Asher started to smile, thinking that Jenna was joking. But his grin quickly dropped when he realized that she wasn’t.
“Bree as in Breanna your best friend Bree?” Bree and Jenna had been friends since kindergarten. They were more like sisters than friends. She’d been the only witness they had at their wedding. The bailiff was the other signature on the marriage certificate.
“That’s the one.”
“Are you sure?”
Jenna just stared at him and he got his answer.
“How did you…when did you find out?”
“About two years ago, I walked in on them talking in the pantry. They weren’t doing anything or even standing super close to each other, but I don’t know, I just got a vibe. But I ignored it. I told myself I was being paranoid, like I’d always been with you. But I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right so I started watching the two of them. Really watching.
“At first, I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. But then I started to see things. Little things. The way his hand would brush her lower back when he’d walk by her. The way they looked at each other when they thought no one was paying attention. The inside jokes they seemed to have that no one else was in on.
“Then this past year, I sort of got distracted with everything Blake was going through, and forgot about it. Or at least put it on the back burner. But when she came to live with you, things started coming back into focus. About a month ago, I put spyware on his phone and laptop and I read all of their texts and emails to each other which, lucky me, included picture messages of the X-rated variety.” Jenna’s eyes started watering and out of habit, he reached out and touched her knee in support.
“I’m so sorry, Jen.” Asher hated seeing Jenna cry. It had always been a soft spot for him, which is why she’d warned him about Blake being able to turn on the tears.
She sniffed and wiped away the tears that had fallen down her cheeks as she straightened her shoulders. “It had been going on for four years. Four. Years. And I had no idea. I mean, I did, but not really. If I hadn’t seen the proof with my own eyes, I never would have actually thought they were capable of it.”
“People can surprise you.” He knew that first hand.
Jenna’s lips pursed as more tears fell down her face. “I’m sorry, Asher. I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like this. I was weak and lonely, and honestly, I thought you would fight for me. For us. That’s no excuse, but it is the truth.
“And when you didn’t, when you didn’t fight at all, I had to move away. It just hurt too much to be in the same zip code as you were. I didn’t want to see you. I knew that if I saw you with someone else, it would kill me. But I never considered what it was doing to you, what I put you through.”
“Jenna, what you did is not the same as what James and Bree are doing. I left a long time before you did. Yes, I was legally your husband, but that was just on paper. For all intents and purposes, you were a single mom. That’s why I didn’t fight. I knew that I didn’t have a right to. I hadn’t earned the right to fight for you or Blake.
“And, honestly, I thought you would be happier with James the accountant. He would be home every night for dinner and I thought he worshipped you. If I thought for a second that he’d ever hurt you, he wouldn’t have gotten the chance to.” Asher might have been a shit father and husband, but he was fiercely protective. He would never let someone be a part of his daughter or ex’s life if he had any idea they would hurt them.
“I miss that.” A sad grin lifted on Jenna’s lips as she placed a hand on his cheek and tilted her head to the side. “That fire in your eyes that says you’ll kill anyone that even looks at me wrong.”
“Just because we’re not together anymore doesn’t mean that I don’t care about you, Jenna. That will never change. You are the mother of my child and my oldest friend. Divorce papers don’t change that.”
She nodded and he saw that she was doing her best to put on a brave face and not break down any more than she already had.
“What are you going to do?” he asked, not because he was worried about when she was going to leave his house but because he was genuinely concerned for her. “What’s the plan?”
Jenna always had a plan. She was usually five steps ahead of everyone, which had to have made the reality that the two people she trusted the most in her life were doing what they were doing right under her nose even more traumatizing.
“Right, the plan. About that, I haven’t said anything to Blake but I was actually thinking about moving here.”
“Here as in California?”
A nervous smile spread on her face as she wiped the remaining tears off her cheeks. “Here as in Hope Falls.”
He just stared at her, unsure of how he felt about that.
“I love it here,” she continued. “And, more importantly, Blake loves it here. I thought I could just send her off to live with you but I miss her. I don’t want to just see her on vacations and summers. Like you have for the past seven years.” She started to cry again. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry that I made you be a part time dad.”
“It’s okay, Jenna. Really. It’s okay.”
If he ever had a shot at forgiving himself, then she needed to forgive herself. Neither of them were innocent in the situation, but they hadn’t hurt each other out of spite or just being assholes to each other. They weren’t bad people. They were just two fucked up people who got pregnant so they got married. It wasn’t a particularly original story.
Jenna nodded and took in a deep breath. “Anyway, I’ve been talking to Lauren about some places and putting some feelers out for jobs. I actually have a phone interview in…” She looked down at her watch. “Shit, in five minutes.” When she lifted her head back up she said, “But if me being here, I mean not here in this house but here in Hope Falls is not okay with you, just say the word and then I’ll cancel the call and figure something else out.”
“No. I think it’s a good idea. It will be good for Blake.” And that is what he’d promised himself. That he would make Blake the priority. Living in the same town with both of her parents would be the best thing for his daughter.
