The thought flies into my head. Diana knows.
Why? Why does she stay? I don't understand. My heart is a little bit broken. These two people… The greatest love story… The whole world fell in love with their love. A book… A movie… On the outside, they look so perfect.
So similar to my own parents. A pastor who abuses his wife. The main character in an epic love story is gay and cheating on his wife.
I'm not sure what’s real anymore.
And Aidan. Poor Aidan. How long has he been keeping this secret? It's no wonder he doesn't believe in the kind of love I read about.
How can I face Diego and Diana this morning? And Shawn? Knowing their secret without them telling me about it first makes me uncomfortable.
To delay my appearance, I take a long, hot shower. I dry my hair until I'm certain every strand is completely dry. I apply makeup, more makeup than usual, and I know that to Aidan this will be a dead giveaway.
There's a knock at my door just as I'm pulling my sweater over my head. Assuming it will be Aidan, I throw it open.
Diana stands there. She smiles consolingly. “Good morning, Natalie. Can I come in?”
Nodding, I step back from the open door. Diana walks in and gestures at the bed. I sit down, and she comes to sit beside me, turning so one foot is on the bed and her other foot is propped on the sideboard. I do the same, turning to face her. Diana's hair is tied in a bun at the nape of her neck, and the ivory blouse she is wearing matches her skin tone.
True to Diana's personality, she doesn't mince words. “Aidan told me what you saw last night.”
I nod and swallow, unable to speak.
“He told me you were pretty angry on my behalf.” Diana's lips curl into a smile. “I appreciate that.”
“He said you already know.”
Diana's gaze is soft, her eyes gentle, as though she is handling something delicate. “I have always known.”
I gasp, and immediately put my hand over my mouth, then rip it away.
“You don't have to hide your shock, Natalie. It's okay to feel that way.” Diana places one hand behind her. Supported by the bed, she leans back and starts talking. “I was twenty-two when I met Diego. He was here on a visa and I had just graduated college. At first, I didn't know he was gay. I was naïve, and he was very, very good at hiding it. By the time I found out, it was too late.” She shrugs. “I was already in love with him. And he was in love with someone else.” Diana's gaze is glassy, some place far away from this bedroom. “He loved Shawn, but his time in the U.S. was running out. His happiness meant everything to me, so I married him.”
Diana looks back at me and winks, patting my knee. “Don't feel bad for me. I got a book and a baby out of it.”
The book. I can picture the book on my mother’s shelf, with the original cover.
“I didn't set out to lie to people. I'm not even really sure if I did lie. Somebody asked me if it was a book about me and my husband. I said yes. To be honest, I didn't foresee it becoming such a big deal.”
“Oh please,” I mumble. “You're telling me you didn't know you were sitting on a gold mine of words?”
Diana shakes her head. “I honestly didn't. My heart was broken, and I just needed a place to put my emotions. I wrote a story about my best friend and me, and our road to love. I changed some of the details and never told a soul.”
“I won't tell anybody,” I assure her. “I don't know if I even believe it yet myself.” My head is still trying to wrap around everything. “Can I ask you a question?”
Diana nods, waiting.
“Are you happy?”
She sighs deeply, gazing out the window that overlooks the driveway. “I am now, but I wasn't always. This choice has not been an easy one. There were times when I wanted to give up.”
“Why didn't you?”
She looks back to me. “The reasons why I did it in the first place still held true.”
“That's very…altruistic of you.”
She laughs. “I'm not a nun. There is someone else for me, too. He lives upstate, on a small ranch. Not a working ranch, just two horses and a whole lot of green grass.”
