“Do they hate me?”

I thought of Asher asking to meet his family.

Of Mason wanting to know whether he had grandparents.

Of Caleb inventing jokes to protect the room from silence.

“No,” I answered.

“But please don’t mistake that for an invitation to disappoint them again.”

PART 9

The evening might have ended there if Mason hadn’t appeared at the study door holding a folded piece of paper.