Page 115 of My Ex's Best Friend

“What I mean—”

“You think I jumped the gun.”

“Kiera, calm yourself,” she says. “Come on, breath in. Yes. Now, breath out.” She has been taking a few pre-natal classes with me, and the breathing cues do end up calming me a bit.

“Now let’s talk like adults. Without getting upset,” she says. “I’ve finally gotten through to you. I just want to know everything that’s going on in your head. The hurt, the confusion, everything.”

“Okay, fine, we can talk,” I say.

“And Jake.”

“Mom—”

“Kiera, this is important. For your baby’s sake.”

“Okay, fine. But don’t forget, you’re still on my team.”

She cracks a smile. “Always.”

“Okay, now shoot.”

"Let’s go through everything that you told me. You think Jake stepped out on you.”

“I don’t just think so,” I say. “I know.”

“You have no concrete proof that he did what you're accusing him of doing," she says. "Just because your ex showed up and told you, and somehow he got her on Jake's phone? Something doesn't add up. And I still don't understand why you're trusting Chris, of all people, after he hurt you badly."

When she says it like that, it does sound fucked up. Frustration racks through me, along with a hint of doubt.

Could it be? But no…

I’m still trying to wrap my head around the deception. There’s no way Chris could have pulled the entire thing off. The woman had Jake’s phone.

"I don't trust Chris. But I trust my gut. And Jake went on for days without a simple hi," I say. “Why would he ignore me for so long and not answer my texts or calls?”

"Maybe because something was wrong with his phone and that’s why that woman had it?” she says. After a deep breath, she adds. “Listen, Kiera, you know Jake better than me. You’ve known him for years. People make mistakes.”

“What he did was unforgivable.”

“I know, but what I’m saying is that people may change as they grow up, but the core part of them never does.”

“So, you think that Jake is some kind of a saint? That he couldn’t have done this?”

“Not what I’m saying, and if you’re certain—"

“I am. I have all the facts.” I scowl. "I think you're forgetting you're my mom, not his."

"I'm sorry, baby. I just want what's best for you.”

“And you think that’s Jake?”

“Yes.”

“Mom, this isn’t some fantasy or romance novel. Jake betrayed me in the worst possible way,” I say. “We might have been friends, once upon a time, but there’s a good reason we stopped being close.”

“You were wrong before,” she reminds me.

“Mom—”

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