Page 34 of Finally

“Oh my God! Are you sure it was them?” Maddie asked.

“It’s the only thing that makes sense. My parents were the only ones who knew that Greg and I had been hanging out together and that he was planning on going into the Marines after graduation,” I responded.

“What about his parents? Wouldn’t they have known all of that too?”

I shook my head. “No. Greg’s parents…weren’t very involved,” I said carefully. I didn’t want to betray Greg’s confidence by talking about his home life. Not even with my closest friend. “They wouldn’t have written that letter.”

Maddie watched me thoughtfully as he swirled his french fry in a puddle of ketchup then popped it in his mouth. I was always amazed at how he was able to fit so much junk food into his body and never gain an ounce. We’d spent most of the morning in my office, planning out the new schedule and making notes of items I wanted to address in my speeches at each of my appearances and had finally stopped long enough to order in some lunch.

Thankfully, all of the event planners I’d had to cancel while I was gone had agreed to reschedule. I was grateful, but it meant I had to fit even more events into an already extremely tight schedule. Fortunately, I had an amazing team who worked tirelessly beside me to make sure everything went off without a hitch.

“Have you spoken to your parents yet?” he asked when he was finished chewing.

“Not yet. I’ve been too busy catching up on everything here. I’m supposed to go over to their house for dinner tonight. I’ll bring it up then.” I stabbed a piece of lettuce with my fork. The thought of my parents being the ones responsible for causing the years of pain Greg and I experienced, cut through me like a knife. I knew I needed to talk to them and get some answers, but I was dreading it. Their involvement was the one dark spot on an otherwise amazing thing happening in my life.

“So, what happened after you two figured out the truth?” Maddie asked.

Images of Greg holding me, kissing me, the two of us making love flashed through my mind. After Micah had given Greg the all clear for us to return home, we’d decided to stay at the cabin one more day to give us a little more time alone before we had to face the rest of the world. In our safe little bubble in a cabin in the woods, we took the time to explore, discover, and get to know each other all over again. It was magical and beautiful and by the time we left, I felt closer to him than anyone else in the world.

“Oh my! I don’t know what you were just thinking about, but I have to say, I’ve never seen you look that way,” Maddie observed.

I scrunched my nose at him. “What way?”

He smirked at me. “Googly-eyed, swoony, like a little guy wearing a diaper just shot you with his arrow.”

“Oh, come on,” I scoffed.

“Fine, forget Cupid. My point is, you look happy. Happier than I’ve ever seen you. It’s a good look on you.” Maddie gave me a warm smile, which I returned.

“I am happy. Being with Greg, finding out that he really did care about me and that he’s thought about me as much over the last twenty years as I have him…” I sighed.

“I’m so glad you’ve gotten the chance to reconnect and to find out what happened all those years ago. I like Greg. I think he’s a good guy and I hope things work out between the two of you. You work so hard to make sure other people get what they deserve and are happy, but you deserve happiness too.”

“Thanks, Maddie.” My heart warmed at his kind words and I thought once again how lucky I was to have such amazing people in my life. Now, if only I could figure things out with my parents.

I pulled up outside my parents’ house and blew out a nervous breath. I knew it was ridiculous to feel nervous. I should be angry, righteous in the fact that what they had done to me and Greg was wrong, but this was new territory for me. I’d always been close with my parents and felt that I could trust them with anything, but that trust had been broken when the truth came out. What happened next, whether they were willing to own up to the hurt they’d caused and accept blame for what they’d done, would determine whether we could ever hope to gain that trust back.

“I know you don’t know me that well, but I promise, I’ll keep you safe,” Carlos said from the passenger seat where he’d obviously mistaken my nervousness for worry over the fact that he was with me instead of Greg.

Greg had introduced me to Carlos and Josh when we’d arrived back in town and explained that they’d be our extra sets of eyes in case someone decided to try and break into my house again. They’d both been friendly, and seeing Greg joke around with them the same way he had with his other friends, immediately put me at ease.

I looked over at the dark haired man and gave him an apologetic grin. “I’m sorry, Carlos. It has nothing to do with you or your ability to keep me safe. I’m just not looking forward to this dinner with my parents,” I explained.

“Ah, yes. Families can be rough sometimes, that’s for sure.” I chuckled as he rolled his eyes heavenward and shook his head. “Either way, I’m here for you. If you need me to make up an excuse to get you out of there, just say ‘Ayuda, mi familia esta loca’ which means help, my family is crazy.” I laughed hard at that and he smiled, showing off a perfect row of white teeth.

“Thanks. I appreciate that…and the fact that you’re trying to make me feel better,” I said sincerely.

Carlos shrugged a shoulder. “It’s what I do,” he responded easily.

“Well, hopefully it won’t come to that, but I’ll keep it in mind.” I looked up at the house again and drew in a deep breath. “Okay, let’s get this over with.”

The sooner I got this out of the way, the sooner I could go back home and be with Greg, I thought as I climbed out of the car. Part of me regretted asking him to stay behind because I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about anything with him by my side, but another part of me was grateful he wasn’t there to witness any of this. Greg had suffered enough hurt and rejection from his own parents, and I wasn’t about to let mine do any more damage to his gentle heart. No one would ever hurt him again if I had anything to say about it.

Carlos followed me as I walked up the sidewalk and let myself in the front door. Something heavenly wafted from the kitchen and I immediately recognized the scent of my mom’s homemade lasagna. It was my favorite meal of hers, but my stomach was too tied up in knots to enjoy the scent of it.

“Christopher, is that you?” she called out as she heard the door shut. A few seconds later, she walked around the corner, smiling when she saw me. “Hi, honey. Oh, it’s so good to see you. It feels like forever,” she exclaimed, pulling me into a warm hug.

I stiffened in her arms as the smell of her familiar perfume made tears spring to my eyes, but I blinked them away. Her eyes showed concern as I pulled away. She’d always been good at reading me and I should’ve known she’d pick up on my strange behavior. Fortunately, Dad walked in before she could ask me what was wrong. I had the feeling the evening was going to be tense enough without having to go through it twice. I’d rather speak to them together and get it over with all at once.

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