“I should’ve told you about the show,” Rachel said to Ty. “I didn’t want you to lose respect for me, but I should have trusted you anyway.”
Ty’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. She could see his knuckles get whiter with the effort.
“I guess we have a lot to learn about relationships,” he said.
The words were seemingly positive, but she got the feeling that her attempt at clearing the air didn’t make anything any better.
“You’re really upset, aren’t you?” Rachel tried again to get him to open up to her.
“So now you want to talk,” Ty said, not looking at her. “Because you don’t have a more important television show taking up your attention. I’m sorry, but that doesn’t work for me. I think we rushed into a relationship. I want things from you, like honesty, that you don’t seem ready to give. You think that’s controlling. So maybe it’s best we take a break.”
The way he said take a break sounded like his intentions were a lot more permanent than a break. Her heart started to crack into tiny pieces, and she tried telling herself that he was making a big deal out of nothing.
But this didn’t feel like nothing.
“I need to get gas,” Ty said, pulling in to the gas station.
She shifted in her seat, reaching for the bag of refreshments Wanda had so thoughtfully packed for them. Ty had already eaten his breakfast burrito, but Rachel hadn’t been hungry, and even though she really wasn’t right now, either, at least it would give her something to do.
As she reached for the small bag, she accidentally knocked over Ty’s leather bag. Some papers scattered around the floor of the truck, and even though she didn’t know where they belonged, she ought to at least pick them up so Ty didn’t step on them when he got back in. He could reorganize things later.
But as she grabbed the first set of papers, she couldn’t help noticing the names Alexander and William Bennett, listed as Ricky’s grandchildren.
Why hadn’t he told her there were more grandchildren? He knew how important it was to her to find someone who might be able to donate a kidney. After all, that was exactly why they were on their way to Denver. Because she was sick and needed help.
How could Ty keep this from her?
He was mad at her because he perceived her making excuses to have a quiet evening watching her favorite show as being lies, but he was keeping secrets from her that could potentially affect her life. Unbelievable. And to think she’d actually thought that she and Ty could use this time to talk about their relationship. Oh, there’d be talking, but she wasn’t sure he was going to like what she had to say.
Ty entered the truck, carrying two cups of coffee.
“Sorry about that,” he said. “John was trying out a new brand of coffee and wanted to know what I thought of it. He sent me with some for you to try, as well. You can have it before your appointment, right?”
He held the coffee out to her, then noticed what she had in her hands.
“What were you doing, looking through my papers?”
She glared at him. “I wasn’t snooping, if that’s what you’re implying. I accidentally knocked over your briefcase and was picking things up, and I found them. How could you keep a secret like this from me?”
The most unbelievable part was that he was mad at her for going through his things.
“It’s complicated,” he said, putting the coffee in the cup holders on the center console. “To be honest, I wasn’t sure how to tell you or Ricky. I was trying to find the right time and place.”
Rachel shook her head. “That doesn’t make it right. I thought you understood how important it was to me to not feel like you’re always trying to control things. And the hypocrisy of you being mad at me over a small lie when this is something really big!”
He started the truck. “I didn’t lie to you about this. I haven’t told you yet because I’m waiting to have all the facts before sharing. It’s the responsible thing to do with news like this.”
His face was hard as he focused his attention on the road. He viewed her as the guilty one, and he didn’t seem to understand what a big deal this was.
“They could be donors,” she said. She hated the way her voice cracked when she spoke. He was mad about a violation of his privacy, which was purely accidental, when her life was on the line.
“They refuse to be tested,” he said, his voice tense. “As a matter of fact, they want nothing to do with Ricky or the family. They’re a product of an extramarital affair their mother had, and it’s completely shaken their world to find out about their parentage. If you dig a little deeper in those papers, you’ll find a letter from their attorney, asking us not to have further contact with them.”
It was a lot of information to process, especially because the hurt in Ty’s voice made her feel even more guilty for opening this can of worms.
This had been the exact problem in her marriage. When Chris had done wrong, he had always found a way to turn it around and make it her fault. Why did she feel so bad when she hadn’t done anything wrong?
Then his words hit her.
“You asked them to be tested?”
Ty made a frustrated noise. “Repeatedly. I did everything short of begging them to come out to the ranch, and I would have done that, had their lawyer not contacted me.”
He’d done that for her? Or Ricky? That was the trouble. It was hard to tell with Ty, and as much as the questions burned in her heart, she also wasn’t sure how badly she wanted the answers. Still, if he said
