“It was a mistake. He kissed me at the last house party he had. We were drunk. Brian and I got in a fight. I didn’t mean it.” Her words were overlaid by sobs and she dropped her face into her palms.
I sat down next to her and did the only thing I could do for my friend who had been there for me time and time again. I hugged her.
“Did he force you? Hurt you?”
She looked at me. “He was persistent, but when I realized what was happening, I stopped him. He got mad…said some things…” She started bawling again.
I stroked Megan’s hair, giving her time to catch her breath. Thank God Tim hadn’t pushed too far. I still had the urge to rake my fingernails across his face, though.
“It gets worse.” Megan’s pretty face was smudged with mascara, her blue eyes red-rimmed and watery. “I caught Brian and Grace having sex.”
My brows shot up. “What? My aunt Grace?”
Megan nodded. “I walked in on them. Apparently it’s been going on since before we even got together.”
“Oh, Meg.” My head was spinning. I didn’t even know where to start in terms of unwinding this mess.
Her hands tightened into fists and rested on her thighs. “I always felt like I had to prove I was good enough for Brian. And apparently, I never was.”
“Don’t you say that. You’re amazing—”
“No.” She shook her head. “I’m not. And Tim was happy to point that out to me.”
“What do you mean?”
“The burglar…” Megan whispered.
I felt my whole face lose its structure. It was like my cheekbones had melted. I knew before she said more where she was going with this, and it was everything I could do to keep from retching.
“It wasn’t a burglar. It was Tim. He came over because he said he wanted to talk about what had happened between us, but he went off on me. First he said he wanted to leave Grace to be with me. I told him that the kiss was a mistake, that I didn’t want him to leave his wife and I didn’t have feelings for him. His whole attitude changed. He started yelling at me. Said that if I had kept my boyfriend satisfied in the first place, he wouldn’t have to fuck another man’s wife.” Megan was shaking. “Then when Tim heard you come through the door, he freaked and ran.”
“Oh, God, Meg. I’m so sorry he said that. He’s an asshole.” I knew how it felt to be manipulated by Tim. He was a vicious, miserable man who wanted to drag everyone down with him. I hugged Megan closer. Just the thought of Tim disgusted me. Knowing he had touched my best friend, one of the nicest, sweetest people in the world, sickened me. He had taken advantage of her, drunk and upset. Then he had shown up to make her suffer more and drive the knife home.
Truthfully, I didn’t even know how to process all of this. I hated Tim. But I loved Megan. All I could do was support her and be there for Simon when it all eventually erupted. Megan was a good person and this was an awful situation. On top of everything else, Simon was a child caught between two cheating parents. I hoped he wouldn’t be the one hurt in the end.
“I’m here for you, Meg. We’ll figure this out.”
“Th-thanks. I’m so sorry, Kate.”
“Shhh, you don’t have anything to be sorry about.” Her whimpers made my heart sink.
“D-do you ever wish you could just escape…leave all the badness behind you…and start fresh?”
I nodded. “All the damn time.”
Chapter Nineteen
Adam pulled my chair out, then seated himself. The restaurant was elegant, with soft lighting and a warm atmosphere. I had offered to cancel my plans and stay home with Megan tonight, but she insisted I go, swearing that she wanted to be alone.
I tried to focus on the incredible evening and the even more incredible man I was sitting across from. The dress Emma had picked out for me really was amazing.
Adam and I were halfway through our hors d’oeuvres when the light conversation about our day and plans for the weekend turned more serious. With all the commotion of the afternoon, anxiety was buzzing just below the surface of my skin.
“Did you like your apartment?” Adam asked, eyeing me from over the wine glass.
I nodded.
“Have you given any more thought to my offer?”
I was learning that when Adam was entering a conversation where he was unsure about the outcome, he approached it from a business standpoint.
“What? Me moving in with you full-time? The only thing you’ve been demanding over and over this past month? That offer?” I smiled.
He didn’t. Because Adam was dead serious. I had thought about it. A lot. And tonight I wanted to tell him that yes, I wanted to move in.