A Heart to Trust, A.L. Brooks [speed reading book TXT] 📗

rehearsed what she wanted to say to Jenny. Broderick had wholeheartedly agreed with her when she insisted on telling Jenny the whole truth. It was important not to start off on the wrong foot. How could Jenny trust her—having clearly not trusted her in the beginning anyway—if she later found out Olivia’s marriage had been fake? Assuming Jenny was even willing to give them a try, of course. She banished that thought—nothing but positive thinking today.

Finally, Barnaby found a patch of dirt under a tree that met his needs, and the business was done.

“Good boy,” Olivia cooed. “Now we can get back in the warmth.”

Barnaby looked mighty relieved at the prospect.

After getting him settled back into his bed in the hallway outside her room, Olivia ate a light breakfast, cleared up all the dishes and glasses from the night before, then retreated to her room with a pot of coffee and the morning paper.

Broderick was out visiting his mother, sowing the seeds of the divorce. “I don’t want to tell her any more big lies, though,” he’d said. “So although it might be easier to say one of us was cheating on the other, I’d rather just go with the small lie of the marriage breaking down. Irreconcilable differences, or whatever the official term is.”

“I agree. We’ve told her enough lies to last a lifetime.” She paused, then decided to ask anyway. “Do you think you’ll ever tell her the truth? All of it?”

He shrugged. “Maybe. I’ve held back all this time because I can’t imagine her understanding either the ace or aro concepts. Never mind the fact she has a son who identifies as both.”

“Maybe she would try. For her son.”

He’d looked a little haunted by that thought, so Olivia left it at that.

Now it was her turn to talk to someone. She inhaled deeply a couple times, then picked up her phone.

Jenny woke up on Tamara and Roz’s couch with her head doing a very good impression of a stampeding herd of cattle. She clutched at both sides of her skull as she pondered the wisdom of opening her eyes.

“Good morning!” Tamara chirped from somewhere to her right. “There’s a glass of water and some painkillers on the table. And Roz is making breakfast, but I’m pretty sure you’ll want to skip that part of the recovery process for now.”

“Ugh, yeah.” Jenny groaned, dared to open one eye, and was pleasantly surprised when the action didn’t make anything worse. Not that I could actually feel much worse than I do.

“I did try to warn you.” Tamara came into Jenny’s field of view and stood at the end of the couch. “But you insisted that last shot was exactly what you needed.”

“I know, I know.” Jenny winced as she pushed herself upright. Everything whirled for a moment, then settled. “I can’t listen to you all the time. It’ll only go to your head.”

Tamara laughed. “But seriously, you okay? You were pretty upset last night.”

Oh yeah. For one blissful moment, she’d forgotten just why she’d been so determined to get drunk the night before. “I’m okay.” She swung her legs around to sit on the edge of the couch and picked up the water and pills. Once she’d swallowed them down, she sighed. “Can I take a shower?”

“Of course!” Tamara walked away. “Let me grab you a towel.”

Twenty minutes later Jenny felt vaguely human again and ready to face a small breakfast. Roz placed a plate containing toast and a tiny portion of scrambled eggs in front of her, and she picked at it.

“So, what are you going to do about the job?” Tamara brought a pot of coffee to the table along with three mugs.

Jenny shrugged. “Not much I can do. I’ll turn up to work on Monday and get on with it.”

“And Olivia?”

Jenny stopped eating and looked up at Tamara and Roz’s concerned faces. “I…I’ll get over her.” She sighed. “I have to. When we get in on Monday, we’ll find out what projects they want us to work on. If I’m lucky, mine won’t be the same as Olivia. That will make it a lot easier.”

“True,” Roz said.

From somewhere across the room, Jenny’s phone rang. She walked over to locate it, finding it buried beneath the blankets. She blinked when she saw Olivia’s name in the caller ID. Without thinking, she swiped to answer. “Hello?”

“Hi, Jenny, it’s Olivia. I hope I didn’t wake you?”

“No, I’m awake. Mostly.”

Across the room, Tamara looked quizzically at her.

Jenny mouthed Olivia’s name and nodded when Tamara’s eyebrows shot up.

“Great.” Olivia sounded nervous. “So, I was wondering. I know it’s very short notice, but do you have plans today? Or it could be tomorrow, if that’s easier.” She cleared her throat. “I would like to talk to you. There’s some things you need to know.”

Jenny was silent; her brain was doing its hungover best to register what Olivia said.

“Are you there?” Olivia asked.

“I am. Yes. Sorry.” Jenny clutched at her hair. “I’m a little hungover, so my brain isn’t at full speed. Did you say you want to talk? To me?”

Both Tamara and Roz stared at her.

Tamara made a ‘hang up’ motion, but Jenny waved her off.

Olivia chuckled. “I do. But maybe it should wait until tomorrow if you’re feeling rough.”

“But what about? I don’t understand.”

There was a pause. “About why I turned you away, after kissing you, when that was the last thing I wanted to do.”

“You’re married. That’s reason enough, isn’t it?” The bitterness in her tone wasn’t something she could temper, even if she wanted to.

“This is why I need to talk to you. None of this is what it seems. Please, I promise you, it will all make sense if I can explain. And I’d rather not do that over the phone.”

Jenny closed her eyes. Should she? Or was this one more play in the push-pull they had going on? Well, if it is another weird game, then that’ll be the last of it. No more contact