Sophie drew her thumb through the condensation on her water glass. “This is what Aiden and I argued about Monday night. I’d agreed to do yet another favor for Jenna and disregarded him in the process. He said some things, then I said some things . . . It got out of hand, and poof, he was gone.”
“Seems a little rash. What are you going to do about it?”
“No idea. I’ve been so busy this week, it’s been easy to put it on the back burner.” Well, not as easy as she might like to believe.
“Do you love him?”
Sophie stared at her friend, unseeing. Instead she remembered how safe she felt in Aiden’s arms, how loved she felt when he turned that smile on her. And how empty she’d felt since he left.
“I do love him.” Sophie swallowed hard. “But loving Aiden is a big risk. He has abandonment issues. When things get difficult he runs. He did it seven years ago, and he did it again Tuesday.”
“Is it possible,” Haley asked softly, “that he’s not the only one with abandonment issues? You said your dad also left when the going got tough.”
“The fear is definitely there, especially since Aiden already left me once before.” The achy feeling returned, and her eyes burned. “I don’t ever want to be abandoned again. It really hurts.”
Haley set her hand on Sophie’s. “I don’t blame you. That’s got to make this even harder. For both of you.”
As much as it had hurt when her dad left, it had to be all the worse for Aiden. He’d been so young when his mom deserted them. How was a five-year-old child supposed to understand such a thing?
Haley squeezed Sophie’s hand. “Do you suppose your lack of boundaries with your siblings might also be connected to your fear of abandonment?”
Haley’s words punched Sophie in the heart. Was she so afraid of being left that she felt she had to earn Jenna and Seth’s love? She reflected on that for a beat.
Yes. Yes, she was.
“Sorry . . .” Haley winced. “Was that out of line? I kind of have a habit of doing that.”
“Not at all.” Sophie blinked at Haley. “You know, you’re really good at this. I think you missed your calling.”
Haley released a wry laugh. “I’d fall into depression if I had to sit in an office all day. But I’m glad if anything I’ve said is helpful.”
“Oh, it is.” A tear broke loose, trickling down her face. Sophie let out a self-conscious laugh as she swiped it away. “But I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to talk about deep-rooted insecurities with brand-new friends.”
Haley squeezed her hand. “Next time we’ll talk about favorite drinks and whether we prefer milk or dark chocolate—and by the way, dark is the only right answer.”
“Hear, hear. Don’t even get me started on white chocolate.”
Sophie planned to call Jenna when she got back to the house, but Jenna beat her to the punch. The call came as Sophie pulled into the garage.
“Hey, it’s me,” Jenna said. “Are you busy?”
“No, I just got home. Everything okay?”
Jenna sighed hard. “Not really. I feel bad about the necklace and about the way I handled the whole thing. I’m sorry, Soph. I didn’t know it meant so much to you—and I should have. I mean, you made me promise to take care of it, but I got so swept away with the wedding and honeymoon that I—I was selfish. I’m really sorry I lost the necklace, and I’m even sorrier I didn’t take it seriously.”
Sophie softened. She hadn’t realized how worried she’d been about her relationship with Jenna until this moment. “Thanks, honey. That means a lot to me.”
“I feel terrible. I wish I could replace it.”
“I know you do. But I don’t want to fight over a necklace. You mean too much to me.”
“So, we’re okay now? You’re not mad at me?”
“I’m not mad at you.” She steeled herself for the upcoming conversation. “But we do have to talk. I already spoke with Seth about this, but it’s harder with you, because you’re my little sister.”
“What is it?” A note of uncertainty rang in her tone.
Sophie covered the same ground she’d covered with Seth, going back from the time her mom became seriously ill to when their dad left and on to present day.
“I think I see where this is going,” Jenna said. “We’re not kids anymore, and we’ve been taking advantage of you.”