Next Door Secrets (Secrets Series Book 2) Page 8

  “I’m not saying that. Just don’t sleep with someone—even someone you think you love—because everyone else is doing it.”

  “I don’t think I’m in love. I am in love.” Hannah’s eyebrows pulled downward and Beth could see she’d said the wrong thing.

  “Of course you are. I didn’t mean to discount how you feel. But even if you use protection, nothing’s one hundred percent. I’d hate to see you derail your college and career plans with an unexpected pregnancy.”

  “Like you did.”

  Beth didn’t know what to say. “I don’t regret that I had you. I think you’re amazing, but I hate that I wasn’t mature enough to raise you myself.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. I’d do anything to go back and keep you. Giving you to the Taylors was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I knew they’d take good care of you, but it still tore me apart. Just remember that having sex isn’t like it is in the movies. You hardly ever hear them stop to discuss birth control or STDs or what they’d do with an unplanned pregnancy. People just fall into bed without thinking of the consequences and Hollywood makes it look like fun.”

  Hannah chewed on her lower lip. “I think I’m old enough. I appreciate where you’re coming from and all, but I want to sleep with Ryan.”

  “Maybe you should talk to your mom about going on the Pill.”

  Another eye roll. “I can’t talk to her. She still treats me like I’m six instead of sixteen.”

  Warning bells blared inside Beth’s head. She wasn’t sure how to walk this tightrope between her child and her adoptive mother. The last thing she wanted was to alienate either of them. But she couldn’t stand the thought of Hannah making the same mistakes she had.

  Hannah pulled one knee up to her chest. “Would you take me to get a prescription?”

  “I don’t know that it’s my place.”

  “Never mind. I’ll just tell Ryan he has to wear a condom even though he said he hates them.”

  Something inside of Beth cried out No! She didn’t want her daughter’s future to depend on some teenaged boy she’d never met. Would Ryan “forget” the condom or convince her he didn’t need to put it on? “You really should talk to Connie.”

  “Even if I did, there’s no way she’d take me to get birth control. And in Texas, I can’t get it myself until I’m eighteen.”

  She was only sixteen, one of the youngest in her class. In a few months, Hannah would turn seventeen. Too young to do such an adult thing, with such severe consequences. “Hannah you’ll be going to college soon and who knows if you and Ryan will even be in the same state? Why don’t you wait until either you can convince your mom or until you’re old enough to get the Pill yourself?”

  Hannah sighed. “You could take me to the doctor.”

  There was nothing Beth wanted more than to protect Hannah from the pain she’d suffered. “I shouldn’t. Your mother. . . .”

  “That’s just it. Don’t try to act like my mother because I already have one. I need you to be different. I need you to be my friend.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  A hysterical scream from Hannah’s bedroom jolted Beth awake the next morning. Her eyes wide, Beth sprang from Parker’s bed and ran into the guest room.

  Still in the Olympic T-shirt and sweatpants that she’d slept in, Hannah sat on her bed clinging to her cellphone. Her fingers moved like mad, sending a text.

  “Are you OK?” Beth asked. Wrapped in a white terry cloth robe, Parker hovered behind her.

  Without even looking up, Hannah shook her head. A moment later, she finished typing and allowed her thumbs to rest. “I can’t believe it. Ryan cheated on me last night. He’s in Florida for spring break and he sent me a photo of him kissing some girl.”

  Beth looked at Parker and whispered that she’d handle things. As he left, she sat on the edge of the bed. “Why would he do that?”

  “His friend used his phone to send the picture.” Hannah pulled up the photo. It showed two people French kissing at a party. Their eyes looked droopy as if they were drunk. “When I called Ryan, he wouldn’t answer his phone, so I texted him. He confessed and said that he wants to see other people.”

  Shaking her head, Beth felt her hackles rise. “In a text? What a jerk.” Immediately she worried that Hannah might defend her boyfriend.

  “Asshole is more like it.” Hannah scowled at her phone as if waiting for Ryan to respond, but he didn’t. She shot off another quickly typed message to him. No response. She dialed, but he didn’t answer. “I was going to give myself to him. Why couldn’t he wait?” Her shoulders began to shake as tears formed in her eyes.

  Beth scooted closer and put her arm around Hannah’s shoulders. “Guys can be so cruel.” Part of her felt relieved, though, that she didn’t need to worry about Hannah getting pregnant on prom night. “Better to find out now than later.”

  Hannah shook her head. “Maybe he wouldn’t have slept with her if I hadn’t been holding out on him.”

  “You don’t know that. Some people cheat. That’s what they do.” She rubbed Hannah’s back, reminding herself that she didn’t need another mother, she needed a friend. How exactly could Beth do that?

  “I should’ve gone to Florida instead of coming here.”

  That stabbed Beth right through the heart.

  Obviously hoping for a response from Ryan, Hannah kept staring at her phone. She wiped away a tear with her fingertips. “I wanted to go to Florida, but Mom wouldn’t let me. Finally, I convinced her to let me visit you guys, only because I reminded her that Parker isn’t going to be around forever.”

  Beth took a deep breath. “Well, I’m glad you visited and I know it means the world to Parker, too. There will be other guys. Trust me. Every guy that ever broke my heart actually did me a favor. I just didn’t realize it at the time. But now I’m with someone who treats me good and I had to go through all of those bad relationships to get here.”

  Hannah pulled away. “No, Ryan was special. We were gonna get married after we graduated from college. He was The One.”

  More deep breaths. Beth laced her fingers together and tried to find the right words. She picked at her cuticles. “What matters is you didn’t lose your virginity to the wrong guy.”

