Page 52 of The Unbound Bookshop
Her heart warmed at his words. It wasn’t a question. Noiformaybe. They were a team, together through it all. Even this. And she would forever be grateful.
As Logan strode from the room—tossing a warning glance at Piper as he left—Abby girded herself with Logan’s promise. He would always be here for her.
Leaving her luggage, Piper crept closer, her steps cautious and tentative, as if Abby might pounce like a wounded animal.
Piper’s pretty features contorted with guilt and grief, a hunter showing remorse to its prey. She perched on the edge of the coffee table, her shoulders slumped. “I’m so sorry I hurt you.”
She offered no excuses. No fancy, flowery words. Just a simple, sincere apology.
Abby forced herself to meet Piper’s gaze. The woman’s piercing green eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Abby gathered a breath, then exhaled slowly before asking the one question Donnie couldn’t. “Why didn’t you tell Donnie about Tyler?”
Piper’s gaze flickered toward the floor, then back to Abby, her features firmly set as if she’d resolved to tell the whole truth, no matter what. “Because Donnie made it perfectly clear he didn’t want kids. And if he didn’t want children with the woman he loved and planned to marry, how would he feel about having one with me, his biggest regret?”
There was a raw, pained vulnerability in Piper’s eyes that stirred unwelcome sympathy in Abby’s heart. She wanted to dislike Piper, pure and simple. It wasn’t right that she’d slept with Donnie. And it wasn’t fair that she’d beaten the odds and had a child with him when she couldn’t. And yet, despite everything, compassion complicated Abby’s emotions more than she cared to admit, even to herself.
“As soon as I realized I was pregnant, I moved down south and started over. I got a new apartment, a new job. A new life. For me and Tyler.”
“Then why come forward now?”
“I wish I hadn’t.” Piper picked at a loose thread on her ripped jeans. “I never wanted anything from Donnie. Or you. But I—” She broke away, wincing as she struggled to finish her admission. “I was desperate,” she said at last, shrinking even smaller as she leaned forward, wringing her hands. “I lost my job and was close to losing my apartment. My landlord said he’d discount my rent if I did him a favor.” A crimson blush swept across Piper’s face, and Abby shuddered, afraid for what that favor might have entailed.
“He said all I had to do was let him have a few packages delivered to my door every couple of weeks. I’d let him know when they arrived, and he’d come pick them up. It worked out fine for a while.”
“And you never wondered what might be in those packages?” Abby asked. She’d watched enough crime TV to make an educated guess. More than likely, Piper had agreed to be a drug drop-off.
“I didn’t want to wonder. I didn’t want to know. I just wanted to keep me and Tyler from living on the streets.”
“So, what happened?” Clearly, something had gone awry, or they wouldn’t be living out of their car.
“One of the packages went missing, and my landlord accused me of taking it. I swore I never touched it, but he said I had to pay him back or he’d…” Piper’s voice fell away, but she didn’t have to finish her sentence. Based on her terrified expression, Abby suspected he’d threatened Tyler. Or maybe both of them.
Her stomach turned at the thought. “How much do you owe him?”
Piper looked away again, biting her lower lip. “Six thousand dollars.”
Abby’s heart sank. “Six thousand?” she echoed in a whisper.
Piper nodded, suddenly pale. “I don’t have that kind of money. Oranymoney. So, I packed up our things and ran. But he hasn’t stopped calling, demanding his money. He said no matter where I go, or even if I change my number, he’ll know how to find us.” Piper shuddered. “My only option was to get the money somehow. Desperate, I Googled Donnie. That’s when I learned he’d passed away. I’m so sorry for your loss.”
The rote sentiment sounded strange coming from Piper, the mother of her husband’s son. How did Piper feel about Donnie’s death? Had she cared for him at all? And what about Tyler? He’d never know his father now.
The thought roused fresh tears to her eyes, and her throat tightened. Donnie may not have wanted kids initially, but he would’ve loved Tyler. And he would’ve been a wonderful father, despite his flaws.
“After I found out about Donnie, I looked up what happened to the house,” Piper told her. “I found an article on you and the inn, how well it was doing.” She cringed as if ashamed of her own admission. “I didn’t think. I just got in the car and drove. I’m so sorry, Abby. For everything.”
For a long moment, Abby didn’t respond. A thousand thoughts and emotions tumbled in her mind. She tried to make sense of them, to connect them together like puzzle pieces. But nothing seemed to fit. “Why didn’t you tell the police?”
“Tell them what? That I unwittingly agreed to be a drug drop-off location, and the dealer thinks I stole his stash?”
She had a point. Piper had made a string of appallingly bad decisions. Horrifying, actually. She didn’t deserve her pity or compassion.
And yet, as Abby looked at the woman sitting across from her, she saw someone scared, broken, and helpless. A mother who loved her son—Donnie’s son—and didn’t know how to untangle the mess she’d made.
An image of Tyler’s sweet face flashed in the forefront of her thoughts. None of this was his fault. And yet, he would pay the price for all their decisions.Even hers.
Could she let them walk away without a second thought?
A gentle knock at the door made Abby jump.
