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“I wasn’t. I could tell he was a little too smooth,” Vivian said. “But you knew he was the one. I tried to warn you, but you got your back up—rightly so—and I let it be. I’ve held my tongue when he had affairs and even when they went public.”
“I know, Mom,” she said. “Is that about to change?”
“I’m not sure. I don’t know what I can say to you that you don’t already know. Auggie has always had a wandering eye and I guess you should be thankful that it’s taken this long for a child of his to show up—”
“Mom!”
Oh, God, were there more? She should have put an end to the philandering a long time ago or, at the very least, left. Except she loved him. It didn’t matter that this hurt, or that he’d embarrassed her by cheating. What mattered was that he’d apologized. That they’d shared a lifetime together and she wasn’t ready to walk away from that. But would he feel the same?
“Well, it’s true,” Vivian said. “But I was going to say I think there is more to this than an affair. You have weathered those before. And given that Auggie was surprised about the boy, you normally would have been...more forgiving toward him. It makes me think... Is there something more you want to tell me?”
No.
Hell, no.
Juliette had promised to take the secret to her grave and she knew that once it was out, it would spread. She took a long sip of her drink. She shook her head, but a part of her wanted to tell her mom. To let go of the secret that had been a dark blot on her soul for too long now.
She wouldn’t. But she wanted to.
“I won’t push,” Vivian said. “Remember when Musette came back from rehab the first time?”
She nodded. Where was her mother going with this? She had never been able to understand her sister’s addiction or how she couldn’t break it.
“I knew she was using again,” her mom said. “I knew she was going to have to be the one to decide to stop, that it had to come from inside her, so I held my tongue. But watching her struggle and eventually fail was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done as a mother. Watching you try to deal with this is very similar. You look like you’re about to implode and I don’t know how to stop it.”
“I—”
“Don’t. Save the stories for the others you are telling them to. Just know I’ll be here when it all falls apart.”
She watched her mother walk away, wishing it were easier to tell her than it actually was.
Nine
The day felt like it had gone on forever. Logan had been on Nantucket for three days and it felt like a lifetime. His father’s point about Adler wasn’t lost on him and he felt like the worst kind of douchebag ever. He’d avoided mingling with the rest of the family after the announcement had been sent to the press and gone for a walk on the beach to clear his head. He’d thought about texting Quinn, but honestly, he knew that as much as he wanted to see her, it wasn’t the right thing.
For her.
It would be selfish, and right now he was trying to be a better man. But could he be? He’d always thought he was a Bisset 2.0, not as harsh and uncaring as his father about the companies and people he gobbled up in his quest to grow the business. He wanted to believe he was better than his father. But he wasn’t. He’d been deluding himself.
He could say all he wanted that he had inherited his mother’s grace and charm, but at the end of the day, he never opted to use those qualities. He always went for the kill in true Bisset style.
He shoved his hands through his hair. He should have skipped the wedding. He would be happier in his office working on deals, and just physically not being here would have been much better.
“Logan, wait up!”
He turned to see his oldest brother, Dare, calling him. Dare had an easy smile and though he was almost forty, seemed much younger. He had dark hair and their father’s gray eyes. He was taller than their dad by an inch and always had an air of authority about him. He was the most levelheaded of all the siblings. As cantankerous as Logan’s relationship with Leo and Zac was, his relationship with Dare was the opposite.
“Hey, sorry about leaving like that. I just...well, I’ve had enough of this,” Logan admitted.
“Me too. I am happy for Adler, but this wedding has turned into the kind of situation I think we all would avoid if we could.”
“Definitely. Also, I screwed up,” Logan blurted.
“What? How?” Dare asked, falling into step beside him.
“I ruined one of Nick’s business deals...it’s a big one,” Logan said. “Before you ask, I did it after I knew he and Adler were getting married. But news about it is about to break next week.”
Dare put his hand on Logan’s shoulder and squeezed. Unlike his father, who came in hot with consternation, Dare just got it. Got him. “I think that’s not going to be a big deal. I mean now that Nick is our brother, surely business will change.”
