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JACE
“I’m nervous,” I said to Allie, rubbing my sweaty palms against my jeans and staring at the door, waiting for Mom and my sister to walk into the diner.
It had only been a few days since what had happened with Dad, and I so desperately wanted to stay with Allie at the hospital, but Allie had urged me to go out to breakfast with Mom. And I’d told her that I would only go if she went with me.
Not only did she need some fresh air—that hospital brought out the worst in people—but I needed her with me. Meeting my mom again and my sister for the first time in years wasn’t something I could face alone. I so desperately needed her to be with me because Allie was my only constant in this life.
Allie grabbed my hand in her weak one and gave me her best, “It’ll be fine.”
Though I could see she was still struggling on the inside. Her mom hadn’t woken up yet.
Mom walked into the diner, holding Olivia’s small hand. Olivia wore her hair in pigtails that bounced up and down every time she took a step and a Redwood football shirt that made me grin even though I wanted answers more than I wanted Mom back.
It felt wrong to think that, but it was true. She had left me for years without a call, without a trace, without letting me know that she wasn’t dead like I thought. Instead, I’d had to endure the pain of Dad’s wrath every single fucking day.
I wanted to hate Mom, but she was all I had left.
“I remember you!” Olivia said, smiling at me.
Mom let go of her hand and crouched next to her. “Sweetie, remember how I told you that I had a secret and that Mommy would one day let you in on it? Well, Jace is your big brother.”
Olivia stared at me with big eyes. “What does that mean?”
Though I tried to suppress my grin, I couldn’t. Instead, I found myself grabbing Olivia and setting her on the table, her light-up princess sneakers on my thighs. “It means that we get to hang out all the time, that I get to bring you to Redwood sports games like hockey and baseball, and we get to watch whatever kinds of shows kids your age are into nowadays. You like Paw Patrol?”
Olivia wrinkled her nose. “I like Cops.”
Allie giggled into my shoulder, her body trembling in a fit of laughter next to mine—the first real smile I had seen from her in days now.
Mom smiled at her, then looked back at Olivia and me with a glimmer in her eyes. “Tell him what else you like, Olive.”
Throwing her hands up into the air the way refs did when signaling a touchdown, Olivia showed me all her little teeth and shouted, “Football! I’m gonna be the best football player who’s ever lived. Mommy even got me one to play around with.” She leaned closer to me. “Do you like football?”
“I love it.”
“Mommy, you hear that?” Olivia asked, turning around and jumping off the table. She grabbed Mom’s hand. “Maybe Jacey can come over, and I can teach him how to play.”
Mom ushered her into the seat in front of Allie and me. “I’m sure he’d love that.”
Allie placed a hand on my thigh and leaned in closer as Mom got Olivia settled into the seat and stopped her from squirming around.
“About those babies you want …” Allie whispered, her voice a bit stronger than it had been this morning.
Getting her out of that hospital seemed to be a good thing even if it was just for an hour.
“Don’t tease me because we can definitely go against doctor’s orders and do it before your IUD starts working,” I whispered back to her and relished in the way she blushed hard. If she thought that was cute, I couldn’t fucking wait to have kids with her and make a family.
When the waitress came over, I ordered Allie four pancakes and some eggs. She hadn’t been eating much lately, and I hoped to God that she’d start now. It had only been a few days, but this had taken such a toll on her body already.
As Olivia andAllie started eating breakfast, I turned to Mom. “Why?” I asked. “Why’d you leave me alone all those years? Why didn’t you get me out of that situation? He fr-freaking abused me, took another wife, and threatened to kill her.”
Mom glanced down at her untouched food and pressed her trembling lips together. “I needed to protect Olivia and get stronger. After what had happened, Mr. and Mrs. Abara—Imani’s parents—found me. Mrs. Abara saved our lives, and her husband helped me through physical therapy with the latest technology that his company had been producing. It took me years to be able to walk again, Jace. We’ve been staying outside of Redwood in a secure location. I’m sorry.”
Allie squeezed my knee and inched closer to me, not saying a word, though I knew that she had something to say. Or maybe I wanted her to say something because … I felt so bad for being pissed at Mom, but I couldn’t help it.
“Your father was a monster. If I’d contacted you, he’d have found out, and he might have … done something to you or to Olivia to get back at me for … for cheating on him.” She stared up at me with wavering eyes. “I came to all your games with Olivia. I so desperately wanted to see you again, but I couldn’t.”
“Why now?” I asked, balling my hands. “Why not sooner?”
“Because I knew he was days away from killing Allie’s mother. I watched him for weeks, waiting for the opportunity to step in. I should’ve barged in sooner before he had the chance to hurt Allie’s mom, but I… I didn’t. I’m sorry. I’m not a hundred percent healed yet, but … I couldn’t bear to see anything happen to the both of you.”
We fell into an awkward silence, and Allie inched closer to me to whisper into my ear. “You should forgive her, Jace. Don’t let her slip away again. Life is too short and too precious. If you don’t want to do it for yourself, please, do it for me.”
I gazed down at Allie and kissed her on her forehead. I would do anything for her.
