Page 76 of How We Fooled

“Mom! You can’t tell him!”

She laughs. “Who’s he going to tell? Your secret is safe with us.”

I drop my head to my chest. This is why we weren’t telling a soul. Now, there are two, soon to be three, people who know. The phrase loose lips sinks ships was coined for a reason. Now, I’m putting our entire world in the hands of other people. This can’t end well.

We say our goodbyes, and I quickly click on Eli—or Jake in my phone—to give him a call.

He answers on the first ring. “I was just getting in my car to call you.”

“How come you never told me the chance of you getting drafted was truly a possibility?” I say, probably surprising the hell out of him that I’m focused on that rather than Maya, considering what we just went through.

“I told you, you were my escape from all of this.”

“But that’s a pretty big deal!” I say louder than I probably should. I know I’m redirecting my emotions from Maya here, but I need to, or I’ll lose my mind.

“I’m sorry. You’re right. But I was coming to call you because I just signed with an agent.”

“You what?!”

“Yeah. A guy came to visit from New York today, and we just signed for him to represent me. It’s looking like a real possibility.”

“How could you not tell me that you were meeting with someone today? You obviously had that already planned.”

He lets out a breath. “I’m sorry. I should have told you. I just wanted to be with you and not focus on anything else.”

“I want to be there for you, Eli. Through everything.”

“And I want you there too.”

“Then, why do you keep things like this from me?”

“I don’t do it on purpose. I just … I don’t know, okay? I never talk about anything like this with anyone. I’ve never shared these types of things with even my friends. I’ve told you, I keep everything to myself.”

“But I want to share these types of things with you. I want to be a part of your life.”

“And I want you there too, which was exactly why I was going to call you right now. To tell you everything. I would have called you five minutes ago, but my mom stopped me.”

“Stopped you?” I ask, not sure what he meant by that.

“She knows I was with you this weekend.”

I drop my head back against my pillow.

How can we keep this a secret if more people keep finding out?

“You told her?” I ask, fighting back tears.

“She figured it out.”

“And what did she say?”

“She’s worried it could hurt my chances if people find out.”

“So, what were you calling to tell me?” I ask, not sure if I want to hear what he will say in response.

“I was calling to tell you the good news about signing with an agent and nothing more.”

“But, Eli?—”

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