Page 20 of Anything For This Love

This can’t be true. How did I not know? How did I not see it? Why didn’t she tell me?

I turn away and run. I run as fast as I can to get away from the woman I once called my best friend.

Chapter Seven

Jacob

Frozen,I watch as the truth I’d long suspected comes to light in front of Abby’s eyes. Her best friend and brother have been secretly seeing each other behind her back. I’ve known from the moment I met Ethan that there was something between him and Tiffany, but I wasn’t sure how deep it went. Judging by her teary confession, it’s a lot more serious than I thought.

Tiff stands abruptly when Abby bolts from the room. “Wait!” she calls after her, following Abby out the door. Finally shaking off the shock, I go after them, worried I’ll need to intervene if Tiff gets to Abby before she can escape.

Tiff catches her by the hand just before she reaches the elevators and Abby turns on her, jerking free of her grasp. “Don’t!” she spits out angrily.

“Abby, please,” Tiff begs.

“How could you do this to me? You were my best friend!”

Tiff winces and crosses her arms over her stomach, folding in on herself. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“How long?” Abby demands. Tiff glances away, shame filling her face. “How. Long?” Abby grits out, punctuating each word with clenched teeth.

“Off and on since we were teenagers.” Abby gasps and my eyes widen in stunned disbelief. “But it’s only been serious for a little while!” she inserts quickly. “I tried to stay away. I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“I know I’ll never be good enough for him. I know you’re disappointed, and I tried so hard not to fall in love with him,” Tiff cries. Abby watches her friend fall apart, her features beginning to soften. “I didn’t want you to hate me. That’s why I refused to commit to him for so many years, why we kept it casual. I was hoping he’d find someone else, someone you’d approve of and who deserved him. I chalked his feelings up to puppy love or infatuation, but-”

Abby cuts her off, putting up a hand. “Wait a minute. You think I’m mad at you because I don’t think you’re worthy of my brother?”

Tiff gulped in air, trying to calm herself. “IknowI’m not worthy of him. I knew you wouldn’t approve. That’s why I insisted on keeping our relationship a secret.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“I’m sorry,” Tiff repeats, looking genuinely remorseful.

“Why would you think that?”

“Huh?” Tiff asked in confusion.

“Why on earth would you believe you’re not good enough for him?”

“Because I’m not! I’m damaged goods. I don’t even knowhowto love!”

Both women stand with their arms limp at their sides, tears streaming down their cheeks.

“Tiff,” Abby begins calmly, trying to keep her emotions in check, “I don’t know what happened to you to make you feel that way – and that’s something we’re going to need to talk about later – but that’s not why I’m so damn furious with you.”

“It’s not?”

Abby shakes her head, her clenched fists relaxing at her sides. “I’m mad because you lied to me, and you’ve been lying to me for years! I’m yourbest friend. I trusted you and thought you trusted me. But no, you’ve been sneaking around with my brother behind my back. You’re in love with him and never told me!” Tiff opens her mouth to speak, but Abby cuts her off. “And it took something like this for me to finally find out.”

Guilt washes over Tiff’s features and she hangs her head.

Abby lets out a humorless laugh and shakes her head. “I guess I should’ve recognized the signs. Looking back, they were there. I just ignored them or chalked them up to something else,” she huffs. Then she stiffens and her gaze finds mine. “Didyouknow?” Her eyes narrow on me and a spike of fear spears through my chest. I never had concrete proof, but deep down I knew.

“I suspected,” I admit, and hurt flashes in her eyes.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

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