I stared at the words for a long moment, my fingers frozen over the screen. Trina noticed my silence and glanced over, her brow furrowing. “Everything okay?”
“It’s Jake,” I said quietly, my voice barely above a whisper. “He wants to talk.”
Trina’s expression darkened, but she quickly masked it with a tight smile. “Well, you better call him back then.”
I nodded, my hands trembling as I unlocked my phone. The room seemed to close in around me, the laughter and chatter of the girls fading into a distant hum. I stood up and walked into the kitchen, needing space, needing air, though it felt like there wasn’t enough of it in the apartment.
Jake picked up on the first ring. “Laura,” he said, his voice low and urgent. I’d known Jake long enough to recognize when something was wrong. And this
