Page 75 of The Monster I Loved

Summer stared into my eyes. “All I’ve ever done was try to protect us. From the moment I found out my dad was responsible for Gina’s death, all I selfishly thought about was us. How not to lose us. I didn’t want to lose my dad either, but I thought if you didn’t know he’d done it...we’d be okay. It was stupid. I was just so desperate to hold on to you.”

I reached over and patted her hand. “It’s okay. I get it. And I forgive you.”

Summer’s eyes flashed at me. “You forgive me?”

“Isn’t that what you always wanted? There, you have it.”

She shook her head in disbelief. “I’m the one who should be forgiving you.”

“Then go ahead and do it.”

Flustered, Summer dropped her napkin on the table and stared. “Thaddeus.”

“Summer, in eight months, we must figure out a way to share an innocent baby.”

Nodding, Summer seemed eager to move on to a lighter subject. “Did you pick this place intentionally?”

“No. Well, maybe a part of me did. The last time we sat in these seats, we were planning an entire future together. Seemed like a good place to try it again.”

“Okay, let’s try,” Summer said in a whisper.

I leaned closer to make sure I heard her correctly, and our eyes met. For a second, it felt like we were the only two people in the restaurant. Suddenly, the space between us felt too small. Slowly, I leaned over, just a bit more, until I was close enough to feel her breath. When Summer didn’t pull away, my heart began to race.

Leaning forward just a bit further?—

“Summer?”

The way we jumped apart, you’d think we were back in high school and afraid of a scolding from a parent. I cleared my throat, and Summer stared at a face that was sort of familiar.

“Olivia.”

She looked down at us in shock. A wrinkle formed between her brows. Yup, she was definitely from Tarrytown. She carried the same judgmental face that was so common around there.

“This is Olivia, my old boss at Legal Aid,” Summer explained.

The lady still looked dazed. The shock was too much. “I-I-I’m just surprised to see you...here.”

“A lot has changed,” Summer said, clearly uncomfortable.

Maybe we’d have to move away for Summer, myself, and the baby to live any semblance of a normal life.

“Well, I’ll let you two get back to whatever you were doing,” she mumbled.

It took me a minute, but I finally placed her. She’d been there that day I’d had to convince Mr. Dorman to leave his crumbling home. “Bye.”

Summer looked at me, then back to Olivia. “Let’s talk tomorrow. I’ll explain everything.”

The woman still looked ready to fall over. “I can’t wait to hear it. Seems I’ve missed a lot.”

18

HEARTBREAKER

Summer

Last night,after spotting Thad and I together, Olivia naturally had a lot of questions. I met her for breakfast at the diner on Main Street to put her at ease. As soon as we sat down across from each other on the shabby seats, she wasted no time getting down to business. Her most pressing question was to ask when I’d started taking drugs. I laughed at her, and this reaction for my former boss seemed to be all the answer she needed.

Quickly, I clarified, “I’m not using drugs.”