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“Thea, sorry to bother you.” Penny gives me an apologetic look. “I know you’ve been busy all morning, but there’s someone here to see you. Do you have time, or should I send her away?”
Her? That’s pretty vague. “Did she give you her name?”
“Oh, yes.” Penny bobs her head. “Jessica. She said she knows you?”
Jess. My stomach lurches. What could she want?
“If you don’t want to see her, I can say you’re in a meeting,” Penny offers. “I said I didn’t know if you were available.”
“No, it’s okay.” Not really. But with Jess living in Sleepy Hollow now, I guess a conversation is inevitable. And after talking with Ben the other night about everything, I’m feeling a little more prepared to deal with it.
“Okay. Should I send her to your office, then?”
Bracing myself, I nod at Penny. “Sure. I’ll head there right now.”
As I head toward my office, I try to mentally prepare myself for anything Jess might say. Will she say she still blames me? Is she going to stick to her made-up story? Or is it possible she wants to apologize?
Maybe it’s a good thing this is being sprung on me, so I can’t spend hours or even days worrying about it.
I’m only in my office for a minute or so before Jess arrives. She knocks lightly on my open door and asks quietly, “Can I come in?”
“Of course.” My office is tiny, just two chairs and a desk, with shelves of books on every wall. I don’t tend to have meetings here—I do those in the small conference room near the lobby instead. When Ben’s visiting for lunch, we don’t care about having to sit practically on top of each other, but with Jess, it’s a little awkward.
For a second, I glance around uncertainly. I could sit behind my desk, but then it’s like I’m interviewing her or something. But to drag the chair around to the front, is that weird? Too friendly?
Ugh. She hasn’t even spoken, and I’m panicking.
“Do you want to sit?” I wave my hand at the worn wooden chair. “My office is really small, but—”
She hurries to answer me. “No, that’s okay. I won’t stay long. I just… well, living here now…” Her gaze drops to the floor before lifting to meet mine. Something that looks a lot like fear flashes across her face. “I’m sure we’ll run into each other. And I thought I should…”
My heart pounds, thundering in my head. All the anxiety is rushing back, the old feelings of betrayal and hurt sweeping through me. So my tone is short when I ask, “What?”
She takes a deep breath, exhaling it out heavily. “I need to apologize to you, Thea. I’m so sorry.”
Even though I knew it was a slim possibility, her words are still a blow, forcing the air from my lungs.
Fifteen years and I’m finally hearing it.
Reaching behind me, I hang on to the edge of my desk to steady myself. I clutch the worn oak, feeling breathless and off balance. One word gusts out without thinking. “Why?”
Jess shifts on her feet, her brows arching up in question. “Why am I apologizing? Because—”
“No.” I meet her gaze, her eyes so familiar even after all these years. “Why did you do it?”
I’ve told myself time and again that the past can’t hurt me. That I’m a strong woman who isn’t defined by those horrible memories. But when one hits me—the moment when I found out Liam was dead, the first time I heard Jess’s terrible lies, standing at Liam’s grave while his mother called me a killer—it’s like I’m eighteen all over again.
I wish Ben was here. Just to hold my hand, giving me the silent support to get through this.
“Why did I do it?” As Jess repeats my question, her features tighten into sharp lines and dark shadows. “With Liam… I was…” She hesitates and bites her lip. “Jealous. I had liked him for years. Then he fell for you. And you were everything I wasn’t. You didn’t wear makeup, you read all the time, cared about school, you hardly ever partied…”
She wraps her arms around herself. “I tried so hard, and he still picked you. And then that night, he was drunk, and I thought… this is my chance. To show him I was the better choice.”
“But you were my friend.”
“I know.” Jess looks miserable. “There’s no excuse. I was selfish.”
Part of me wants to yell at her. But the other part gently reminds me, we were just kids.
