The Price of Secrets by Jacquie May Miller

The Price of Secrets by Jacquie May Miller

Author:Jacquie May Miller [Miller, Jacquie May]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Secrets; Second Chance Romance; Seattle; Secret Child
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Published: 2021-02-21T00:00:00+00:00


Chapter Thirteen

The Reunion

Sam had not said another word until the Great Wheel brought us safely to the ground and we were well on our way back to the hotel. Of course, he wanted me to tell him I loved him—he’d been hoping to be released from the friend zone since seventh grade. After Thursday night, he had every reason to believe we were beyond that, and although I couldn’t say the words, I was sure he knew I cared for him deeply. I just needed to figure out if my reluctance to commit was because I wasn’t ready to move on after losing Paul or if Frankie was still tugging at my heart.

As usual, Sam didn’t pressure me, and after walking half a block, the awkward silence was replaced by our usual banter. The truth was, neither of us could keep quiet that long—we both loved to talk and always had plenty to say to one another. If I could just keep quiet about Justin’s situation for two more days, we’d be fine, but it would be hard to keep a secret from the boy who had been my friend and confidant so long ago. I hated keeping this secret, but I didn’t see any point in sharing “maybes.”

When we reached my car, he kissed me and made it clear that the invitation to his bed was still open. Maybe after the reunion…

****

Three hours later, I was parking my green vehicle at the Nile Golf and Country Club, the venue for our twenty-five-year high school reunion. I sat in the car and watched several classmates enter the building, wondering if my closest friends—Jody and Jennifer, the three of us better known as the J’s—would be happy to see me or mad that I broke ties with them. Either way, facing them would be difficult. What kind of a person did they think I was to leave town and never contact them again? They had both written to me c/o University of California at Berkeley, and I’d gotten their letters, but I couldn’t write back—they would ask too many questions and the secret would eventually come out if I kept in contact with them. So, my best friends were sacrificed along with my family. The worst of it was, I let it continue—why hadn’t I come back and confronted my mother years ago? Ever since the plane landed four days ago, that question plagued me. Why had I been so afraid of my mother?

My phone startled me with its tritone ding alerting me to a text from Sam. He was running late—damn—it would have been so much more comfortable walking into the reunion on Sam’s arm, but it looked like I’d be going in solo.

I stepped out of the car, ran my hand over the skirt of my dress to ease any wrinkles in the black and white striped dress. I pulled it down past mid-thigh. Maybe it was a bit short and perhaps too tight, but at age forty-two I



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