Page 146 of No Such Thing as Serendipity

She let go of one of my hands and swept her hand along the front of her body. “The exterior must be flawless.”

Previously, the comment would have made me uncomfortable. I squeezed her hand. “But how is the interior doing?”

Her eyes widened before she nodded and smiled. “Yes, you have changed, haven’t you? It’s not just the clothes.”

“No, it’s not,” I answered honestly. In all the years I’d known Sylvia, I never expected to be having this conversation with her. “But you never answered my question.”

She gave me a half smile. “It’s been hard. Really hard. I love that man. I’ve loved him since the first time he kissed me. I don’t know how to do life without him.” She looked toward the ceiling. “The kids resented he wasn’t around, and he missed milestones in their lives, but there’s something they never knew.” She met my gaze. “When he was away on business or working late, no matter what, he called me at ten o’clock, and we’d talk for as long as we could.”

“What the hell?” I shook my head. “I always wondered where he disappeared to.”

This time, Sylvia gave me a full smile. “Did you think he was having an affair?”

I fidgeted, but I wouldn’t miss the opportunity to have a genuine conversation with Sylvia. “At first, I’d wondered. Then I noticed how his eyes lit up whenever you walked into a room, so I never believed it.” I scowled. “Why didn’t he ever tell me?”

She smirked. “It was our secret. We never even told the kids.”

“But why?”

“You’ll think it silly.” The tightness around her mouth and eyes had disappeared, and she looked years younger.

“No, I won’t. Please, tell me.”

“My parents didn’t think he was good enough for me, so they tried to keep us apart. They were old school and were always in bed by nine o’clock. I waited until ten, after they were sound asleep, and then I’d call him.”

I gaped. “You mean you’ve been doing it for fifty years?”

“Fifty-four.” She squeezed my hand. “Enough about our silly love story. He’s going to be thrilled to see you.”

I took a deep breath, unsure if I was ready for this.

Sylvia looked deep into my eyes and said, “Honey, will you forgive him?”

I paused for several beats, thinking of everything I’d written in my notebook on the flight. Though I wanted to break eye contact with her, I held her gaze and said, “I already have.”

Her shoulders slumped, and tears welled in her eyes again. “Thank you. Thank you so much.” Without warning, she wrapped me in another hug. Her shoulders shook. The Blake from a month ago would have done anything to escape. Instead, I held her for some time, letting her have the release she needed.

My heart raced as Sylvia pushed open the door to Terrence’s study.

“Sweetheart, you have a visitor,” she said.

I didn’t know what to expect. When I walked into the room, Terrence sat in his favorite armchair reading a book. While he was paler than when I’d last seen him and had lost a little more weight, he didn’t look as bad as I’d feared.

He dropped his book to his lap, and his eyes widened. “Blake?”

I glanced at Sylvia in a panic. She hadn’t mentioned he’d lost his faculties.

Sylvia laughed and grabbed my hand. “He knows who you are.”

He tossed his book on the table and rose to his feet. “Of course, I know who you are. I just never thought… I mean, I didn’t think I’d ever see…” Tears rolled down his cheeks, and the rest of his words caught in his throat.

Not knowing how to respond, I held up my hands and shook them. In a moment like this, jazz hands might be inappropriate, but I wasn’t sure how to react. “Here I am.”

For the next two and a half hours, the three of us talked. Terrence and Sylvia shared stories I’d never heard, and I told them about Blissful Breeze and Robyn. The time sped by toofast, but I needed to leave for Ironclad or I’d be late. Already, I wouldn’t have time to stop by my apartment to change my clothes.

Terrence insisted on walking me to the door with Sylvia. His gait was slightly shaky, but I suspected it had as much to do with me as it did his cancer.

“Thank you for coming, Blake,” Sylvia said.