Page 25 of The Fate of Us

“You don’t need to talk to her today if you don’t want to.”

“What if she finds out I am back at my parents’?”

“I won’t let her through the door.”

I smile at him as I slowly calm down.

“Mayberry, you got this.”

He squeezes my hand as we sit on the side of the road for ten minutes. When I feel calm enough, we pull back on the road and head to my parents’.

Noah opens my door for me, leaning his built frame over me in the car. “You want a few more minutes?”

I shake my head just as I see my sister walk out the front door of the house. “I can do this.”

“I know you can,” Noah whispers as he presses a kiss to my forehead.

He helps me out of the SUV as my sister approaches. She flings her arms around me the second she is next to me saying she is sorry over and over again.

I look at Noah but he looks away. Jess must have known. She must have known and never told me.

I pull away from her, accusation in my eyes. “You knew, didn’t you?”

“I’m so sorry, Anna May. I should have told you. But I couldn’t find the strength or courage. I didn’t want to break your heart. I didn’t—”

I hold my hand up in front of her. “How long?”

She looks at the ground, avoiding eye contact.

“Godammit Jess, just tell me.”

“When he was about a year old.”

I scream so loud I know the neighbors are looking out their window. Noah runs up to me and wraps his arms around me from behind. “You knew all this time. You knew and you didn’t tell me?”

Jess starts sobbing. “I didn’t want to destroy you. God, Anna, you were already so broken after losing him. I didn’t know you even knew he had an affair. Maybe if you had told someone that, told me that, I would have told you about Becca’s kid. But—”

“Don’t you dare blame me for keeping that a secret. You should have told me. Becca was my friend. You knew I still talked to her. You knew—”

“I tried to tell you.”

“No you didn’t. You were a selfish bitch and kept it to yourself. When you knew that was one thing I should have fucking known.”

“I fucked up, Anna May. I know. I’ve been kicking myself all week for not telling you sooner. Not giving you any kind of warning.”

“You’re right, you should have told me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Me too,” I say as I pull out of Noah’s arms and head into the house, leaving my sister outside.

“Anna May,” my mom says, wrapping her arms around me as soon as I step through the front door.

“I’m sorry for running away, Mom.”

“Honey, you don’t need to apologize for anything.”

I hate to ask the question but I need to know the answer. “Did you know, Mom? Did you know like Jess did?”

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