Lahat ng Kabanata ng Decisions I made : Kabanata 61 - Kabanata 70

I stared at Paul across the kitchen island and immediately knew there was no good answer to that question.Because the truth?The truth made me look stupid.Weak.Embarrassing.Like one of those women everyone swears they’d never be—the ones who keep too much to themselves, make excuses for too long, and wait until things are bad before admitting just how bad they’ve gotten.I looked down at the table instead of at him.“I don’t know.”Paul gave a short, humorless laugh.“You don’t know?”“No.”“Lela.”I sighed and rubbed both hands over my face.“I don’t know what you want me to say.”“The truth would be a good place to start.”Jack stayed quiet beside me, but I could feel him listening. Not in a nosy way. Just there. Present. Waiting to understand the pieces I hadn’t given him yet.I folded my arms over my chest and leaned back in the chair.“It didn’t happen all

I stood there staring at Jack like he had personally betrayed me.He had the decency to look almost apologetic.Almost.But there was still the faintest hint of amusement at the corner of his mouth, and that alone made me want to throw something at him.“Yes, sir?” I repeated, turning slowly toward him.Jack lifted one shoulder in the world’s most innocent shrug.“What did you want me to say?”I stared at him.“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe literally anything else?”Paul barked out a laugh from across the kitchen.Dad looked at him.Paul immediately straightened his face.“Nothing.”Mom was already moving into full mother mode, which meant she had decided the next ten minutes were hers and no one else’s. She crossed to the cabinet, pulled out glasses, filled one with water, then turned and handed it to me like I was five years old and needed juice after a nightmare.“Drink this.”I too

The laughter faded as quickly as it had come.It didn't disappear completely. It lingered in the room just enough to remind me that, even after one of the worst nights of my life, my family still knew how to make me smile.But reality was waiting.Dad glanced at the grandfather clock in the dining room."Nineteen minutes."Paul checked his phone."They're early sometimes.""I know."Mom reached over and quietly refilled everyone's coffee cups, a nervous habit she had whenever something was weighing on her mind. She wasn't really paying attention to how much she was pouring. She was simply doing something with her hands.I watched her for a moment.My mother never stopped moving when she was worried.If she wasn't cooking, she was cleaning.If she wasn't cleaning, she was folding laundry.If there wasn't any laundry, she'd polish furniture that didn't need polishing.Keeping busy was how she stayed calm.She slid another piece of toast onto my plate."You need to eat.""I am eating.""

The drive to the hotel was exactly what I needed.No phone calls.No vendor reports.No conversations about Chris.Just music playing softly through the speakers while Jack drove with one hand on the steering wheel and the other occasionally finding mine on the center console.We talked about everything and absolutely nothing.His childhood.My brothers' endless ability to embarrass me.Belle's obsession with tennis balls.His conference schedule.The restaurants we wanted to try.It felt...easy.There wasn't a single moment where I felt like I had to think before I spoke.When we finally reached downtown, I looked up as the skyline came into view."There it is," Jack said.I smiled."The Spitzer."The historic hotel stood proudly on the corner, its stone exterior glowing in the afternoon sunshine. Valets were bustling around the entrance while guests came and went through the large revolving doors.Jack pulled into the valet circle.Before either of us could open our doors, two valet

I settled deeper into the oversized lounge chair, adjusted my sunglasses, and opened my book.The rooftop pool was peaceful.The gentle sound of the waterfall blended with quiet conversations, soft music drifted through the speakers, and every now and then a light breeze rolled in off the lake, making the white curtains around my cabana sway.It was exactly what I needed.For the first time in months, there wasn't a deadline staring me in the face.No vendor reports.No meetings.No phone calls from Ron asking me to fix someone else's mistakes.Just a good book, warm sunshine, and a weekend that already felt like something out of a movie.I had barely finished one chapter when my phone buzzed.Jack: Conference speaker number one has already gone twenty minutes over. Save me.I couldn't help but laugh.I quickly texted back.Lela: I thought you said you had to be professional.Less than a minute later...Jack: I'm texting under the table.I shook my head, smiling.Lela: You're terrible