Page 63 of Little Dark Deeds

CHAPTER 23

With Queenie gone,Everett and I finished our drinks and Danishes and took a stroll around the park.

“You were right about her being an inquisitive, boundary-pushing type,” Everett said.“That Queenie, she’s intense.”

“She’s a lot to take in,” I said.“When she and her two friends approached me when I was at Tiffany’s house yesterday, I wasn’t planning on talking to them for as long as I did.The longer we talked, the more I realized how much they knew about Tiffany’s life—things I didn’t even know.”

“Like what?”

“Before Tiffany met Tyler, she’d started dating Chad again.Did you know?”

“Yeah, and I’m sorry she kept it from you.”

“Don’t be.It’s not your fault.It’s not even hers.It’s mine.I wasn’t his biggest fan.I’m guessing she didn’t tell me because she didn’t think I’d approve of them getting back together.”

“She didn’t plan on keeping it from you for long.She wanted to make sure dating him again was the right decision.”

“Why did she decide to give him another chance?”

He gave the question some thought.“In my opinion, she was tired of going home to an empty house every night.We were talking once, and she said she was at the point in her life where she’d come to terms with never finding her one true love.Chad had always treated her right, so when they happened upon each other, she convinced herself she could love him enough to make it work.”

It was hard to hear.

Here I was living a life of bliss with Giovanni, not knowing she’d started to believe a love like that was something she’d never have.

“It sounds like you’re saying she thought about settling for Chad,” I said.

Everett fidgeted with the cuff of his sleeve, gazing in the opposite direction.“Yeah, ‘settling’ ...that’s a good way to put it.”

“I can understand her reasoning.When my daughter died, and I removed myself from society, being out there, alone in a camper in the woods for so long, it was the worst time of my life.There were days when I was so desperate for human interaction, I considered returning to town and finding someone I could live with—someone who may not have been a great match but was ‘good enough.’”

“Why wouldn’t you have tried for a great match, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“I didn’t think I had a lot to offer someone at that time.Then Giovanni stepped back into my life again, and it was like I’d been given a second chance.”

“I’ve been with my wife, Beth, since high school.The first time we met, I knew she was everything I’d always wanted.”

“I feel the same way about Giovanni.There have been many times where I think back to that time of isolation and how I had thought about settling.It wasn’t a good idea, and I realize that now.Perhaps Tiffany realized it too, and that’s what led to the implosion of Tiffany and Chad.”

“The Tyler implosion.”

We passed a cluster of trees with a rustic wooden park bench in its center, and I suggested we sit for a spell, which we did.

“Have you ever met Tyler?”I asked.

“I have.”

“And?”