Page 30 of One Little Mistake
He slides to the left just outside of the door and leans against the wall. I do the same inside of my room to the right, and we sit back-to-back with an open space between us. Turning my head to the open door, I can just make out his profile. Somehow, the distance between us makes me feel safer. He just dropped a bomb, and I’m not sure I’m strong enough to keep my darkness from him right now.
“You know how my mom adopted Preston’s friends, like Dex, Trevor, and Loki?”
“Yeah,” I say cautiously.
“Dillon and Vanessa were my versions. My mother took them in, too; her habit of collecting family started when we were kids.” He shifts his face, and I see the hint of a sad smile. Lifting his gaze to mine, he whispers, “You know, I don’t talk about this stuff. Ever.”
Feeling guilty because I know I can’t share my story, I give him an out. “I’m sorry, y-you don’t have to tell me anything. I have a nasty habit of being nosy.”
I watch as he nods, then closes his eyes. His strong jaw ticks as he chews the inside of his lip.
“The three of us had been best friends since we were in diapers. Dill and I were going to start our own empire. He would run the business side, and I would create elaborate furniture for the high-end hotels we created. We’d already proposed a business plan to two of my father’s colleagues, and they were on board. My father’s only stipulation was that we both finished school first.”
As I stare at Easton, I can’t help but imagine him as a teenager telling his father what he wanted to do with his life.
“Vanessa wasn’t feeling well before I left for college,” he continues, pulling me back into the present.
I swallow hard as Easton tells me his story.
“I wanted to stay home, but she encouraged me to go. She said it would be better for us in the long run if I went to school and continued with our plans for the future. She was going to school closer to home, and Dillon was, too, so he said he would keep an eye on her to make sure she was okay.”
“Oh no,” I gasp, worried I know where this story is leading.
“I FaceTimed after all her appointments, or at least I thought I was. She said she was feeling so much better, even though she was having a ton of testing done. I came home for Columbus Day weekend, and she seemed tired, but otherwise, I didn’t notice anything. My family took a trip for Thanksgiving that year. She swore she was fine, and I was going to see her at Christmas. Dillon said he was busy with school but checked on her once a week and thought she was doing well.”
Needing to offer him some kind of support, I reach out with my hand, palm up, in the center of the doorway. He stares at it for only a second before placing his on top of mine. We’re not holding hands. Not really, just transferring support from one hand to the next.
“The day after Thanksgiving, my mom got a call from a mutual friend who told her that Vanessa had passed away. I called her dad, but he didn’t answer. I called Dillon every five minutes until his phone finally just turned off. We rushed home from Colorado, and when we got there, we found out that her husband was making all the funeral arrangements. Vanessa’s husband, Dillon Henry.”
“What? When? How long were they together?” My inner bitch just stood at full attention, ready to take down that asshole.
“I don’t know.”
“What do you mean, you don’t know? You didn’t ask him?”
Easton shakes his head. “We found out later that she’d learned she had stage four ovarian cancer in September. She passed away in November. I loved them, and they both betrayed me. I was mourning her loss and the loss of my best friend. I didn’t see a point in explanations. As far as I was concerned, they were both dead.” He pauses as his voice cracks. “I would have given up everything to be home with her, even if we only had a few months, but it was never me she wanted.”
Resting my face against the wall, I stare at Easton through the doorway as I curl my fingers around his and squeeze.
“Are you hungry?”
His question catches me off guard.
“N-No, not r-really,” I finally stammer. “Why do you keep trying to feed me?”
This at least causes him to laugh.
“Blame my mother. I don’t know, Lex. I have a feeling if I tell you the truth, you’ll slap me.”
“At least you’re honest.” I giggle.Since when do you fucking giggle, Lexi?
“Have you always been this thin?”
I try to pull my hand away, but he clamps down, holding me still. He’s told me his story, the least I can do is give him this.
“No, I haven’t. I’m getting better, though. I lost myself for a few years, and then I lost … well, I’m learning to live a new normal.”
“It’s okay to lean on us, you know. Me, Preston, even my mother, she’s an amazing listener.”
