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Of course he is. He opened up to me about his family, his failed marriage, his pain. And I can’t even tell him about my mommy issues.

Tears burn and I move past Levi, into the house, letting them fall freely. I close the door to my old bedroom and lie on the bed, crying into the comforter. Gus meows at the foot of the bed and walks closer to me. I lift my arm and he lays beside me, letting me pet him. My fingers curl in his soft fur as I cry and cry.

When the tears stop coming, I open my bank app and transfer almost all my savings to my mom. My heart sinks, knowing she’s going to be irresponsible with it and waste months of my work on shopping sprees and god knows what other pyramid schemes she got herself involved with.

I keep a little bit of savings, just in case I need to find an apartment and move out soon. Would Levi even want me living here while we date? Does he still want to date me? What if he’s upset about the tabloids?

With a kiss to Gus’ head, I head to the bathroom and splash some cold water on my face. I should talk to Levi at some point, but if he hasn’t brought up the tabloids today, maybe it’s a sensitive topic. I remember him mentioning there was a lot of media backlash when it came to his divorce.

Am I causing him more stress and drama?

There’s a knock at my bedroom door and I slowly walk over to it, turning the knob. Levi paces the hall, running a hand through his hair.

“Look, I know that I’m hovering and being really clingy and annoying right now, but I need to make sure you’re okay,” he says, eyes wide and a little bit frantic.

All my resolve crumples and I wrap my arms around his waist, needing his comfort. “I don’t want to tell you because I don’t want you to think less of me,” I whisper against his chest. More tears threaten to spill but I do my best to blink them away.

“Baby, I would never,” he says, tilting my head up and bringing his nose down to mine. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but please don’t shut me out like this.”

I sniff and nod, pulling him into the kitchen. I spare a glance at the island where we first had sex but walk past it to the breakfast nook with the bay window. The late afternoon sun shines a pretty orange through the clouds.

“My mother called to extort me for money,” I say after taking a seat across from him, steepling my shaking fingers on the table.

Levi frowns and leans in, his arms crossed and gripping his biceps. “I’m confused,” he says, blinking slowly.

“Remember how I told you she spent all their savings and I’ve been covering my dad’s medical bills?”

He nods. “I thought your dad has been doing better. That the bills are from a year ago.”

“They are. And he has been doing better with medication. But that’s not why she wants the money,” I say, dropping my gaze to the table. “She saw a picture of you and me in a tabloid.”

Levi is quiet, and when I glance at his face, there’s a blankness that I haven’t seen in a while. “Are you sure?” He asks.

I nod and worry my lip. “She said if I didn’t get her the money, she would tell the tabloids about us. That we were sleeping together while I was working for you.”

A muscle twitches in his cheek and he leans back, taking his phone out of his pocket. With a few taps, he pulls something up and stares at it. After a long moment of scrutiny, he slides his phone my way. It’s a series of pictures, some of us inside the restaurant, a blurry shot of his hand playing with my hair, and another photo of him holding me outside the restaurant.

We look good together, and happy.

We look like we’re in love.

I swallow the words and put aside the feeling building in my chest. Is he mad? He looks mad. I hate that I can’t tell.

Licking my lips, I rush to say, “You don’t have to worry about her, I promise. I already sent her my savings, and that should get her off my back for a while.”

Levi’s nostrils flare and he stands up, pacing the length of the nook with his hands on his hips. “Why would you do that?” he finally asks.

“What, give her money?” I ask, confused.

“Yes.”

“It’s complicated. My dad doesn’t know⁠—”

“So, tell him,” he says, eyes blazing. “Don’t let her walk all over you.”

My eyes burn with tears, and I curl in on myself, covering my eyes with my palms. “I’m scared,” I choke out. “I’m scared of what it’ll do to him.”

Levi’s arms envelop me and he nudges me over on the bench enough so he can sit next to me. With his arm around my shoulder, he pulls me into his chest. “I’m sorry,” he says gruffly. “I didn’t mean to upset you. But baby, I need you to understand this is not okay. You need to put yourself first. Not them, not me. You,” he says emphatically, holding me closer.