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Chapter 29
Jasmine
After washing dirt off me, I slip into my yoga clothes.The new job keeps me busy, but I’m loving it.As I’m drying my hair, my phone rings.
Ingrid?I haven’t heard from her in over a year.Since I moved out.
I swipe to answer.“Hello.”
“Jasmine, it’s Ingrid.Do you have a second?”The uncertainty in her voice isn’t typical for her.
“Sure.What’s up?”I sit on the bed and hug a pillow to my chest.
“I owe you an apology.”
I’m quiet as her words sink in.
“I don’t know if you remember my friend Hannah, the girl who threw the party out at her uncle’s barn.”
“I remember.”My breaths are shallow as I wait for what’s coming next.
“She knows this guy.He was a friend, but he isn’t anymore.They’d gone out a few times recently.”
Even though Ingrid is winding around whatever it is she wants to say, I don’t hurry her along.
“We were talking, and she was all upset because he’d just been arrested for drugging a woman at a bar.”She goes quiet for a moment, then clears her throat.“That guy was at the barn party.”
Tears slip down my cheeks, and I don’t bother to wipe them away.I still can’t remember much from that night.“Thanks for telling me.”
“Jasmine, wait.They are asking for others to come forward.Hannah is talking to the police because he drugged her one night.And I thought maybe you’d want to tell what happened.I’m sorry I didn’t believe you.”
“Send me the information.I’ll think about it.”
“I know you probably hate me for that.But Hannah could really use your help.She says it’s hard because—”
“The gaps in memory make you doubt yourself.”
“Yeah.And just so you know, her friend wasn’t a cowboy type.So whoever took you home that night isn’t the guy.Your cowboy with a pretty face saved you from the creep.”
“He did.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t work harder to help you find him.I just didn’t know.”
I try not to let Ingrid hear that I’m crying.“Thanks for calling.I have a class starting in just a few minutes, so I have to go.But text me.”
“Will you forgive me?”It’s the rawest I’ve ever heard Ingrid sound.
Memory is an amazing thing.Sitting in my bedroom, I can feel Tyler’s arms around me and his lips pressed to my forehead like he did the night of Daisy’s wedding.And I’m eager to be in his arms again.“I forgive you.”
“Oh, good.Thank you.”She sighs.“I’ll text you.Bye.”
The call ends, and I hurry to the car.I’m pulling up in front of Joji’s when I realize I left my bag at home.
Tyler’s truck is already here, and he’s filling the raised beds with dirt.He’s taken his time with Joji’s garden, and it’s a treat seeing him when I come out for class.Today it’s more than a treat.
I stare at the picture in the article Ingrid sent over.The face isn’t familiar.After a deep breath, I climb out of the car.
Tyler drops a bag of compost and jogs toward my car.“What’s wrong?”
