Page 36 of A Package Deal

She’d wanted to tell him that before he’d slipped from her apartment two days ago. Nelie had also wanted to say those three little words back to him, but she was afraid he wouldn’t believe her. Chet wanted her to do some soul-searching, and that took time.

In between waiting tables, ordering food, inventorying the liquor room, and consoling a server who’d sobbed on her shoulder about the death of her bearded dragon, Nelie had made lists. Some outrageous and some realistic, but they were all the things she wanted, or thought she wanted, like manicured nails. It would be nice, but she wasn’t sure of the time commitment, which is why it was on theTry List. She wanted a sporty convertible, which to her thinking wasn’t practical in Minnesota, so she put it on theSnowball’s Chance in Hell List.

The items on herDo or Die List?A future with Chet and the girls. A relationship with Pris. A warm vacation. Figure out what to call Mrs. Hart. Time with her dad. What wasn’t on it? The Galley, cleaning, and eggplant, no matter how it was prepared.

But she wouldn’t get anything on the list unless she was honest with the people who mattered. Chet deserved to know the truth. Pris and Mrs. Hart needed to know Nelie wanted more than afriendlyrelationship with them. They were family, and she wanted the closeness of that. Jackson and Suzanne were wild cards in building her new family. Until the big reveal, she and Jackson had been friends. But since then? He’d been acting weird and resentful. As for Suzanne? Nelie didn’t know, but she was open to something with her birth mother. Maybe.

Nelie grabbed the quiche and locked her car. Her dad’s booming laugh greeted her as she walked through the back door. She inhaled deeply as she hung up her coat. Nelie carried the quiche in front of her like a shield as she entered the kitchen, prepared to fight for what she wanted.

Mrs. Hart had set the table for the four of them and she smiled at Nelie as she entered. Nelie removed her quiche from its insulated carrier and set it next to the caramel rolls cooling in the middle of the table. A bouquet of yellow and pink tulips sat on the sideboard, a stark contrast to the gloomy sky overhead.At least it isn’t snowing, Nelie thought as she took her seat at the table.

“So, what’s this about?” her dad asked, as they were halfway through the meal. Gus had never been a fan of small talk, and now that he’d eaten his fill, he wanted to get going.

Nelie set down her fork and wiped her mouth with the floral-patterned napkin. She’d practiced, and she was ready, but the words wouldn’t come. They didn’t roll off her tongue. Instead, they sat there like a boulder.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Gus. Let the girl finish her breakfast,” Mrs. Hart said.

“You can’t finish what you don’t start, and knowing Nelie, she won’t eat anything until she’s said her piece. Until then, she’s just going to push the food around her plate, letting you think she’s eating.” Gus crossed his arms. Mrs. Hart looked at Nelie’s plate and muttered her agreement. Nelie felt like a child as heat crawled up her face.

“I’m the same way,” Suzanne said, patting Nelie’s hand. “I can’t eat a bite when I’m upset or there’s something I need to say. What do you want to tell us?”

“I don’t know how all of you kept the secret, and I know you had your reasons, but I’m a lousy secret-keeper, and this is eating me up inside. I don’t want you hurt by any blowback from this.” Nelie looked at her father and Mrs. Hart. In Haven, they had the most to lose when the truth came out. Nelie knew the grapevine would give her the role ofthe victim, but she knew there were a few rotten apples in Haven who would love nothing more than to see Mrs. Hart and Gus topple from their pillars. Nelie wasn’t a victim, and she didn’t want anyone’s pity, but she wanted to protect them.

“What blowback?” Mrs. Hart asked.

“I need to tell Chet.” They looked surprised.

“You haven’t?”

“No. I guess it’s like that old joke that the safest person to tell a secret to is dead one. He’ll be one more person who knows, and someone who isn’t in the family.”

“Honorable, but stupid.” Her dad shook his head. “I wondered what had put the clouds over my sunshine. Thought it was him. Didn’t think you’d sacrifice your happiness for ours.”

“Nelie, of course you should tell him,” Mrs. Hart said. “Is there anyone else you’d like to tell?”

“I’d like to keep it in the family. Maybe on a need-to-know basis with my friends. Miller, Croix, and Rica know, so it only seems fair to tell Wren, Krista, and Parker. That way, they don’t feel like they’re keeping secrets from their spouse.”

Gus snorted. “That’s no way to keep a secret.”

“What do you want me to do, Dad?” Nelie asked as frustration bubbled through her.

“We’re too old and tough for gossip to hurt, Nelie-girl. I, for one, would be happy to be done with it. No more secret.” He slapped his hands on the table like it was a done deal.

“A clean slate would be nice,” Suzanne murmured, stirring sugar into her coffee.

Mrs. Hart quirked her brow. “Really?”

“A chance to start over and level the playing field? Sure.”

“How so?” Mrs. Hart asked. Suzanne looked at her mother as if weighing whether she should answer. She tapped her spoon against the edge of her coffee cup and set it on the saucer.

“So Franklin would stop reminding me how lucky I am that he overlooked my souvenir”—she used air quotes—“from my European education.” Her brittle smile looked like it would snap. Gus furrowed his brows and Mrs. Hart reached for her daughter’s hand. Nelie was ashamed she hadn’t given her birthmother more consideration. Giving her up for adoption hadn’t been a one-time event. It had cost Suzanne daily. “Some days I look in the mirror and I don’t even recognize who I’ve become. I fill my days with volunteer boards, tennis, and lunches with women I don’t particularly like. If the truth came out, Franklin would have nothing to hold over my head.”

“Then it’s agreed,” Nelie said, taking Suzanne’s other hand. “I’ll tell Chet.”

“Will he put it in the paper?” Suzanne asked, sounding hopeful.

Nelie shook her head. “He’ll say it isn’t news. So, no, he won’t print it.” For Suzanne’s sake, she almost wished Chet would, but she knew he wouldn’t. And until now, until she’d had to defend him and his principles, she hadn’t fully trusted him. Her gut and her heart knew he’d keep her secret, but her stupid brain was slow on the uptake. Even if it was news, he’d keep her parentage a secret to protect her and them. Because he loved her. Nelie prayed she wasn’t too late.

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