I nodded. “I didn’t know what to say, or how to tell you. And everything was crazy. I had to arrange their funerals, sort out the will. Then there were the kids to consider. They were old enough to understand but young enough that they’d never imagined they might have to live without their parents.”

He shook his head. “I wish I’d known.” His hands clenched at his sides. “I wish I could have been there for you. That must have been hard on you, especially after you’d already lost your dad.”

“It wasn’t easy.” I set my drink on the floor and wedged my hands beneath my thighs. They were trembling badly, and I’d prefer he not see that. “Mom and Malcolm had been intending to update their wills, but they hadn’t gotten around to it.” I drew in a slow breath and allowed it to flow out between my lips. “We didn’t have any close relatives, so I became their legal guardian.”

“You what?” He blinked rapidly, clearly taken aback.

“If I didn’t take them, they’d have either gone to a distant relative they’d never met or into the foster care system. I didn’t want that for them. Things would be difficult enough without having to leave home, their school, and live in a situation I couldn’t be sure was safe. So I stepped up.”

A muscle ticked in Liam’s jaw. He looked much like I’d felt at the time. Confused, sad, and a little angry. “So, you’re telling me that you became the legal guardian of your siblings?”

“I did.”

Emotion flashed in his midnight blue eyes. “When did you find that out?”

“Pretty soon after their deaths. But we finalized the arrangements the day I broke up with you.”

He pressed his lips together. I couldn’t read him. Had no idea what was going on in his head. “I could have helped you. I would have flown over to be there for you.”

A rock sank to the bottom of my stomach. “Yeah, you could have. But I’d already decided I couldn’t move them halfway around the world after what they’d been through. I knew how you felt about L.A. and that you never wanted to leave Destiny Falls. My plans were already in shreds, and I didn’t want to ruin your life by asking you to come be with me.” I chewed my lip. “I knew you might feel obligated, and then you’d be miserable and resent me.” Tears burned in my eyes. I blinked them back. “I couldn’t be selfish like that.”