Chapter23
Cindy made a salad for dinner and forced herself to page through some of her old journals as an idea had taken root in recent months. She wanted to write about their family’s ordeal and had begun some tentative steps in that direction. But tonight, her mind continued to wander—and wonder—making any kind of concentration nonexistent. She was asleep on the sofa when the front door opened, startling her awake. The clock on her phone read ten twenty. She sat up and pushed the hair back from her face.
Jace dropped into the chair across from the sofa. He looked exhausted. “Hey.”
“Hey.” She hoped he might say more, but when he didn’t, she asked, “Everything all right?”
“I think it will be, but today was just… a lot.”
“What happened?”
His deep sigh conveyed a world of exhaustion. “Seamus and Carolina have been going through the stuff that came with the boys from Lisa’s, and there were photos of us that Jackson saw, which had him asking about me and how I knew their mom.”
“Oh,” Cindy said on a long exhale. “Oh God.”
“Yeah… We told them the truth.”
“How did that go?”
“It was rough, but we got through it. They had questions. I answered them truthfully.” He shrugged. “It was…” Shaking his head, he seemed to sag into the chair.
Cindy didn’t take even one second to think about what she was doing or how upset she’d been earlier over the hours of silence when she got up and went to him, sitting on his lap and wrapping her arms around him.
He responded in kind, his arms closing around her in a tight hug. “I’m sorry I went missing. I hope you weren’t worried.”
“I was a little worried.”
“It was one hell of a day. I stayed to have dinner with them and helped put the boys to bed. After that, the three of us had a badly needed drink before I walked home.”
“You walked all that way in the dark?”
“I needed the air to clear my head.”
“I’m sorry you had such a tough day.”
“I’m glad they know the truth now, as hard as it was to tell them. They were primarily concerned about whether they were going to have to live with me now. I told them they would be staying with Seamus and Carolina, but I hoped to be a friend to them, if they’d let me.”
“For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you for telling them the truth while knowing it might change how they feel about you.”
“That was my greatest fear, but they deserved the truth, so that’s what I gave them.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “And PS, it’s worth a lot that you’re proud of me.”
“Can I say something else?”
“Anything you want.”
“Even though I know why now, it was upsetting to me when you went dark for most of the day, especially after last night. That triggered some… insecurities for me.”
“I should’ve texted you, and I’m sorry I didn’t. It was just an insane day.”
“I understand. Now.”
He ran his hand over her face. “I never want you to feel insecure.”
“And yet, I do. About many things.”
“I hate that I made you feel that way. You have no reason to be insecure about anything with me. I couldn’t wait to get home and talk to you about everything that happened.”
Hearing him say that made her feel so much better than she had earlier. “I’m glad I was here for you.”