Abby’s knees buckled. She sank onto the sofa, the letter shaking in her hands. A tear slid down her cheek, dampening the page. The long-dried ink bled, muddling the words I’m sorry into an indiscernible mess.
Just as well. How could she forgive Donnie for what he’d done?
From the moment Piper first arrived, she’d wrestled with the possibility of her worst fears becoming reality. She’d grieved a hundred times over already, combatting every doubt until she felt nothing but empty exhaustion.
And yet, the tangible proof—hearing the crushing confession in Donnie’s own voice as if he stood in the room with her—filled her body with a white-hot heat of anguish that penetrated all the way to her bones.
This time, she couldn’t soothe her wounds with the fragile safety of uncertainty. Her only choice was to face the truth, and somehow find a path forward. A path that completely eluded her.
The sofa cushion shifted as Logan sat beside her. “I’m so sorry, Abs.” His raspy voice strained with shared sadness. He reached for her hand, but he didn’t press her to talk about her feelings or insist that everything would be okay. He merely sat with her, filling the space with his strong, steady presence, absorbing some of her sorrow.
At least Donnie had done one thing right. She couldn’t imagine going through this without Logan. Could Donnie have guessed how close they’d become?
The sound of luggage wheels rolling across the hardwood floor snapped Abby from her thoughts.
Piper stood in the doorway, assessing Abby’s tears with wide, worry-filled eyes. “What happened?”
Abby flinched. The sight of Piper—the woman who’d spent a night with the man she’d loved and trusted with her whole heart—felt like a stinging slap.
Logan’s grip tightened. “We know.” His tone rumbled across the room like a low growl.
“How?” Piper breathed, as if she knew exactly what he meant.
“Donnie confessed in a letter he wrote shortly after your affair. His lawyer was supposed to deliver it after Donnie died and just now discovered his mistake,” Logan explained, mercifully speaking so she didn’t have to. “But I still don’t get it, Piper. Why come forward now? After all these years. And then why lie about the paternity test results? They would’ve proven your story. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
A long, agonizing silence followed Logan’s question. Abby focused on a spot on the floor, her hands trembling as she fought an overwhelming urge to flee to somewhere she could pretend like none of this had ever happened.
“Can I speak to Abby?” Piper asked softly. “Alone?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Logan sat rooted to the sofa, steadfast and immovable. Her rock. Somehow, even in the midst of devastation, her heart had room to mourn one love while bursting with immeasurable affection and appreciation for another.
“It’s okay.” Spurred by his unfailing support, she found the strength to squeeze his hand. “I think I need to hear what she has to say.”
“Are you sure?”
“I think so.”
“Want me to stay? I can stay.”
“I’ll be okay.” She couldn’t be certain of that fact, but she had a feeling Piper would hold back with Logan in the room. And she needed to hear everything the woman had to say, no matter how painful.
“Okay. If you’re sure. But I’ll be two feet away in the kitchen when you need me.”
When you need me.
Her heart warmed at his words. It wasn’t a question. No if or maybe. They were a team, together through it all. Even this. And she would forever be grateful.
As Logan strode from the room—tossing a warning glance at Piper as he left—Abby girded herself with Logan’s promise. He would always be here for her.
Leaving her luggage, Piper crept closer, her steps cautious and tentative, as if Abby might pounce like a wounded animal.
Piper’s pretty features contorted with guilt and grief, a hunter showing remorse to its prey. She perched on the edge of the coffee table, her shoulders slumped. “I’m so sorry I hurt you.”
She offered no excuses. No fancy, flowery words. Just a simple, sincere apology.
Abby forced herself to meet Piper’s gaze. The woman’s piercing green eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Abby gathered a breath, then exhaled slowly before asking the one question Donnie couldn’t. “Why didn’t you tell Donnie about Tyler?”
Piper’s gaze flickered toward the floor, then back to Abby, her features firmly set as if she’d resolved to tell the whole truth, no matter what. “Because Donnie made it perfectly clear he didn’t want kids. And if he didn’t want children with the woman he loved and planned to marry, how would he feel about having one with me, his biggest regret?”
