“I knew it,” she whispers as her face crumples and she bolts down the hallway. I dart after her with Tyler following close behind.
This is not how I wanted this to go down, but here we are, facing it, nonetheless. We pass Jay’s room, and thankfully he has his headset on. At Abby’s bedroom door, I pause and turn to Tyler.
“Follow my lead. Based on that reaction, I honestly don’t know where her thoughts are right now.” Tyler nods, and I lead him in, shutting her door behind me. Abby’s head is buried in her pillow, muffled sobs coming from her. I sit on the edge of her bed to rub gentle circles on her back.
“Abby?” She doesn’t acknowledge me, so I say her name again, this time more firmly. “Abby, we have to talk about this.”
Eventually she rolls over, dragging herself to a sitting position. Her face is red and splotchy, and when she looks up, it’s not at me, but at Tyler.
“I wanted it to be you.” Her voice cracks. “For a while I convinced myself it was you, then I decided I was stupid.”
“Abs, nobody thinks you’re stupid,” Tyler says softly. “Your mom and I never could decide the right time or how to tell you.”
“One day, you were just here, and honestly, the way you kept popping up was kinda weird.” She lets out a soggy laugh, and Tyler and I exchange amused smiles. “But I think from the beginning I knew who you were.”
Then her face scrunches and in a flash, she hurls herself off the bed toward Tyler, arms wrapping around his middle sobbing into his shirt. Tyler folds her into his arms, and my own tears fall freely now.
Abby pulls back to look up at her dad. “Are you here for good?”
Tyler nods. “I’m not going anywhere. You have my word.”
I walk over to smooth Abby’s hair, smiling up at Tyler. But my hand stalls when Abby says, “So, I’m still confused. Were you two dating and lost touch, or what?”
My eyes go impossibly wide, and Tyler clears his throat.
Our prolonged silence has Abby looking between us, brows pinched like she’s working through a puzzle. “Oh god,” she says, dramatically gagging. “I don’t need to know.”
I run to my bedroom and grab the note, and Tyler and I sit with Abby on her bed, fumbling through the most G-rated version we can cobble together. There’s lots of stammering, and talking over each other, but finally we get out enough explanation for Abby to see how unavoidable this whole thing really was.
“So, what do I call you?” Abby asks, peering up at Tyler with matching eyes.
“What do you want to call me?”
Abby looks toward Jay’s room, and back to Tyler. “I’d like to call you dad, but what about Jay?”
Tyler’s eyes connect with mine over Abby’s head, and there are no words to describe all the emotions swimming in his hazel depths.
We both assure her we’ll figure Jay out, and until we do, she’ll continue calling him Tyler.
It’s only hours later, curled up in bed with my book, the thought strikes me. Tyler never did explain to me where he was today.
“Yeah, Austin. It’s all lined up. You and Penny have reservations for three nights at the Bellagio.” A pause for him to ask a few more questions. “Yes. The driver will pick you guys up at the airport.” Another pause. “Yeah, man, you’re all good. Listen, I need to go. Everything is in the email.”
Austin and Penny leave for an awards show in an hour, and Austin’s anxious about traveling with Penny pregnant. She’s not even three months along, but he’s worked himself up over it. I get it, though. This is new for him, and in his shoes I’d probably be the same way.
But today I’ve got a lot to do. There’s the meeting at the bank in ten minutes, then Jo asked me to come over to talk. A week ago, a text sayingcan we talkwould have tightened the knot of tension in my chest but today when it popped up on my phone, that knot loosened, leaving me able to breathe easier. There was already a lot to discuss, and after my visit with Chad yesterday, there’s even more. I responded, asking if she could meet me at my place instead, and she replied with a thumbs up.
I make my way into the bank feeling confident about this decision. The entire process is relatively quick, and I leave with keys in hand ready to talk with Jo. On the way I make the call tothe movers, relieved my time in that god-forsaken apartment is coming to a close. There’s nothing about that place I’ll miss.
I park on the street, and in my rearview mirror I see Jo pulling in right behind me. We get out of our cars at the same time, my thumb drumming a steady rhythm against my thigh. I don’t know how she’ll respond to the news about Chad. Yes, she said she wanted this, but when I was lying in bed last night, the terrible karaoke from the bar wasn’t the only thing keeping me awake. All I kept thinking was, I did it again. I jumped in and fixed something without giving the person a chance for themselves. I need to get this conversation with Jo right.
But when she offers a soft smile, the nerves ease and we climb the steps and go inside. When I take a seat on my couch, Jo doesn’t sit on the other end like I half expected her to. She sits right beside me, pulling one leg up while the other dangles off the couch. She’s close enough for her scent to invade me, and for a second, I forget how to think. I notice her thumbs twirling over themselves, and reach over to cover her hands with mine. Looks like she’s nervous too.
Her eyes meet mine and I quirk a brow.
“I think we need to talk. And let me get it all out before you speak or I’ll lose my nerve.”
She pauses, takes a breath, then powers through.
