Cole had begun to mean a lot more to me.
More than I had ever imagined.
More than I had ever planned.
And that meant I could not afford to repeat the same mistakes I had made with Caleb, which eventually destroyed what we once had.
I could not build something new with Cole on that same fragile foundation.
He deserved honesty.
If I wanted whatever was growing between us to have a real chance, he needed to know the truth.
All of it.
Every painful piece of my past.
The lights of Cowichan Bay slowly began to appear in the distance, glowing softly against the darkening sky.
Tomorrow I will tell him everything.
No more secrets.
No more half-truths.
I would sit down with him, look him in the eye, and finally reveal the parts of my life I had spent so long trying to hide.
Because if Cole and I were going to move forward together, it had to begin with the truth.
To know Caleb’s thoughts when he thinks he sees “Nyah” at the hospital, read the fourth chapter in his Bonus Chapters.
38
COLE
Jiya was on my mind from the moment she hurried out of the house after the phone call.
What was it about? What had happened that made her leave so suddenly?She had rushed downstairs, kissed my cheek in a quick goodbye, and disappeared out the door with barely any explanation.
The house felt quiet without her.
Thoughts crowded my mind as I sat in the kitchen, trying to make sense of the look in her eyes before she left.
I exhaled slowly and glanced toward the living room where the children were playing.
Lucas sat on the floor with Oreo and Emma, completely absorbed in whatever game they had invented. Oreo wagged his tail enthusiastically while Emma giggled, her small hands grabbing at the dog’s ears as Lucas tried to guide the chaos like a very serious little referee.
Watching them eased the tightness in my chest.
Lucas had always been easy to talk to, and he trusted me in a way that still surprised me. Maybe he could help me understand something about Jiya’s past.
I leaned forward slightly.“Buddy, can I ask you something?”
Lucas looked up immediately.“Yes,” he replied, still sitting on the floor while one hand rested on Oreo’s back and the other steadied Emma as she tried to climb onto the dog.
“Do you know why you moved to this village?”
Lucas did not hesitate.“Yes,” he said matter-of-factly. “Mama lost her job in the city.”
