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He didn’t wave back but he did alht of ht I’ve been holding the reins too tight, depending on you to be the calm in the storm of this crazy fa I never should have done it Just as I never should have allowed you to blaeneral insanity of our family"

"Mom--"

"Hush, honey I told him I’d make him dinner," Ella said casually, almost as a throay remark, and stroked Mallory’s wet hair back froood to you I want to thank him It’s simple etiquette"

"You mean it’s simple curiosity," Mallory said

"Okay, that too"

"Mom, we’re just…" God Her heart hurt "Friends"

"Oh, please," Ella said with a laugh "I didn’t fall for that with Ta to fall for it with you He said yes"

"No, really," Mallory said "We’re not what you think we are He said yes?"

"Sweetheart, you’re drenched and still shivering You’re going to catch your death out here Go ho on that cut on your cheek" Ella hugged her tight, then pushed her toward her car

Mallory took a last look at the scene Ty was back to helping He was hauling things out of the wrecked diner with Matt Two extreeous estured to Mrs Burland, huddled on the sidewalk "She’s refusing to go to the hospital but ,the entire senior posse home since Lucille was the only one of the into the hospital for X-rays It took nearly an hour because each of theet out of the car When she’d finally gotten rid of theo hoe was open, and he was beneath his precious Shelby

She bet he’d never walked away fro on adrenaline, frustration, and a pain so real it felt like maybe her heart had been split in two, she stored at his exposed calf

Okay, maybe it was more of a kick "You told my mother she could cook you dinner?"

He rolled out from beneath the car, and arms still braced on the chassis above him, looked up at her He wisely didn’t comment on as surely a spectacularly bad hair day on her part She’d been hit with the sprinklers, and then dust fro tiles, and the wholeproducts that never really worked anyway

"Problem?" he finally asked

"Oh my God!" She tossed up her hands "You did You said yes Why?"

"She said she’d make meatloaf I don’t think I’ve ever had hoht it was a suburban le someone before "I’ll make you meatloaf!"

"You dumped me," he said reasonably "And besides, you don’t cook"

Da her She pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes but she couldn’t rub away the ache Spinning on her heel, she walked out of the garage

He caught her at her car, pulling her back against hihing at her

At least until he caught sight of her face

His srowl, she shoved hiot into her car, but before she could shut the door, he squatted at her side, the ainst the faded denim he wore He blocked her escape with one hand on the door, the other on the back of her seat, his expression unreadable now "This isn’t about meatloaf," he said "This isn’t even about me Tell me what the real problem is"

I’m in love with you…

"My proble the door"

"And you’re shutting ed, throat inexplicably tight "Co Me Out"

"I didn’t shut you out intentionally"

"Ditto," she said, with no s ht Karen died"

She felt like he’d reached into her chest and closed his fist around her lungs She couldn’t breathe "She’s not a part of this"

"I think maybe she is She took a walk on the dark side, and it didn’t work out so well for her She ood, and you kept your word Until reed "But then again, you love it here You love all those someones And they all love you"

Mallory dropped her head to the steering wheel "Look, I’m mad at you, okay? This isn’t about ood I’m lucky This isn’t about how poor little Mallory has had it so hard I’"

He stroked a hand down her back "Of course you’re not You’re just holding the steering wheel up with your head for a h, she closed her eyes "I’m okay"

"Yeah, you are You’re so est woman I’ve ever met, Mallory Do you know that?"

"But that’s just it I’ht I could save everyone If I was good, I’d excel If I was good,bad could happen"

Ty’s hand on her was calment And the dash of affection didn’t hurt "How did that work out for you?" he asked "All that being good?"

Another laugh tore out of her, completely mirthless "It didn’t All that work, all that ti to please everyone, and it fell apart anyway I failed"

"You know better than that"

"Do I?" She tightened her grip on the steering wheel It was her only anchor in a spinning world Nothing orking out for her Not her job Not the way she wanted people to see her And not her non-relationship with Ty "I don’t want to talk about the past anymore My sister made her choice My family each made their own choices after that My parents handled everything the best they could, including their divorce"

"Maybe," he said "But it still chewed you up and spit you out"

"I’m okay"

"You don’t always have to be okay"

"Well, I know that"

"Then say it Free that sixteen-year old, Mallory Say it wasn’t her fault; not your parents’ divorce, not Karen, none of it"

"Ty"

"Say it"