“That’s really good advice Tee. You have been known to break a few hearts in your time. Is she right about you having feelings for someone else?”

“I do love her but she’s right I haven’t allowed myself to fall in love. My heart belongs to someone that I lost a long time ago. She was my first love and I can’t seem to fully let go. I want to find that love with her again but I don’t know if she feels that same way about me. That’s what I have to figure out.”

“You can’t do that on your own Tee. You have to seek her out. I’m sure her heart is holding out as well waiting for yours to come home.”

“I won’t run away this time. When I come home it will be for good. Kate’s heart truly is the last one that I will ever break.”

“I hope that’s a promise you can keep Tee. We don’t always survive broken hearts; sometimes they can completely destroy us.”

“I know I need to earn that trust again.” Tina says this earnestly.

“We’ll get there.”

They both wanted to say more but it was too soon. Now was not the time. They had said enough to know that they might have another chance. That’s all they needed for now. Each had to deal with the fears; once they got started there would be no going back this time around. The fact that they’d communicated so much with so little was a good beginning.

Bette had her hope restored but Tina’s explanation didn’t answer her question about the text message.

“You still haven’t told me what this has to do with Angie?”

“I told Angie about the breakup. She and Kate have gotten pretty close. I wanted to explain her absence. I told her that Kate was no longer my girlfriend and that she wouldn’t see her as much. Angie got a little upset at first because she thought Kate had made me sad and made me cry the way Jodi did you. I explained that Kate didn’t hurt me. I explained that Kate loves me and she loves Angie and she would never hurt either one of us. I didn’t want Angie having anxieties over me and Kate the way she did over you and Jodi.”