The game was amazing. After the rookie wide-out dropped the ball a third time in the fourth quarter, the coach finally put Mason in, and he helped the quarterback lead a drive down the field that ended in a thirty-yard touchdown pass and a Gators victory.

When I get home, I’m still buzzing with happy energy, but it all fizzles away when I see Mason’s mother sitting on a stool at the kitchen island. She’s all long limbs and grace, her back ramrod straight and her legs crossed at the knee. There’s not a single extra ounce of fat on her, and yet she doesn’t look hardened or sick. She’s beautiful.

“Hello?” I offer hesitantly. “Mason’s not here. He should be home soon though.”

“I know.” She gives a small smile. “I’m here to speak with you, Bailey.”

Oh, shit. All this time I’ve thought of Mason’s parents in general as the bad guys, but the truth is it was easier to stand up to his father. This woman is classy and elegant, and from everything I’ve read, she’s wicked smart, too. She intimidates the shit out of me.

“You’re quite beautiful,” she says, looking me over. It doesn’t really feel like a compliment as much as an observation. “There’s quite a bit of chatter about your pictures, too. You have an eye for female beauty and a natural talent for capturing it on camera. I can appreciate that, of course.”

I swallow hard, not wanting to speak until I know where this is going.

“But I suppose all that really matters,” she says, seemingly unfazed by my lack of response, “is that my son’s in love with you.”

Even though I hear Mason say it every day now, my stomach flip-flops, and I feel as if I’m falling when I hear his mother say those words. I know he does, but I don’t just want him to love me. I want him to love me and for that love to be strong enough to withstand the weight of my mistakes. “He’s not a kid anymore.” My voice shakes a little.

“I’m aware of that. But I need a favor from you.”

“Please don’t ask me to stay away from him.” I shake my head. “That was a deal I never should have taken.”

She frowns. “It was one my husband never should have offered.”

“I’ll pay you back.” My skin feels tight at the promise. I already want to pay Mason back for my student loans, and I owe the bank back home for the new roof on Mom’s trailer. It just feels like my life is this race to catch up, and I’ll always be in someone’s debt. But this is a promise I need to keep. “I never should have taken the money, and I need to pay it back.”

“That’s not what I’m here to ask, Bailey. I don’t want your money. Not a cent.”

“What do you want?”

“I want my son.” Her smile is brittle. “I want him to stay in my life, and if he finds out what my husband did, he’ll push us away. I don’t know if he could forgive us a second time.”

“Because of the baby,” I whisper, and when I see the shock pass over her face, I realize she didn’t expect me to know.

“Yes. Our interference with Lindy’s baby almost made us lose him forever.”

I swallow hard. “Maybe you don’t deserve his forgiveness. Maybe neither of us do.”

“Maybe we don’t.” She uncrosses her legs and stands. “But I’m here to tell you that if you and Mason want to be together, I’ll stand behind you. In return, all I ask is that you keep our secret.” She hands me a small business card with her phone number on it. “Call me for anything. I can’t lose my son.”

I shake my head, and the truth hits me with so much intensity that I want to be free of my secrets immediately. “If we keep this secret, we’ve already lost him.”

“I need to tell Mason.”

“Um, one second, okay?” Mia whispers. I hear the swishing of sheets. “It’s just Bailey,” she says to someone on her end. It’s most likely Arrow, and he’s most likely in bed because it’s—I look at the clock—after two a.m.

“I’m sorry, Mee. I didn’t realize how late it was.” I’ve been stewing about this for hours since Mason’s mom left. Mason’s asleep, and I tried sleeping too, but that was useless. I tried reading but couldn’t concentrate. I didn’t realize how late it had gotten. “You can go back to bed.”

“Absolutely not,” she says, yawning. “What are best friends for if not for middle-of-the-night, real-life crisis freak-outs?”

I’m pacing Mason’s living room, and even though I need privacy for this conversation, I’m glad he’s home. This house is too big and too empty when he’s gone traveling with the team. If I stay, that’s something I’m going to have to get used to. If he even wants me to stay after he learns the truth . . . “His mom visited me. Apparently, she didn’t know Christian paid me off, and she’s terrified that when Mason finds out, he’s going to shut them out of his life forever. She sat here and begged me not to tell him.” I shake my head, but no matter how hard I try I can’t forget the look in her eyes.

“The truth comes out,” Mia says. “You can’t outsmart it or outrun it. And you’ll never have the relationship with Mason that you want—that you deserve—if you keep trying to hide it.”

“I know,” I say. “That’s exactly it. I saw how panicked she was, could see that the possibility of losing him for good haunts her. And I don’t want that to be me. I want Mason, and I need to tell him I took that money. It’s our only chance.”

“I agree.” I hear a kettle whistling and imagine Mia pouring herself a cup of tea.

“I’m ashamed.”

“I know you are, sweetie. But you had reasons for doing what you did. Good, noble reasons.”

“I could have been honest sooner.” Panic claws at my chest. “If I’d told him years ago—”

“But you didn’t. And if you wait another year or another five years, you’ll still be kicking yourself for not telling him sooner.”

“I’m in love with him.”

Mia laughs. “Why don’t you tell me something I didn’t figure out years ago?”

“God, you’re such a bitch.”

“You love me,” she says.

“I do. Thank you, Mia.”

“It’s going to be okay, Bailey. Just be patient when you tell him. This stuff takes time to process, but I know he’ll forgive you.”

I swallow hard. When Mia finds out about her niece, will forgiveness comes as easily as she believes it will for Mason? “I hope you’re right.”

I end the call and type Mason’s mom’s number in my messaging app. My stomach knots as I type out the words.

Me: I won’t ruin your party. But after it’s over, I’m telling him the truth.