Page 69 of Waiting for Tuesday

I turned toward the barstool and inwardly cringed.I couldn’t think of a lie, so I just nodded, knowing I would dump it later. “Wine, please.” I sat down, folded my hands in my lap, and smiled. “Can I have some ice water too?”

She nodded over her shoulder. “Of course.” Then she pulled a bottle from the fridge and twisted the cap before sliding it across the bar. “How was your drive?”

I cleared my throat and took a deep breath before answering. “It was good. Went by quickly.”

She grinned, taking the corkscrew from the top drawer and opening the wine. “Good.” After pulling the cork from the bottle, she poured chilled chardonnay into two bulbous glasses and passed one to me. She rested her hip on the counter and looked around the large room. Her face transformed into an expression of nostalgia, as she gazed out the large picture windows.

“We don’t come up here very often anymore.” Her eyes met mine again. “We used to practically live here in the summers. It’s hard to believe they’re going to sell it.”

I frowned, taking in the room that smelled of cedar and earth. This was the first time I’d been here, but it didn’t feel like it. John had told me about this place. I’d laughed with him over memories of his childhood, and my shoulders slumped at hearing it was for sale. I took a sip of water before turning back to her.

“Why are you selling it?”

She shrugged. “Dad’s getting older, doesn’t want to keep up the property anymore.”

My brows furrowed. I looked out the window again, where I could see John laughing with a group of other men. Old and young, all laughing and joking in a way I’d never seen before. “He told me about this place. He told me about all the trouble he used to get into here.”

She smiled over the rim of her glass and leaned forward on the bar. “Oh God. John’s full of stories. Which ones did he tell you?”

I laughed and looked to the large window where a giant oak tree was spreading its branches like a large welcome sign. “He told me about falling out of that tree. About the scar on his chin.” I grinned, even though my insides were crying. I turned around to face her, but her expression wasn’t lighthearted like I’d expected. Like it was only a second ago. It had changed, transforming her features from something happy to something very sad.

She looked to the door that John had exited through only moments before and cleared her throat. “I’ve never heard him talk about that before.” She met my eyes again, but hers were glassy as if holding back tears. “He doesn’t tell many people about his life before us.In truth, I wasn’t sure he even remembered it.”

Before us?I frowned, not knowing what she meant.

“He must really trust you.”

I looked down, unable to meet her eyes any longer, because her words hit me in the most vulnerable place. “Yeah.” He trusted me, and I was about to break his heart.

“We’re only a few months apart, John and I?” Her voice was distant as she continued to speak. “He was always so much bigger than me, but I felt like I had to protect him like my baby brother. Because the day he came to us forever changed me. Before that day, I didn’t realize people could be so cruel.”

She took another long sip of wine before meeting my eyes again. Hers were light blue, almost clear, so much different from John’s.He was adopted.I didn’t know why, but the fact he’d kept such an intimate detail from me made my heart constrict. It broke me.

“I’m sorry.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “I didn’t mean for this to get depressing—it’s just been on my mind a lot with the letter.” She pursed her lips and shook her head again.

I pulled in a breath, feeling my hands tremble in my lap. “What letter?”

She held her breath, finally realizing I had no idea what she was talking about. She looked to the window, where John could still be seen smiling and laughing in the group of men, then to me. “I’m sorry—I thought?” She looked down to her hands. “Did John warn you I was the sister with the big mouth?”

I laughed slightly, more to fill the space than because of humor. “That’s okay… You don’t have to tell me.”

She nodded, though her eyebrows scrunched and she took a deep breath. She bit her lip then raised her chin to the back door. “Come on.” She came from around the bar. “Grab your drink. I’ll introduce you to everyone on the porch.”

Chapter TWENTY-NINE

Tuesday

* * *

Irestedmy head on John’s shoulder, letting my face bask in the last rays of sunlight before the clouds covered every bit of the blue sky. John’s mother had laid out a half dozen quilts under one of the large oaks, allowing us some time alone for the first time in two hours.

The afternoon had been filled with stories and laughter, except for my conversation with Lisa. Her words still swarmed in my mind, causing a million questions to linger on my tongue. The thought of anyone hurting him—especially as a young boy—caused my chest to harden with pain.

His family was amazing, and although I would be gone from his life tomorrow, I knew he had others to take care of him. To take the heart I would crush and make it whole again.

They told me I was the first girlfriend he’d brought home since high school. And every story, every warm hug or smile that showed how happy they were to have me, made the anxiety in my stomach grow. I tried to stuff it down, to breathe in the crisp, clean air and forget about the baby, but it was impossible. This little life was all I thought about. Every second, every breath, I thought about her, or him, even more. Trying to forget felt like a betrayal to the child I’d already started to love.

“You okay?” John whispered in my ear. His arms wrapped around my chest as we sat together. I nestled between his legs, my back to his chest as he surrounded me with his body.

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