Page 38 of One Small Secret

Both Andrew’s and Ben’s eyes grow sharp.

“Who’s on the phone, then?” Andrew asks.

Mom laughs and it's the falsest thing I've ever heard. “Well, not his father, exactly. Someone like a father.”

Oh. My. Gosh. Did Mom just decide to classify Moira as someone like a father to Axley?”

“What do you mean?” Ruben asks, but I can’t answer. Moira is hissing on the other end of the phone like she's trapped in a prison camp and trying to break out.

Sounds like a dream compared to my reality right now.

I hold the phone close with both hands, covering it so I can whisper. “What is going on? Are you coming home?”

“No. That’s not why I’m calling. I saw the news about you and Ruben.”

Moira is calling for the first time since she dropped Axley off and this is what she wants to talk about? I want to scream. “There is nothing going on between me and Ruben Palmer.” It isn’t a scream, but I said it louder than I should have, and I can tell at least a few people at the table heard. I walk completely out of the dining room.

Moira continues like she didn’t hear me. “Everyone thinks Axley is his son. That’s great. That’s all I wanted to say. It’s the perfect cover.”

“What do you mean, cover?” I ask, quietly this time. “I’m not going to make Ruben pretend to be Axley’s father just so you can go on some dumb game show.”

“It’s a reality show and it isn’t dumb. In fact, it's going really well. Better than I ever could have expected. Right away, the other ladies could tell I didn’t have my life as put together, and they tormented me for a bit, but then Andre, well…he didn’t like how they treated me and…I think I might win, Cadence. Andre is just so…so…” Her voice trails off and I can tell I’m losing her.

“Moira, Ruben doesn’t want a son that isn’t his. We're at his family’s house now, trying to convince them that he isn’t.”

“Stop convincing them, then.”

“Oh my gosh. It doesn’t work that way. One DNA test will prove he isn’t.”

“You don't have the right to do a DNA test.”

“Yeah, and how, exactly, am I going to explain that? And what will we tell them when you get back? ‘Just kidding, we were lying the whole time. Not only is Axley not Ruben’s child, but he isn’t mine either.’”

Moira is silent.

“Moira?” She coughs. “Moira, you will be coming back. You have to.”

“The Palmer family pretty much owes their success to your family. I’m sure they won’t mind helping you out. Plus, Axley looked so happy in that photo. You know, we didn’t even have a Christmas tree. You and Ruben can do so much better for him.”

“There is no me and Ruben.” I’m nearly shouting again, and I don’t care. This is ridiculous. “They don’t owe us anything. We bought their apple orchards two generations ago. What you're talking about is out of the question.”

“I have to go.”

“No. You can’t go. Don’t you want to talk to Axley? It’s Christmas.”

“No.” Her voice cracks slightly on the word and it's the first time I think she might go through with her plan. “That will only make it harder. I’m not even supposed to have this phone. I snuck it from one of the field crew when I told him I found out my sister was dating Ruben Palmer. He totally let me use it after that. But Ruben might need to send him a signed picture. One of the muddy football ones—you know which ones I mean. After all this is over.”

“No, wait—” But before I can say anything else there's a click and Moira is gone.

I stand there for a moment in a daze. Behind me, Mom is saying something about how the person on the phone really wanted to be in Axley’s life but couldn’t be right now but soon they would definitely want to be in Axley’s life again, so…of course Ruben isn’t the father.

Could this day get any worse? Christmas wasn't supposed to be like this. I want Christmas Eve back. Christmas Eve was lovely. I turn around and the first thing I see is Axley with custard all over his face and shirt, and I burst into tears.

Ruben is out of his seat before anyone else. His arms are around me instantly. “What happened?”

I glance up at his face, and I want to hide under the very expensive Turkish rug I’m standing on. Of course Moira would want him to take care of Axley. He looks like he could take on the world right now, and I’m half tempted to ask him to do it. I love Axley, but I’m not prepared to be a single mom forever.

Mom reaches me next. “What did he say?”

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