Page 87 of Faithful

It was uttered in the privacy of my mind back at the club.

I’m just scared to say it out loud, so I tucked it away for now. Until I have a better idea of where this is going.

We can’t be a secret forever, can we?

* * *

My mother isn’t at my aunt’s later that evening when I arrive. It’s just Amelia and me, and she tells me that while I was in Vegas, she managed to persuade her sister to go with her to New York.

“For how long?” I ask.

“However long it takes for her to want to seek help voluntarily.”

It’s good news. Probably the best I’ve heard in a while. “What about Gavin?”

“It won’t hit us as hard right now as it would have back then,” Amelia says cryptically.

Tossing a piece of lettuce across my plate with a fork, I contemplate the possible scenarios that this departure could lead to. My hope is that my mother realizes she doesn’t need my father and files for divorce. Of course, it’s just wishful thinking. High-profile couples like my parents are under a lot of scrutiny as it is without a messy divorce thrown into the mix.

“Did you decide when you’re leaving?” I ask.

“Next week.” Amelia reaches for the glass of red wine she’s been nursing with her dinner. “I believe it’s for the best your mother spends Thanksgiving with us.”

“Definitely.” I don’t imagine Gavin will be putting any effort into celebrating this holiday. It’s a family thing and we’re not really a family anymore.

“You should come with us,” my aunt says all of a sudden.

“Nah. I’ll be working overtime. Plus I just took time off.” And Kai is going to be back in Seattle next week. We didn’t really talk about Thanksgiving while we were in Vegas, but now that I’m home and facing several choices, none of those choices appeal to me because he’s not included.

I call him later when, according to my calculations, the set is over and he’s probably on his way to the hotel or is already there.

“Yeah?”

I dive right in. “I gotta ask you something.”

“Okay,” he rasps out.

“What are you doing for Thanksgiving?”

Pause.

“I don’t want to be too forward.” I stumble over my own words, feeling stupid because you don’t really spend family holidays with your secret lover, but here we are. “I’m just wondering because I know you’ll be in town, and I don’t have any plans. Leigh’s parents are way too cheerful, and my own family is fucked up beyond redemption. My mom is going to New York. So… ummm… yeah…”

“I’ll probably go to Everett to see my mom,” Kai says calmly as if I didn’t just dump a bunch of useless info on him he doesn’t care to know. “You can come over if you want.”

My heart skips a beat. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It’s fine. It’s just me and her.”

Wait. He wants me to meet his mom?“Is it okay? Is she okay with… us?”

“Don’t worry. My mom is cool.”

I’m still a little thunderstruck long after we’re done talking on the phone. I can’t quite understand how we went from him protecting every single part of his life to inviting me to spend Thanksgiving with him and his mother.

* * *

I’m at work. My phone buzzes.

---