Page 55 of Getting Lucky Number Seven

The details slowly spilled out. Thebabywas six years old. I did the math every way possible, and it always meant that Dad cheated on Mombeforeshe had her affair. I wondered if it was why she’d turned to Mr. Brooks. Did she know about the other woman? The child? She must’ve.

But why didn’t she say anything—I wouldn’t have been so hard on her.

I closed my eyes, thinking of how far apart we’d grown after that. All that time I’d never get back, robbed from me because of the lies. Regret and shame swelled, gutting me from the inside out. Before they’d finished with me, a viscous wave of truth hit me: our family’s name had already been dragged through the mud, and it was about to get worse. There was no way this wouldn’t get out. I didn’t even care about the money. Everyone would know that my parents slept around, the entire town would be buzzing about the love child, not satisfied until they’d squeezed every drop of evil gossip out of the scandal. Megan would flip out and spiral out of control again, and I didn’t know what to do.

Ms. Walker was full on crying now, tears streaming down her cheeks. “He loved me, and I loved him, and he loved our daughter. We were supposed to be together, but he was waiting for Megan to graduate, and now we’ll”—she sniffed and the sobbing escalated—“never have the chance.”

I stared at her tear-streaked face, completely numb. Love. What a load of shit. I remembered the way Mom used to tell her and Dad’s love story, so similar to the one Ms. Walker was blubbering about.

None of it mattered. Regardless of how good it was at the beginning, it ended with the search for more. Someone else more attractive. More money. More power. Control.

That was my legacy.

Earlier today, I’d had a moment where I thought love was more than just four little letters people threw around. Something powerful and real that could heal the past through acceptance and understanding.

What a fucking idiot. The only power it had was to take people at their most vulnerable, hurt them, and wear them down until all that was left were shattered hearts and ruined lives.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Lyla

“Wow,” I said after I was sure Tessa was gone. “She doesn’t seem to like me very much.” Her words were nice, all the right ones strung politely together, but a chill emanated from her every time she looked my way. As soon as I’d finished my lunch, I’d wanted to flee the dining room, but waiting at least a few minutes after my last bite seemed like the polite thing to do. When she’d said she needed to run errands and excused herself, I’d let out a relieved breath.

Megan lowered the phone she’d been texting on. “Aunt Tessa’s not what you’d call a ‘people person.’ Now you see what I have to deal with every day. Only add a dramatic sigh as she mumbles, ‘I never wanted kids.’”

“Ouch.”

Megan shrugged as if she didn’t care, but I could see the pain carefully held under the surface—it was the same expression I occasionally saw on Beck.

“I’m sure people tell you that they’re sorry about your parents a lot, but I truly am sorry,” I said. “I can’t even imagine how hard it’d be to deal with.”

“It was really bad right after, but at least I had Beckett to talk to—or more like we’d distract each other from moping around. It sucked, but I thought maybe eventually we’d be okay. Then he was gone, too, and…” Megan dropped her gaze to her empty plate and shook her head.

I didn’t know what to say. Obviously she’d felt abandoned, and I even understood why she might lash out. If Beck decided to ignore me, I could only imagine what lengths I’d go to get his attention. “If it makes you feel any better, I can tell every time it’s you on the phone. His whole face lights up and his voice goes soft—he’d deny it, I’m sure, because he’d say he’s far too manly and tough for that, but trust me, it’s true.”

A smile broke through, taking the edge off the grief that’d been filling Megan’s features. “Well, I can tell when he’s with you, too—he does things like karaoke. Plus, he likes to keep his college life and his life here completely separate, and he still totally brought you here, which is, like,huge. He used to always tell me love was crap, and that I should be careful, because guys were big jerks who just wanted to use me—like, he’d stare down boys who tried to talk to me. Seriously,soembarrassing. But when you guys got here, I knew he’d changed his mind—it’s written across his face every time he looks at you. He’s crazy in love with you.”

“Oh, I don’t know if he’s quite there.” The words beckoned to me, though, tingly hope buzzing through my chest. Time for a reality check before my emotions got too carried away. “He still introduces me as his friend, after all. I think I’m in crazy-in-love land by myself.”

Immediately, I worried I’d said too much. What if it came back to bite me? Not to mention I probably should’ve told him I loved him before telling his sister—if I wasn’t scared it’d freak him out and send him running.

Megan waved off my comment. “I know my brother. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

Last night and this morning, ithadfelt like everything had changed. What was going on between us was definitely more than sex. More than friendship.

“Thanks,” I said. “I needed to hear that.”

“Sure thing.” Megan pushed out from the table. “Want to see what’s on TV?”

Studying would be the responsible thing to do—I liked to be ahead instead of behind, and with my list—and Beck—taking up so much time, I was falling more on the behind side of the line. My history test hadn’t gone so well last week, and if I didn’t ace my next test in there and my lit class, I’d be screwed. Without my scholarship, I couldn’t afford next semester. But the teenage girl I’d expected to be totally uninterested in me wanted to hang out. After seeing how lonely she was, I couldn’t say no.

So I followed her to her room, where she had a cushy loveseat and a big-screen TV. We kicked back and she flipped through channels, watching about half the time and chatting the rest. The more we talked, the more I liked her. She was funny and could talk for several minutes straight without taking a breath, and I loved every second of it.

It did make me wonder if Beck should be closer to her, though. She needed someone who’d build her up when she was feeling down, set boundaries when she was feeling rebellious, and pay attention to her so she didn’t feel so alone. I just wished I knew a way for him to be close to his family, not feel so burdened by the company, and play hockey in Boston, where he’d also be with me. Was that really so much to ask?

…

Tessa had invited me to go with her and Megan to dinner, but I’d declined, wanting to be at the house when Beck got back. I’d texted him a couple of times, asking how it was going and if he was nearly done, but so far, no answer.

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