“I love you, too.” Wiping her eyes, Brianna ended the call and headed back toward the trailhead. She thought about calling her father, but that would only make him worry about her. It would be better to just show up.
What if Allison had already called him? She could have fed him a string of lies—lies that he would believe because he loved her. Whatever the story turned out to be, Brianna knew she could no longer stay in the house with that woman. Her father had a choice to make. Either Allison would have to go, or she would.
* * *
Half an hour later she pulled into the empty garage and went upstairs to the main floor of the house. Nobody appeared to be home, but as she looked out the window toward Peaceful Lane, she saw Hoagie’s Jeep Wagoneer pull up in front of the house. Her father eased himself out of the passenger side. As the Jeep pulled away, he came up the walk to the front door, moving slowly as if in pain.
Brianna ran to open the door for him. He gave her a smile as she closed the door behind him. “Home so early? Didn’t you have community service today?”
“I decided to skip. I need to talk to you, Dad.”
His eyes narrowed. “This sounds serious. Is Allison home yet?”
“I guess not. Her car isn’t in the garage. Sit down. You look tired. Can I get you anything to drink?”
He settled onto the living room sofa with a cushion behind his back. “A glass of water would be nice. And could you get me a couple of ibuprofen tablets from that bottle on the nightstand? I’m afraid I over
did it a little this afternoon.”
Brianna scurried off and came back with water and pills. While he swallowed them, she moved a black leather footstool in front of his chair and sat down to face him.
“Now what is it?” he asked her. “And how bad could it be? We’re both here, aren’t we?”
“You’re always such an optimist.” She took one of his hands and held it in hers. He’d lost weight since the accident. His fingers felt thinner than she remembered—or maybe it was because she wasn’t a little girl anymore. “Here’s the first thing. I heard from the dean at Northwestern about my reapplication. I won’t be going back there.”
“I’m sorry, honey. I know you had your heart set on it. But it’s not the end of the world. There are plenty of good colleges, some of them close by. You’ll be fine.”
“I know. But here’s the other thing I have to tell you.”
“Lord, you’re not pregnant, are you?” His face had gone slightly pale.
“No, Dad! Heavens no! Nothing like that. But in its own way, it’s even worse.” She took a deep breath. “It’s about Allison.”
He listened then, his sad but gentle expression never changing as she told him how she’d wanted to talk with Garrett about her college rejection and how she’d walked into his office to find Allison in his arms.
By the time she reached the end of her story, she was in tears. “I didn’t want to tell you, Dad. I know you love her, and I know how this must hurt. But I couldn’t imagine living here, seeing you every day, and keeping such an awful secret.”
He shook his head. “Listen to me, Brianna. I understand what you think you saw. But there are two sides to every story. You saw what was happening. But what you didn’t see was why.”
She jerked her hand away from his. “I can’t believe this! You’re actually taking her side! He was kissing her, Dad! Right there in his office! And she was letting him!”
“I don’t suppose you gave her a chance to explain.”
“No! I ran! I didn’t want to hear her lies. I know what I saw!”
He straightened in the chair, wincing with pain. “I told you there are two sides to every story. It’s time you heard the rest. Garrett has been helping the Mob get control of my business. They made him some promises, and he was ambitious enough, and naïve enough, to believe them. Allison and I both knew it, but before we could do anything legal to stop them, we needed proof. Allison went to work for Garrett to get that proof. That included pretending to be on his side.”
“Like a spy, you mean?” So far, the story sounded pretty far-fetched.
“Yes, like a spy, although I hadn’t thought of it in that way. I haven’t talked to her since this happened, but I’m guessing she might have been caught searching Garrett’s office. Letting him kiss her may have been the only way to protect herself and get out of a bad situation.”
“And you really believe that?” Brianna shook her head. “I know what I saw, Dad, and it didn’t look like play-acting. What would you do if you found out she was lying—that she and Garrett were having an affair? Would you divorce her?”
Sadness, like a passing shadow, transformed his face for a moment. “If that were true, and if Allison said she was sorry, and meant it, I’d forgive her.”
It wasn’t what Brianna expected to hear. “You’d forgive your wife for such a terrible thing?” she asked. “How can you be so sure of that?”
His eyes held hers with a tenderness that was almost painful. “Because I did it once before,” he said. “And I’ve never been sorry.”