Page 75 of Dark Tangled Truths
I smile at Adelaide when I walk in and give her a little nod. Hopefully she doesn’t think less of me for anything she overhears tonight. For all I know, the small staff who run the house probably already knows way more than any of us.
The table is set for three at one end. I take my seat and drink some water while I wait for the others to arrive. My pulse races as I check my phone for anything that might stall this from happening.
Mom walks in first and takes the seat opposite me. Adam walks in next and sits at the head of the table. With a signal from him, Adelaide brings out the food.
“How was your day, EvanAnn?” Adam asks politely as his wine glass is filled.
“Rehearsal went well. I’m mostly caught up on the work I couldn’t do because of my hand.” I lift my right hand as if to show him it’s better, but I feel as stupid as the gesture looks.
“Crowne Mawr has an excellent campus. It’s not Yale, but it’s a good school.” Adam takes a bite of his food.
I long to ask him about the drive with Damon. Yes, we text when we can’t sleep, but it’s not like everything is suddenly better. We don’t ask about anything that might start a fight. Like our parents and what they talked about with us.
Adam clears his throat, and I stop pushing my food around my plate to look up into his kind eyes.
“I know I’m not your father...” He stops and looks at my mom, who reaches out and takes his hand. “And I would never assume you’ll think of me like that. But I want you to know if you need anything, anything at all, I’ll make sure you get it.”
My breath catches and my brow furrows in confusion.
He blows out a breath. “Friday morning wasn’t how I would normally approach what happened. But we were already panicked when you weren’t in your room. And I love my son. But I’m not foolish enough to believe you were the one to instigate things between the two of you.”
My cheeks heat, and I look down at my plate. Yup, Damon should definitely be here. Though none of this would probably embarrass him.
“What I’m trying to say and failing miserably is that if for some reason you don’t feel safe or you want to change rooms or anything at all really, I hope you know that your mother and I are on your side. Damon doesn’t want you to change bedrooms. And while part of me feels irresponsible for putting you that close to begin with, if it’s not what you want either, there’s no point in us upsetting your routine.”
Mom smiles softly at Adam and squeezes his hand. She doesn’t add to it but just looks at me. Dad used to take care of me when I was young. I know Mom loves me, but I don’t know if I’ve ever been her priority. But Dad was my everything. I don’t think he would have been as cool with all this as Mom is being. But Mom does care, just in her own way.
I set my fork to the side and take a sip of water before looking at them both. There’s a part of me that wants to hand wave this away. But I know it will weigh on them if they somehow feel responsible and think this isn’t what I wanted.
“I don’t want to move rooms. Everything I have with the guys is consensual and it always has been. I haven’t been coerced into this.” I take a breath and lift my gaze to Adam’s and Mom’s. Maybe a little at first, but they never did anything I didn’t want. “I knew it might make things difficult for you, which is why I chose to keep breaking up with Chase a secret. It was my decision to keep our relationship a secret because I was worried Mom would want to move us.”
Mom opens her mouth and looks at Adam, who squeezes her hand. The look he gives her is reassuring. She doesn’t say anything but returns her gaze to me.
I draw in a breath and steel myself. “I love Damon, Hawk, and Cam. There’s no shame in that, and I don’t feel shame that you know we’re together. I’m ashamed at how you found out, and that was my fault. So I’m sorry for not being brave enough to tell you the truth.”
Mom reaches across the table with her other hand and takes mine with a tight squeeze. “I’d rather know what’s going on in your life than be kept in the dark to protect me. I know I haven’t always acted as the parent, and that’s on me, but I want to try to do better. Adam makes me want to try to do better.”
I wish it would have been me who could have made her try harder, but Adam is focused on Damon in a way Mom never has been with me. Maybe it was the wake-up call she needed.
“I can tell you help Damon with his anger issues,” Adam says softly. “And for that, I’m thankful. We should have considered you two more in our plans for the future. We’d like to do better going forward.”
How long will the focus last this time? Maybe this time it will stick. I don’t know how to feel about that.
After dinner, I head up to my room. For a few hours, I work at my desk before getting ready for sleep. I stand in the middle of my room and stare at my bed, but that’s not really my bed. Like Damon said, I slept there once and have spent minimal time there since.
While our parents are trying to manage this development, they haven’t said we need to change anything. Besides, Damon isn’t here, and until someone else arrives, it would be nice to feel close to him.
Giving in to temptation, I head through the bedroom and climb into Damon’s bed, still rich with his earthy scent.
Hawk is supposed to sleep here tonight, but I don’t know what time he’ll be able to get away. I pull up the group text. I bite my lip, thinking about last night with Cam and Hawk. I know Damon was watching later when I couldn’t sleep.
Me:
Did you like the movie we made for you?
Cam:
Sorry if my ass was in the way
