Page 78 of Keeping Secrets

“It’s… complicated.”

“What is?”

Travis took a deep breath. “There are things I can’t be fully honest with her about without hurting her, things that I don’t want to burden her with. We barely started seeing each other, and those things are already causing problems. It was wrong of me to get involved with her at all. She deserves better.”

“I haven’t met better than you, so I’m not sure where the poor girl is supposed to find it.”

He let out a huff of a laugh. “There are plenty of better options out there.”

“You’re wrong. Anyway, the girl doesn’t want other options. She wants you. Anyone can see that. I saw it the first time she walked into the Bottlenose.”

His knuckles went white on the steering wheel. “She doesn’t want me now. And it’s for the best. I’d only hurt her more if we kept seeing each other.”

“I find that hard to believe.”

“Not on purpose. Just… it’s inevitable, I think. Better to cut her loose now.”

Scot was silent for a long moment. Then he said, “Son, there comes a point when you have to let people make their own choices about what’s worth it to them. I have a feeling that girl can handle more than you think. If you don’t give her the chance to decide for herself, it could lead to a lot of what ifs and regrets later in life. Take it from an old man; connections like that don’t come around very often. If you pass it up now, you might never forgive yourself.”

“But what if things do just blow up?”

“Well, that would be unfortunate. But at least you would know that you couldn’t make it work. That’s a hell of a lot easier to live with than uncertainty.”

Travis sat with that for a few minutes as he took the exit toward Pelican Point.

Maybe Scot was right. Maybe he owed it to Keely – and himself – to tell her the truth. He trusted her not to turn him in, given everything that Adam had done and would have continued to do to more girls. She would understand that it was an accident.

At least, he was pretty sure.

And if she wanted nothing to do with him after that, well… at least he would know. At least they would be able to coexist in the same town without her thinking that he was a liar and a cheat.

She already knew that he was a killer, if not a deliberate one. Adam’s death, albeit a very different situation, had been more of the same. If anything, it was more defensible than the manslaughter he had confessed to – morally, if not legally.

He would rather be known for who he truly was than hated for something he hadn’t done. Pelican Point was it for him, and he had a feeling that Keely wasn’t going anywhere. It was a small town, and they had the same group of friends. He couldn’t stand the idea of her looking at him with disappointment and disgust every time they were in the same room.

He thought back to the conversation that he’d had with Nick about letting people in. A part of him wondered if he should talk this through with his friend, but he felt weird about going to Keely’s brother for advice about his relationship with her. Maybe he should ask his permission before coming clean… but he had a feeling that Nick would understand.

So he would come clean. The thought of confessing to Keely all that had happened made his heart pound and his mouth go dry. But there was no way around it. He couldn’t leave things as they were.

“You’re right,” he said as he pulled up outside of Scot’s house.

“I usually am,” Scot grumbled good-naturedly. “About what?”

“About Keely. I’m going to tell her everything and let her decide. I think I owe her that much.”

“Good man.”

“I’ll help you inside.”

“Stop fussing,” Scot scolded, instantly ill-tempered. “Just hand me my crutches from the back.”

Travis sighed and did as he was told. He waited until Scot was safely inside, and then he drove the short distance to Keely’s house.

I’m in the neighborhood, he texted from down the block. Can I stop by?

Why? she texted back.

There’s something I need to tell you.

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