There was a raw, pained vulnerability in Piper’s eyes that stirred unwelcome sympathy in Abby’s heart. She wanted to dislike Piper, pure and simple. It wasn’t right that she’d slept with Donnie. And it wasn’t fair that she’d beaten the odds and had a child with him when she couldn’t. And yet, despite everything, compassion complicated Abby’s emotions more than she cared to admit, even to herself.
“As soon as I realized I was pregnant, I moved down south and started over. I got a new apartment, a new job. A new life. For me and Tyler.”
“Then why come forward now?”
“I wish I hadn’t.” Piper picked at a loose thread on her ripped jeans. “I never wanted anything from Donnie. Or you. But I—” She broke away, wincing as she struggled to finish her admission. “I was desperate,” she said at last, shrinking even smaller as she leaned forward, wringing her hands. “I lost my job and was close to losing my apartment. My landlord said he’d discount my rent if I did him a favor.” A crimson blush swept across Piper’s face, and Abby shuddered, afraid for what that favor might have entailed.
“He said all I had to do was let him have a few packages delivered to my door every couple of weeks. I’d let him know when they arrived, and he’d come pick them up. It worked out fine for a while.”
“And you never wondered what might be in those packages?” Abby asked. She’d watched enough crime TV to make an educated guess. More than likely, Piper had agreed to be a drug drop-off.
“I didn’t want to wonder. I didn’t want to know. I just wanted to keep me and Tyler from living on the streets.”
“So, what happened?” Clearly, something had gone awry, or they wouldn’t be living out of their car.
“One of the packages went missing, and my landlord accused me of taking it. I swore I never touched it, but he said I had to pay him back or he’d…” Piper’s voice fell away, but she didn’t have to finish her sentence. Based on her terrified expression, Abby suspected he’d threatened Tyler. Or maybe both of them.
Her stomach turned at the thought. “How much do you owe him?”
Piper looked away again, biting her lower lip. “Six thousand dollars.”
Abby’s heart sank. “Six thousand?” she echoed in a whisper.
Piper nodded, suddenly pale. “I don’t have that kind of money. Or any money. So, I packed up our things and ran. But he hasn’t stopped calling, demanding his money. He said no matter where I go, or even if I change my number, he’ll know how to find us.” Piper shuddered. “My only option was to get the money somehow. Desperate, I Googled Donnie. That’s when I learned he’d passed away. I’m so sorry for your loss.”
The rote sentiment sounded strange coming from Piper, the mother of her husband’s son. How did Piper feel about Donnie’s death? Had she cared for him at all? And what about Tyler? He’d never know his father now.
The thought roused fresh tears to her eyes, and her throat tightened. Donnie may not have wanted kids initially, but he would’ve loved Tyler. And he would’ve been a wonderful father, despite his flaws.
“After I found out about Donnie, I looked up what happened to the house,” Piper told her. “I found an article on you and the inn, how well it was doing.” She cringed as if ashamed of her own admission. “I didn’t think. I just got in the car and drove. I’m so sorry, Abby. For everything.”
For a long moment, Abby didn’t respond. A thousand thoughts and emotions tumbled in her mind. She tried to make sense of them, to connect them together like puzzle pieces. But nothing seemed to fit. “Why didn’t you tell the police?”
“Tell them what? That I unwittingly agreed to be a drug drop-off location, and the dealer thinks I stole his stash?”
She had a point. Piper had made a string of appallingly bad decisions. Horrifying, actually. She didn’t deserve her pity or compassion.
And yet, as Abby looked at the woman sitting across from her, she saw someone scared, broken, and helpless. A mother who loved her son—Donnie’s son—and didn’t know how to untangle the mess she’d made.
An image of Tyler’s sweet face flashed in the forefront of her thoughts. None of this was his fault. And yet, he would pay the price for all their decisions. Even hers.
Could she let them walk away without a second thought?
A gentle knock at the door made Abby jump.
She glanced at the grandfather clock.
Based on the time, it had to be Sadie and Lucy.
Strange how life didn’t stop even after your whole world fell apart.