Chapter Twenty-two

Mia woke up Sunday morning to a single text from Reed:

I love you, too.

The response wasn’t nearly enough, yet it was more than she’d hoped for.

He was also okay. Somewhere.

She didn’t want to push, but she couldn’t leave his effort unacknowledged either.

I’ll be here when you’re ready, she replied, then began her day as normal as she could. Instead of hitting the treadmill in the basement, she pulled one of Reed’s hoodies over her workout clothes and jogged to Pam’s.

Halfway there, her phone chimed in the pocket. Another text from Reed.

May be a few days. Thinking.

Days? God, she’d go crazy if he stayed away for days.

I understand. She didn’t want to, but she did. Going to visit Dad tomorrow.  Might grab some things from Omaha, too?

K. Drive safe.

Ugh. No, it wasn’t okay. None of this was. But what else could she do without knowing where he was?

I love you.

Standing on the side of the road, she waited for his response.

And waited.

And waited some more.

“Stupid!” she scolded her foolish heart and then finished the run to his mother’s in record speed.

“So, he’s safe.” Pam exhaled when Mia gave her the update.

“Thank God.”

“Yes, but now we give him the time he needs. I’m not sure I can that at home, so, if you don’t mind, I think I’ll use this opportunity to go back to Omaha, grab some things, and schedule the movers.” She refused to consider leaving her things where they were because when Reed came home, he’d be coming home to her. To them.

“Why would I mind?” Pam asked, stirring cream into her coffee. “I don’t blame you for not wanting to be at the house without him.”

“I just mean...” Mia paused, trying to be as sensitive as possible. “You might be hurting right now, too. With everything coming to light.”

The woman’s face flushed and she quickly glanced away, fidgeting with her spoon. “I’m fine, Mia. I’ve had a long time to get over it.”

But had she? “There are people trained to talk to survivors about these things. People who can listen if you’re not comfortable talking to a friend or a family member.”

“A survivor?” Pam scoffed, and Mia covered her hand with her own.

“That’s what you are, Pam. You survived a horrible, traumatic experience. More than that, you went on to raise a son on your own. And maybe I’m biased, but I think he turned out pretty darn good.”

Reed’s mom was quiet for a long beat, then she sniffed. “I don’t know if I want to open those wounds again, Mia. I’d rather just forget.”

They both knew there was no forgetting something so awful, but Mia let it go. “If you change your mind, I’m happy to help you make some connections. I actually have a friend who runs a statewide non-profit for sexual assault survivors. She would be more than happy to help, too. Just say the word.”

Pam gave a short nod, then put on her best smile. “Thank you for letting me use your car last night. I actually saw a skunk by the diner, so it was a good thing I didn’t walk.”

“A skunk?” Mia laughed. “Shouldn’t they be hibernating by now?”

“Guess not.” Pam sipped her coffee and smiled. “He’s going to be okay, you know.”

She wanted to believe that more than anything, but until he came home and she could look in his eyes and see it for herself, she’d wondered.

Reaching across the counter, Pam squeezed her hand. “He will, honey. You know why?”

Mia waited.

“Because he has you.”

* * *

After texting Mia, Reed dragged his ass out of the motel room and down to the vending machine by the main office. Two bottles of Gatorade and a package of beef jerky later, he slid back into bed and slept like the dead.

Well, maybe not the dead, but it had been a hell of a lot more peaceful than his first attempt the night before.

He owed that to Mia and her patience.

He wasn’t foolish enough to assume everything would be hunky dory when he went back home because the fact still remained—he wasn’t the same person today as he was yesterday.

Rolling over and rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he groaned at the clock on the nightstand. Noon. Shit, he hadn’t slept this late since college.

Then again, what else did he have to do? He wasn’t ready to go back to River Bend and the only other place he’d thought to go...well, he wasn’t ready for that yet either.

Out of nowhere, loud pounding vibrated his door and he sat upright in bed.

