asked.

Once again, Fallon stood outside Savannah’s door with a bag of groceries in her hand. Mother’s Day. She’d never thought she’d celebrate this day again, but here she was, planning a Mother’s Day for Savannah. She probably should have snagged Brinley’s phone number so they could discuss what she wanted to do for her mom more than the other week, but it had seemed inappropriate, so she hadn’t.

“Remember I told you about that thing with Brin?” Fallon gripped the tote bag tighter.

“Brinley’s not here. She’s with her father.” Savannah didn’t hesitate in letting Fallon inside this time though. Not like the last.

“Oh.” Fallon’s stomach tightened. “She’d said… Never mind, maybe she didn’t know the schedule at that point.”

Savannah scrunched her face. “Yeah, we can go with that assumption, though it’s probably wrong.”

“What I’m saying is she probably didn’t realize the dates coincided.” Fallon walked directly toward the kitchen and set the bag onto the countertop. “I can come back when she’s here.”