was a struggle to catch my breath.
Madeline.
I started picturing her a million different ways.
Was she a floozy, out for a good time, tempting my husband with big boobs and puffy lips?
Was she a mom from Jake’s school? A divorcee who spent all her time working out, trying to get back her youth?
Or was she some young twenty-something looking for a sugar daddy?
My mind went haywire with theories, none of them very nice, but I couldn’t find it in myself to feel sorry for her, or for him. Maybe it didn’t say much about me, and maybe eventually I’d find it in me to forgive …To understand the predicament that Sean had been in.
But, today is not that day
“Kel?”
I looked over at the entrance to my room and saw Karen standing there looking crestfallen.
“He told you?” she asked.
“You knew?” I cried, betrayal settling in my belly.
Karen crossed to the bed and sat on the edge.
“I did … and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you right away, but I thought it should come from Sean, not me. Although I did give him an ultimatum and let him know I would tell you about her if he didn’t.”
“Have you seen her?” I asked, my voice pitiful even to my own ears.
Karen nodded and said, “Once. It was at a restaurant a little over a year ago.”
“A year?” I breathed, wondering exactly how serious things were between them. “Is she pretty?”
“Don’t do this to yourself, Kel. I’m sure it was a mistake, which Sean will quickly rectify.”
“Can we talk about something else?” I asked, not wanting to think about it any longer.
Karen grasped my hand and said, “You bet.”
We sat quietly for a few moments before I said, “How about I go splash some water on my face and then we head to the cafeteria for some coffee?”
“Sounds perfect,” she replied gently.
I’d upgraded to a walker, so after I got cleaned up, Karen and I walked down to the cafeteria.
Well, Karen walked … I shuffled.
When we reached the dining area, Karen told me to sit while she grabbed the coffee, and when she returned with not only coffee, but pie, I knew I couldn’t stay mad at her.
It wasn’t fair, since she wasn’t the person I was actually mad at anyway.
“Mmmm, that looks yummy,” I said, giving her a small smile when she placed the plate in front of me.
“Key lime, your favorite,” she said as she sat across from me.
“And apple for you,” I replied, nodding toward her plate.
“I usually don’t splurge like this but … what the heck, right?”
I lifted my mug, thinking how at least some things never changed. Karen had been in the middle of dieting ever since we’d met.
Maybe focusing on the things that were the same, rather than all of the new developments in my life, would help me regain some balance. Which would be better than feeling like I was constantly on the brink of a panic attack.
“I wonder if they have someone here I could talk to … you know, like a therapist,” I mentioned cautiously as I snagged a forkful of pie.
“I’m sure they do,” Karen said, her tone encouraging. “I’m surprised they haven’t mentioned it.”
“They may have,” I said with a shrug. “A lot of information has been thrown at me over the last few weeks, I probably missed most of it.”
“Want me to ask your doctor about it?” she offered.
“No, that’s okay, I’ll do it,” I said, feeling hopeful at the thought.
Ten
Jacob
“What do you think about going with me?” I asked, pausing my mouth’s descent down Ally’s throat.
Ally sighed and moved slightly to look at me.
“To see your mother?” she asked. “In the hospital?”
“Well, yeah. It’ll still be a little longer before she can come home, and it seems crazy to me that you two haven’t met yet. I think it would make her happy, ya know? She’s curious about what my life is like now … what I’m like. And, you’re a big part of it.”
Ally looked pleased at my admission and rewarded me by moving her hand between us and cupping my cock over my jeans.
My hips thrust instinctively and I quickly looked up to make sure no one was around. We were in the parking lot, which had mostly cleared out, making out against my Jeep.
“Fuck, that feels good,” I managed, wishing we were anywhere but here.
“I can make it feel better,” Ally whispered, her breath hot on my ear. “Let’s skip the hospital and go to your place.”
Disappointment filled