Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 93270 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93270 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 466(@200wpm)___ 373(@250wpm)___ 311(@300wpm)
Hayden rested his hand on top of Conor’s. The only reason he planned to stay in the camper was for space. He hated the idea of living at home, especially at almost forty. He felt like a failure, even though he couldn’t do anything to change what had happened.
“Grandpa said baseball tryouts are coming up. We can drive to the city to get some new cleats. I think last year’s are too small. Your glove is with mine, in the back of the truck. Wanna toss the ball around tomorrow?”
Hayden felt Conor shrug. “What if I don’t want to play?”
“Well,” Hayden said with a sigh. “I’d be sad because I really like watching you play. I think you’re really good. But, ultimately, it’s up to you.”
“You played for the team here?”
Hayden nodded. “Yep, from the time I was five until I graduated high school.”
“Then you met Mom?”
“Yeah, I did. But she’s not why I stopped playing,” he told his son. Hayden had gone to college to play, but his heart wasn’t in it.
“Was it because of me?”
“Of course not,” he said. “When I got to college, things changed. I met your mom and realized I wanted a different life.”
“Do you think she can see us?”
Hayden’s throat tightened. “Sure do. She’s watching us. Definitely you, Conor. Your mom loved you more than anything.”
“I love her too.”
“Yeah, bud. Me too. Close your eyes,” he told Conor. “We have a big day tomorrow.”
Instead of leaving, Hayden stayed next to his son and closed his own eyes. When he opened them again, rays of sunshine came through the window, and he was alone.
Three
Devorah
From inside the home she had loved for as long as she could remember, Devy watched her daughter load the last of their bags into the SUV parked in the driveway and wondered how in the hell they were going to survive.
It was one thing to find out your husband was having an affair, but to find out the other woman was someone you considered your best friend since college added salt to the gaping wound. Ester knew everything about Devy and Chad’s marriage, from how he made Devorah feel in the bedroom, as a wife, and how she’d struggled to find her footing in their marriage. Ester knew Dev strove to be as perfect as possible for Chad, to give him everything he wanted and more, and how she never felt it was enough. Years of Ester telling Dev to dump Chad, to find a better man, now all seemed like a ploy from Ester to get Chad for herself.
Despite knowing better, Devy opened the video and went right to the comments section. This was a place where Dev’s feelings were validated. Numerous women had lambasted Ester for what she’d done, calling her a “home-wrecker” while also blaming Chad. But the comments that stood out the most were the ones asking Ester why she would post on social media, in a place where Devy and her daughter could find the video. It was simple, at least in Devorah’s mind—Ester didn’t know Dev followed her. It was the app-generated username that Ester likely didn’t pay attention to. They hadn’t posted any videos. To anyone looking, the account probably looked like spam.
Would Ester have posted the video if she’d known Devy followed her?
Yes, Devy thought. Ester wanted the attention, and she wanted Chad.
Now Ester had him, while Devy and Maren had a carful of their belongings and broken hearts.
To make things even worse, Devorah had tried to hide the truth from Maren. No child should have to deal with adult situations. Nor should any child have to see how imperfect their parents are. Dev thought she could keep everything under wraps by saying Maren’s father needed some space and that he was moving out for a bit. They certainly wouldn’t be the first couple to separate. But then Maren saw the video, thanks to a classmate whose mother had seen it. When the school called and said Maren needed to come home, Devorah knew her daughter had found out.
As soon as Dev saw Maren in the nurse’s office, they both broke. They held each other and cried in the hallway. On the way home, Maren said she didn’t want to go back to school. Devy agreed and suggested they go away for a bit. They needed to get out of Chicago and away from the stares.
That night, after they’d eaten a quiet dinner, Maren walked out the front door, with Devorah hot on her heels and pleading for her daughter to come back to the house. Maren walked to Ester’s place and pounded on the door until Chad answered. Dev stood there in the yard, waiting for her daughter to come back to her, while Chad fed their daughter the same bullshit he’d given Devy—he was in love, everyone else be damned. Chad didn’t seem to care that his daughter was losing her best friend in the mix. As long as he was happy, that was all that mattered.