“‘Temporary’ as in ‘be out by tomorrow.’ Those were your words, or close, right?” Jessa asked.

She thought she heard a slight hiss, the kind that might come with a dramatic wince, coming from the direction of the overinvested but supportive bartender. The reaction fit the moment.

Tim shook his head. “That’s not what I said.”

“Oh, Tim.” Jessa shifted in her seat, putting a bit of room in between them and forcing him to stand up straight again. “My dear Tim.”

“Okay, you don’t have to—”

“No, you started this. You could have seen me sitting here and slinked out again, but you came over.” With every word, she grew stronger. Power filled her. Rage turned to energy with the lethal force of a swinging sword. “So, for once, you’re going to listen.”

He let out a loud exhale. “Go ahead.”

She thought about his abandonment. The hollow emptiness that left her reeling. His dismissal started a chain reaction, a screaming in her head that whined about how pathetic she was. A worthless loser who didn’t deserve support. Then she thought about Retta and her warning and knew her mentor had never been more on target than in her assessment of Tim.

Jessa unloaded. “You need a woman who will hang on every word, praise you, stay in the background, and agree with everything you say. A pretty ornament who is allowed to have a life outside of you, but not much of one. Who enjoys a career, but only one that you approve of or even possibly pick for her.”

“That’s not who I am.”

“It is, and I’m not her.” She stood up, taking her drink with her. “I need a man. A partner. Someone who appreciates and supports what I want. That’s not you. It could never be you.”

He wore that you’re beneath me expression that she’d once pretended didn’t exist, but now it was all she could see. Retta and Faith had been right. She deserved better.

“Fancy speech. Are you done?” he asked.

“With you?” She downed the rest of the drink, deciding that it was too tasty to waste on throwing on him. “Yeah, I’m definitely done with you.”

She had her friends. She had Faith. She had the Sophie Foundation.

A surge of energy pumped through her. Emboldened her. She carried a secret. The kind of secret that gave her power, and she refused to waste one more minute of her life on guys like Tim.

Chapter Forty-Eight
Gabby

Gabby spent all night rereading the papers Rob gave her. She’d copied them and stored one set in a safety-deposit box and mailed one to her great-aunt to put somewhere safe near her, along with orders that she give another copy to her attorney for safekeeping.