Chapter 24
I f I sign this, I can no longer pretend this is just a casual fling.
Signing this means we’re … serious? Skimming the document in my childhood bedroom, I start to accept how different Adam’s life is from mine.
This is standard protocol for him. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if people would pay for dirt on him.
Meanwhile, I’m stuck in a high school time capsule.
My unchanged room taunts me, a reminder of my failure with Shirts.
“Dani.” I hear Mom’s voice from behind my door.
“Come in.”
“I haven’t seen much of you since you’ve been back.” Her blond hair is in a perfect messy bun, and she looks annoyingly pretty for her age. She’s the same age as Adam! I try not to groan at the realization. “How’s it going?” she asks, breaking my spiral.
“I met someone?—”
“Dani,” she interrupts, her tone shrill. It’s an overreaction.
“Crystal.” I only call her by her first name when she’s getting on my nerves.
“We agreed you could stay here while you got back on your feet. What are you doing getting distracted by some guy?”
“This isn’t like the last time, Mom,” I snap. This guy is a fucking billionaire. “He’s actually helping me with my business. He’s very successful and from Chicago. He’s already set up some great meetings for me.”
She shakes her head, unimpressed. She doesn’t get it.
“The awkward part is, I met him at Lisa’s house,” I add. And he’s the same age as you, I think, but don’t say.
“What were you doing there? Isn’t she renting it out?”
“So I learned … The Renter , his name is Adam.”
“Dani,” she scolds again.
“He’s a great guy. Things are getting a little complicated. He’s pretty high-profile, and if I keep seeing him, I need to sign this.” I fan the NDA in front of her.
Unamused, she starts pacing.
“He’s a big deal in the investment world,” I say after a pause. “That’s why he’s been so helpful in connecting me with potential new clients.”
“A rich guy won’t fix your problems,” she says, stopping to look at me. “When will you learn that?”
Fuck off, Mom! I scream internally.
“How many times are you going to get burned before you realize that world isn’t for you?”
“Oh, so feminist of you. What is my place, then? In a shit house like this?”
She rolls her eyes. “Those people are born into it. I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with trying to be like them.”
There’s so much to unpack in that one sentence, but I don’t even want to go there.
“I’m still scarred from the last time you lived here,” she adds. Scarred! I want to scream. I was the one who was scarred! “It was a disaster,” she huffs.
That disaster … it’s a small town. She’ll find out soon enough. “I saw him the other day. Before you?—”
“You saw him? Sorin?”
“I was at Starbucks with Kelsey, and he was there.”
“I’ll call the lawyer and see about reinstating the restraining order.”
Declan’s right—this is starting to feel way too much like my last summer in Wisconsin.
“A guy …” I start hesitantly. “A guy that’s in the Crows … He said he would take care of it.”
I see the stress emerge on my mom’s face at the mention of the Polish mafia, and I raise my finger, knowing I need to get the next part out before she explodes.
“There’s something else. Before you hear it around town … Adam, the guy I’m seeing, he punched Sorin.”
“What a catch.”
“Mom, he was?—”
“Dani, I don’t like this. This feels like when you ran off with Sorin.” We hold a long stare before she adds, “Why do you always regress when you come back here?”
“Maybe it’s the trauma I’ve experienced,” I spit back.
“I know, we were terrible parents,” she says, throwing her arms up dramatically. “We’re so terrible. Letting you live here rent-free after you went bankrupt—just the worst parents ever.”
I roll my eyes.
“If you’re not going to focus on getting back on your feet, you’ll need to find somewhere else to stay,” she says firmly. “I can’t handle another summer like the last one.” With that, Mom leaves my room.
I feel deflated. I wish I could tell her how excited I am about what’s happening between Adam and me. But—she wouldn’t hear it. Her narrow view of the world has her convinced he’s no good for me.
My relationship with my parents has always been tense. Well, ever since Dad went to rehab when I was twelve. It’s like I had two childhoods: pre- and post-rehab. Abundance, then scarcity. Laughter, then walking on eggshells.
My phone buzzes, pulling me from my thoughts.
Adam Harris
Movie night this week?
Dani Sommer
Wednesday?
Adam Harris
Sounds great.
“The Renter,” I mutter, happy to have confirmed new plans with him. My friends are never going to believe what’s happening. I open the Baddies group chat and start typing.
Dani Sommer
Guess who took me to La Nonna yesterday?
Kelsey Wagner
No way!
Sam Johnson
Wait!?!
Sarah Meyer
OMG. You’re like … dating?!
I’m glad my friends are excited. I’m excited about Adam too. I wish my mom could share that excitement. But I’m used to my parents not understanding me. Maybe someday it won’t sting as much—I hope.
Dani Sommer
The Renter is Adam Harris. Google him.
Sarah Meyer
There are no pictures of him online? Am I missing something?
Sam Johnson
I think Dani wants you to notice that he’s FUCKING rich.
Kelsey Wagner
I saw him on Sunday. Can confirm—he’s HOT … And, like, a total Daddy.
Sam Johnson
He has kids?
I laugh.
Dani Sommer
NO! He’s forty-four.
Sarah Meyer
Oh shit! Get it, girl!