“Oh my God. I can’t believe this is happening.” Everything I thought I knew about my life is wrong. How could she have lied to me all of these years? “You should have told me, both of you.” I pull out of Landon’s embrace and stand. “You both should have had enough respect for me to tell me the truth.”
“I wanted to. I just wanted to find out what was going on first. You had such a bad day at work with Buckwheat and I didn’t want to make it worse when I had no idea what her end game was. I called you to warn you after talking to Joseph in case she went through with her threats. Thankfully, his team of attorneys was able to stop her.”
“And serve her with divorce papers,” Joseph adds.
“There’s a lot that we need to talk about. It’s late. Why don’t you get some sleep and we can get back to all of this in the morning?”
“I— I can’t be here.”
“Emma,” Landon says, reaching for me. “Please, let’s just get some rest.”
“Fine.” I march off down the hall without a second glance at any of them. I climb under the covers and settle myself on the edge of my side of the bed. I squeeze my eyes closed, trying to block it all out. It doesn’t work because I hear Landon come into the room, shutting the door behind him and climb into bed. I don’t fight him when he snuggles up next to me, wrapping me in his arms.
“I’m sorry, Emma. I never meant to hurt you. It was the opposite of my intention. I didn’t want to lose you. I didn’t know what was going on or why she would want you out of my life. I had to know so I could give you the facts. You’re my life, Emma. If you believe nothing else, believe that.”
I don’t reply as tears silently roll down my cheeks. I love him, and I feel his love for me, but we promised to always be open and honest. Then again, he did call me and let me know something was going on. I guess I can understand him not wanting to tell me any of this over the phone, but if he had told me before he left, that would have been a nonissue. “We’re supposed to be a team.”
“We are a team. I was going to give it up, Emma. I was going to walk away from my career if the trade was real. No way was I leaving you.”
“That’s crazy.”
“I know how much you love your job at the shelter and I would never ask you to give that up.”
“Do you hear yourself? You’re a professional football player with a multi-million-dollar contract. You can’t just walk away from that.”
“Yes, I can. What I can’t walk away from is you. I’ll never walk away from you, Emma.”
I think about what he’s saying and let the meaning sink in. He was willing to give up his career for me. I might be upset with him for not including me from the beginning, but I have no doubt his heart was in the right place. Slowly, I roll over to face him. He immediately hugs me tight and places a tender kiss to my forehead.
“I would have come with you,” I whisper into the darkness. “I’d follow you anywhere, Landon Barker.”
“Em,” he says, his voice cracking. “I’d never ask you to do that.”
“You wouldn’t have to. Relationships are give and take. Yes, I love my job at the shelter and I would miss Aubrey, Chance, and CJ, but I’d miss my heart even more.”
“I’m sorry. I should have told you as soon as it happened. Lesson learned, I can promise you that.”
“Hopefully nothing like this ever happens again.”
“If it does, we’re in it together,” he assures me.
“Together,” I repeat. We talk well into the morning hours. He helps me see Mom’s perspective and although I’m hurt, I understand why she did it. I can’t imagine telling my young, impressionable daughter I met a man, slept with him in the first week, fell in love, and didn’t even know his last name. I get it. I still think she should have told me when I was old enough to understand, but like Landon says, it’s not my story to tell. Not really. It doesn’t change the fact that Joseph didn’t know about me. We can only look toward the future, leaving the past where it lies and focus on what’s yet to come.
* * *
The next morning, Landon and I find Mom and Joseph in the living room drinking coffee and eating bagels.
“Morning,” I say, taking a seat on the couch.
“We went out for bagels,” Mom says. “They’re in the kitchen.”
“I’ll get it.” Landon leans down, kisses my forehead, and disappears into his kitchen.
“Have you been up all night?”
“We have.” Mom smiles at Joseph, and her face lights up. Something I’ve never seen from her before. Not like this.
Landon comes back offering me a cup of coffee but with no bagel in sight. I love how well he knows me. I’m not going to be able to eat until I talk to Mom. “Thank you.” He nods and takes a seat next to me.
“I’m sorry,” Mom starts. “I should have told you when you got older, but I didn’t know how. It hurt too much to think about never seeing him again.”
“Is that why you never dated?”
“I dated,” she counters.
“You did here and there, but never anyone serious. Never anyone you introduced me to. It’s always just been us.”
“I would have been there,” Joseph’s deep voice promises, filled with conviction. “If I had known where she was, I would have been there.”
“Why didn’t you look for her sooner?”
“I don’t know. For fear of what I
