“Not yet; I wanted to talk with you first. He’s my next stop. If you don’t mind, please don’t let him know I came here. At least until after I talk with him, please.”
I think about this request and am not sure if I’m doing the right thing, but the pleading in his eyes has me saying, “I won’t.”
He stands up, and so do I. Walking to the door, he holds the doorknob, turns around, and I’m following him out the door. He releases the doorknob and hugs me. “I hope we can start over.”
“You really need to talk to Dane first.” I half-smile at him, knowing this is a man who is still hurting from everything that his ex-wife did to him. And it helps that I know he’s Jane’s son; it softens my heart a little bit more for him.
“If you can find it in your heart to give my son a chance, don’t let my mistakes stand in the way. Please. Don’t let me be the reason he loses the best thing in his life.”
With that, he leaves. I’m standing there with my hand over my mouth for a few beats. Then I find my phone.
Kendall:
You’re not going to believe who just walked in the door.
Addison:
Dane?
Faith:
Just tell us!
Kendall:
Dane’s father…apologizing, groveling. More details tonight, my house, pool party, 6pm
Lane:
I didn’t even get a chance to answer, but I’ll be there.
Faith:
OMG you’re killing us.
Addison:
Can we make it 5pm? How are we supposed to wait?
Kendall:
Fine - 5pm I’ll skip the paperwork. But bring snacks, I won’t have time to pick anything up. On the plus side, I have tequila.
One by one, my friends find me in the kitchen preparing a few snacks I scrounged up. I have a sleeve of crackers, half a block of sharp cheddar cheese, and dried apricots. I’m already in my bathing suit, and the tequila sits on the island.
“I brought the popcorn because you need to tell us everything,” says Faith, as she unpacks her bag.
“Popcorn…that’s a good idea. I have more cheese and crackers, plus some grapes. Need something healthy,” Addison laughs, bringing the grapes to the sink to rinse off.
Lane giggles. “I’ll round it off with some chips, salsa, and guacamole.” She opens the chips and guac and starts eating. “I can’t wait any longer. You need to tell us what the hell happened today.”
They all lean onto the island and stare at me as they await the details of what’s going on.
“First, let it be known that Jane’s son is Edward.” They all gasp.
“How did we not know this?” Faith asks.
“Dane never mentioned the connection, only that she was his Gram. So I assumed Gram was his mom’s mom.” I shake my head in disbelief that I hadn’t figured it out sooner.
