go deal with this and see you tomorrow.” She paused. “Please don’t say anything to anyone else. This is…” She hesitated. How did she tell Mason that her mother was in jail? But it could totally be a mistake. “This is awkward. Please just say I’m out of the office on business if anyone needs to know.”
“Sure. I can do that.” Once again, she sensed an understanding on his part that went deeper than most, a shared sense of loss and tragedy. Maybe one day Mason would talk to her about what had caused that sadness that always lurked beneath the surface.
She hesitated before she left. Should she talk to Levi? She felt a strong tug of need to tell him what had happened. To maybe get a hug from him, for him to tell her it would all be okay. She squeezed her eyes closed briefly. No. He didn’t need to be involved in this. This was her issue to deal with.
As she rode the elevator down to the parking garage, she debated whether it was worth it to go home to change. She had time. A quick trip into her condo and she was back out wearing shorts, a tank top and flip-flops. That would be more comfortable for the two-hour drive to Oakville.
She was there well before the promised five o’clock and pulled into Dad and Viv’s driveway behind Dad’s car. She’d had lots of time to think on the way there, imagining what she was about to hear, why her mother was in jail, what the hell was going on. In fact, her mind was so consumed by it she didn’t even remember the drive there. Had she run any red lights? Cut someone off while changing lanes? Her stomach was in knots and her palms were sweaty as she pulled the keys from the ignition, grabbed her purse and headed to the front door.
After Dad had met Viv, after Sloane had moved to Chicago to pursue her career, he’d moved in with Viv at her home, a house in a new development on the edge of town, much nicer than the low-income apartment they’d lived in after Mom had disappeared. Sloane had never spent much time at Viv’s home, other than obligatory family holidays.
She rang the doorbell and her dad opened it immediately. “Hi, cookie.” His eyes warmed. “So glad you’re here. Come on in.” He held the door for her and she stepped inside. When he closed the door, she eyed him then moved into his hug without a thought. He was her dad. They didn’t show a lot of physical affection, but at that moment, hugging each other felt like the only thing to do.
They held on to each other for long moments, and she sensed her father’s distress.
“This is so effed up,” he finally murmured as he released her.
“Yeah.” Sloane turned to see Viv in the living room watching them. She’d never seen Viv look like that…her face in pale, tight lines, her mouth thin, eyes shadowed. Yet she gave a tentative smile to Sloane and lifted her arms.
Sloane hesitated. She wasn’t a huggy kind of person and in the past, she’d resisted Viv’s attempts to be physically affectionate. She didn’t know Viv that well, and while she liked her, she certainly didn’t love her.
But at that moment, it came crashing down on her what this meant to Viv. The man she’d married was in fact married to someone else. Someone who was supposed to be dead. But wasn’t. Putting herself in Viv’s shoes, imagining how she’d feel if that happened to her, made Sloane walk up to Viv and encircle her with her arms. Viv’s relief was palpable. She made a soft noise that might almost have been a sob.
This wasn’t Viv’s fault. None of it. Not that Sloane had ever really blamed her, but maybe she’d never really thought about how Viv felt all this time. And Sloane felt herself whispering, “It’ll be okay.”
Viv swept her fingertips beneath her eyes. “Would you like something to drink? Coffee? Iced tea?”
“Sure. Iced tea would be great.”
They all walked into the kitchen, all blue and white and pretty with a big vase of fresh flowers on the kitchen table. A cell phone rang and Viv picked it up from the counter. “It’s the store,” she said. “Excuse me. I rushed out of there.”
Dad poured a glass of iced tea for Sloane while Viv left