Page 67 of Bound By My Father's Best Friend

With that, Mom twirled around and headed straight out the doors. I followed after her through the snow mixed with rain and toward her car. She slipped into the driver’s seat, and I debated whether I should just run home at this point.

Heart pounding inside my chest, I slipped into the car and shut the door.

An awkward silence filled the car.

“Heather, is it true?” Mom asked. “Are you really involved with your father’s best friend?”

My cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. I looked down at my thighs, unable to meet Mom’s gaze. “Yes,” I admitted, my voice barely audible. I placed my hands on my bouncing legs. “We’re in a relationship.”

“He’s your father’s best friend,” she whispered. “Twice your age.”

“I’m sorry.” Tears filled my eyes. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. It just did.”

“How does this just—” Instead of finishing her sentence, Mom paused and sucked in a sharp breath. “Listen, Heather … I understand that emotions can be complicated, but you need to realize the consequences of your actions. This is going to hurt your father deeply.”

“He’s not going to find out,” I said. “Promise me that you won’t tell him.”

“Heather,” she said, voice even softer, “he will find out.”

“Give me some time to figure things out,” I pleaded. “Please.”

Mom pressed her lips together. “Fine, but in the meantime, I’m going to talk to Hector.”

“Mom!” I exclaimed. “You can’t. Please.”

If Dad heard even a bit of this, he was smart enough to put it all together … and if he found out, then I would become an even bigger disappointment in his eyes. And just recently, Hector had … made me feel like I was enough.

I didn’t want that all to be ruined.

“There needs to be some ground rules laid out,” she said.

“I’m an adult, and there were rules. You read them over.”

She tilted her head to the side slightly. “Hector is older than me, Heather.”

“So, why does that matter? Dad’s dating someone my age.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, I smacked my lips together because I wasn’t supposed to know about that, and if I wasn’t supposed to know about that, then Mom definitely wasn’t supposed to know.

They had been divorced for a couple of years now—all on good terms—but it still felt weird.

“Your father is dating someone your age?” she repeated, brows raised.

“I’m not supposed to know,” I whispered. “Please don’t tell him that either.”

After taking a couple of deep breaths, she looked straight ahead through the windshield. “I won’t tell your father any of this, but I need to talk to Hector. I’m not going to let him take advantage of you.” Her voice softened, and she peered over at me. “You’re still my little girl.”

“Hector isn’t taking advantage of me,” I said, a small smile on my face. “Anything but …”

She reached over the center console and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “Baby …”

“He makes me really happy, Mom.” My heart fluttered at the thought of yesterday, at what he had donefor me, how he’d made me feel. “He makes me feel like nobody else ever has, like I’m important and special.”

“Have your father and I made you feel any less than that?” she asked.

I pursed my lips together and dropped my gaze. “Sometimes, Dad does.”

“I know he’s hard on you and your brother, but he loves you. You know that, right?”

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