“Yo, Fletcher. Open the door.”

Son of a bitch.

“I know you’re in there, man. Just found your car next door. You might want to think about moving it before there’s any more damage.”

Damage? What the fuck.

Barreling across the room, he threw open the door to find Josh’s shoulder jammed against the doorframe, while a crooked grin lifted one cheek.

“You fucker. There’s nothing wrong with my car, is there?”

“Nope.” Josh winked, and Reed clenched his jaw, staring his friend down.

“How’d you find me?”

“Don’t worry your pretty little head about that, princess. How about you tell me why you’re still here and not home apologizing to Mia?”

“Apologizing?”

“Yeah, fuck face. You broke her heart.”

A low, bitter laugh rolled in his chest and turned back to his shitty home away from home, wishing he had a beer. “Yeah, well, she’s not the only one messed up right now.”

“No shit,” Josh grumbled, following him inside. “But I’m not talking about Henry, I’m talking about you pushing her away. Two separate, but related things.”

Dropping to the bed, he hung his head in his hands. “I’ll deal with Mia when I’m done figuring this other shit out, not that it’s any of your damn business.”

Josh’s face screwed up in disgust. “You’ll what?”

“I need some time, asshole.”

“For what? To pout?” his friend scoffed. “You want to work through this, you go home and face it like a man. With your wife.”

And let her see him like this? All fucking weak and screwed up? No, thanks.

He shook his head. “Is that why you’re here? To read me the riot act?”

Josh dipped his chin. “Mostly. It’s what I’d want you to do for me if I were in your shoes.”

Uh huh, sure.

“Dude, I’m not going to pretend to have a clue what you’re feeling right now, but I can promise you that going at it alone isn’t going to get you very far. All things considered.”

“Oh, really? And what are those things?”

Josh leveled him with a serious glare. “There are people back home that are worried about you, man. Your mom, too. Did you even stop to think about how this is affecting her? She’s the one who was attacked, Reed. She’s the one who turned the worst situation of her life into the best.”

The best? Those two things were not mutually exclusive.

“She ended up with you, Fletcher. Now, I’ll deny it ’til I’m blue in the face, but between you and me, you didn’t turn out half bad. Knowing who your old man is doesn’t change that.”

“Yeah, well, either way, I wish I didn’t know. Living in the dark all those years was a lot fucking nicer than this version of hell.”

Josh shook his head sympathetically. “I hate to tell you this, but that hell is going to get worse before it gets better.”

“How is that possible?”

“You’re the only person named in the senator’s will, Fletcher.”

What?

“Vaughn Henry left you everything.”

* * *

“M-missed y-you.” Jose smiled around a mouthful of flan that Tina, his favorite nurse, had made just for him. Of course, he’d given her the recipe, so it was no wonder he loved it.

“Missed you, too. Sorry about the change of plans yesterday.” She dropped a kiss to the top of his head and took a chair next to him in front of the window overlooking a park. The sparse trees had already lost their leaves, but the pond in the middle sparkled beneath the early afternoon sun, so it was a pretty view, nonetheless.

Stella smiled up from her crossword puzzle. “That’s okay, honey. You’re married now. Things come up.”

Yes, but hopefully those things wouldn’t always be as momentous as they were yesterday.

“H-how’s Reed?”

Good question. “Honestly? Not so great.”

Frowning, her mom set down her pen. “Did something happen?”

“Oh, yeah.” But how to tell them the news? And was it even her news to tell? What if Pam didn’t want anyone else to know?

“M-mija...” Her father curled a gentle hand around her forearm, and she broke. He would know what to do. Maybe even how to bring Reed home, so she could tell him, face to face, that nothing could ever change they way she felt about him.

But confessing Reed’s truth without confessing her own felt...wrong.

Because it was wrong.

Hadn’t she learned anything from keeping secrets the first time around?

Pulling in a deep breath, she let it all out. “Mama, Papi...there’s something I need to tell you about me and Reed.”