Page 64 of Broken Secrets
“He’s a good kid,” Robert says approvingly. “I’ve always liked Derek. Solid family, good values, treats you with respect.”
“I feel like I’ve missed so much lately,” Mom says, and there’s guilt in her voice. “Between your heart condition and the Jeremy situation and Emma reaching out… I didn’t even know you had a boyfriend.”
“It’s not like I was hiding it,” I say gently. “There’s just been a lot going on.”
“Too much,” Mom agrees. “I’ve been so focused on managing the family crisis that I forgot to just… be your mom. To pay attention to your regular life.”
“You’ve been dealing with a lot too. Finding out Emma contacted me, having to face Jeremy again after all these years, that couldn’t have been easy.”
“It wasn’t,” she admits. “Seeing him tonight, watching him with you… it brought up a lot of old feelings I thought I’d buried.”
“What kind of feelings?” I ask carefully.
Mom is quiet for a long moment, choosing her words carefully. “Regret, mostly. Not about leaving Michigan. I still think that was the right choice for us. But regret about the ways I handled it. About the choices I made that kept you from knowing him.”
“You were protecting me.”
“I was protecting myself,” she corrects. “From having to share you. From having to see him be a father to you when he chose to be a father to Emma instead.” She takes a shaky breath. “But watching him tonight, seeing how he looked at you… I think I might have been wrong about his motivations back then.”
Robert sits down on Mom’s other side, creating a protective circle around her. “It’s never too late to make different choices going forward.”
“I know. And I want to support whatever relationship you decide to build with them. Even if it’s complicated. Even if it’s hard for me.”
I lean over and hug her, breathing in the familiar scent of her perfume mixed with garlic from dinner. “Thank you. That means everything to me.”
“So tell me about Derek,” she says as we separate. “How serious is this relationship? Should Robert be cleaning his shotgun?”
“Mom!” I laugh, relieved by her attempt at normalcy. “It’s not that serious yet. We’re just… figuring things out.”
“But you care about him.”
“Yeah. I do. A lot.”
“Then I want to get to know him better. Maybe we can have him over for dinner soon. A normal family dinner, not one complicated by long-lost relatives and eighteen years of unresolved drama.”
“That sounds perfect.”
As I head upstairs to get ready for bed, I think about the strange life is right now. I am grateful to know Jeremy; I’ve been wanting this for so long. Never expected to meet him this soon.
My phone buzzes with a instagram message from Emma.
Emma: Thank you for tonight. I’m so happy we’re sisters. Can’t wait to spend tomorrow together!
Me: Me too. Sleep well.
It’s overwhelming and wonderful and terrifying all at once.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
My phone dingswaking me up in the process. I open my eyes, blinking a few times and reach for my phone to see a text from Emma.
Emma: Emergency. Can you meet me at the pier? Alone. Please don’t tell Dad.”
I throw on clothes and drive to the pier in the pre-dawn darkness, my mind racing through possibilities. Emma is sitting on the furthest bench, knees pulled to her chest, staring out at the gray ocean. Even from a distance, I can see she’s been crying.
“What happened?” I ask, settling beside her.
“I called Mom last night to tell her about meeting you.” Emma’s voice is raw, like she’s been crying for hours. “It didn’t go well.”
