I shut my computer. “Your fam, huh?”
She nodded, biting her nail again.
“All of your family?”
“Maybe. I’m not sure yet if Luke, Jess, and Grant will be there. I hope so.”
I wanted to be with Lake and meet her parents, I just wasn’t ready to see Jessica—Jillian. The memories of my father would come flooding back.
“I’ll see.”
“You’ll see? What does that mean? Do you have plans in the next three days you haven’t mentioned?”
I shrugged. “Not sure yet. I haven’t really thought about it.”
“‘Lake, I have plans, sorry.’ or ‘Lake, I’d love to go.’ I get those responses, but I don’t get the ‘not sure yet.’ Are you waiting for a better offer?”
“No, I just… I…” Closing my eyes, I shook my head.
“Please don’t let this be about ‘Jillian.’”
“And if it is?”
She sat up. “It’s not allowed be about Jillian or Jessica or your dad or my brother. That is over, and I don’t mean it as any disrespect to you or your father’s memory. I just want it to be Lake Jones introducing the man that she loves to her family.”
“I don’t know what happened.”
“What do you mean you don’t know what happened?”
Setting my computer aside, I stood, pacing the room, hands on my hips, head down. “I mean I don’t know aboutJessica Day. When she called me, she offered to tell me everything, but I didn’t want to know how she ended up in our lives or why she was leaving. I only wanted… only needed to know one thing.”
“What was that?” Lake whispered.
“If she’d really loved my father.”
Lake stood and walked toward the door.
“Don’t you want to know what she said?” I called, hating the anger in my voice because I really wasn’t mad at her.
“No.” She kept her back to me, pausing at the door.
“Why not?”
“Because I already know.”
“Then tell me what you think she said.”
“I’m not doing this.”
I chased after her. “It’s because you don’t know. I bet she never told you or your brother.”
“I’m going home. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“I’m not upset! I just want to know what you think she said.”
Lake hurried into the bedroom and grabbed her overnight bag, shoving her stuff in as fast as she could.
“Tell me.”