  “You’re not listening. Ryan was the right guy! He just couldn’t wait any longer. I’ll never make that mistake again.”

  “Don’t let Ryan push you into doing something you’ll regret.”

  She shrugged. “No one will want to go out with me if I’m the Virgin Mary.”

  “That’s not true. If a guy really cares about you, he’ll respect your decision.”

  “Don’t preach to me when you just slept with Parker last night.”

  Beth chewed on her thumbnail. She probably shouldn’t have climbed into his bed while Hannah was visiting, but she couldn’t resist. “I’m a lot older than you.”

  “But you’re not married.”

  “That’s true. Things with Parker and I are complicated. If he wasn’t sick. . . .”

  Hannah squeezed her eyes tight. “I know. I’m glad I’m here, but I really wish I could’ve gone to Florida with Ryan, too.”

  Beth appreciated Connie’s overprotectiveness. Otherwise, Hannah probably would’ve gone to Florida and slept with Ryan.

  They sat in silence for a while. Hannah glanced at her phone again. “I can’t believe he won’t even respond to my texts now. Do you think he’s still with her?”

  Shrugging, Beth looked at her wrist, but realized she hadn’t put her watch on yet. “It’s hard to say.”

  “I guess I’m not going to prom.” Hannah’s voice sounded defeated. “And I already bought my dress. All of my friends are going.” She dropped her chin. “I hate him!”

  Beth wanted Hannah to hate him. She did, too. But she worried the way Hannah kept checking her phone that she’d forgive him if he showed a little remorse. “I’m so sorry.” That was the only thing she could think to say without sticking her foot in he
r mouth. Since Hannah continued to glare at the photo of Ryan on her phone, Beth decided to leave her alone. “What would you like for breakfast? I’ll make anything—waffles, eggs, pancakes.”

  “I’m not hungry.”

  Of course. Beth slipped out the door and closed it behind her. She walked back to Parker’s room to find him already dressed.

  “How is she?” he asked.

  “Crushed. Her boyfriend cheated on her and she has the photo to prove it.”

  He crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Technology sure has changed dating, hasn’t it?”

  “And not for the better.”

  CHAPTER TEN

  Parker was glad that Beth’s boss had let her take a few days off at the last minute to spend with Hannah. Especially since it was his fault she hadn’t given prior notice. Unfortunately, Hannah moped around his place and refused to go anywhere with them. On Thursday Beth had to go to her office for an important meeting.

  After she kissed him good-bye, he felt ill-equipped to deal with a miserable teenaged girl on his own. He knocked on the guest bedroom door. When Hannah didn't answer, he pushed the door open and saw that she was awake, staring at the ceiling.

  “Want to see Amish country?” he asked. “People ride around in horse-drawn buggies and there’s a wonderful restaurant called Das Essenhaus where we could have lunch.”

  She shrugged.

  That was the extent of Hannah’s enthusiasm. She hadn’t smiled or laughed since Saturday and it weighed him down. “Want to go to the Y and swim?”

  "I just want to stay here," she said.

  He shook his head, closed the door and went to work on his laptop.

  An hour later, she finally crawled out of bed and drank some orange juice. "I'm bored."

  He perked up. "What do you want to do? We can do anything you want." Except skydive. Hopefully she wasn’t still holding that against him.

  "I’d like to see where you work."

  “Really?” It would be his own Take Your Daughters to Work Day. “Great. I’ll go change. There are fresh towels in the bathroom if you’d like to take a shower.”

  It took her thirty minutes to pull herself together.

  Dressed in his usual slacks, Brooks Brothers shirt and tie, he drove them to the office. As they walked down the hall of Mall Land corporate headquarters, he led her into each executive’s office. “This is Hannah, she’s here observing today.” He stopped himself from introducing her as his daughter. No one needed to know the complicated history about how he had a teenaged daughter he’d never once mentioned. They all shook Hannah’s hand and smiled. After all, no one questioned the man who was responsible for their large paychecks.

  At the end of the hall they made their way into his office. Large windows formed one corner, offering a view of busy streets below. In the center stood his mahogany desk and off in the other corner was a seating area. He gestured for Hannah to make herself comfortable. “Would you like some coffee or tea?”

  “Water would be good.” She sat on the small couch and glanced at the Business Weekly magazines fanned out on the coffee table.

  Parker pushed a button on his desk phone. “Tina, could you bring two waters, please?” A minute later, his petite secretary with a girl-next-door demeanor brought them Evian. “Tina, this is Hannah. She’s going to be spending the day with us.”

  Smiling, Tina nodded and waited for more instructions. “Nice to meet you.”

  Hannah unscrewed the lid. “You, too.”

  Ignoring his water, Parker sat down at his desk and opened up his e-mail. “Oh, I have a million messages here.” He looked up at Hannah, worried she’d get bored. “Would you like to read the Wall Street Journal?”

  She shrugged.

  No, that wouldn’t appeal to a teenager on Spring Break. “Would you like to meet our interns?”

  Again, she shrugged. Her brown eyes looked glazed.

  “Tina, would you track down the interns and ask them to come in here?” He felt bad for handing Hannah off, but he couldn’t ignore his work. He had something to prove.

  “Sure, Mr. DuBois.”

  Parker smiled. “Tina, how many times have I told you to call me Parker?”

  Flustered, Tina headed for the exit, but then stopped and pointed at Parker. “Ron Stevens sent over an estimate for the lawn maintenance. He said to check your e-mail.”

  As usual, he scanned his inbox and when he didn’t see Ron Stevens’s bid, he checked his spam folder. That’s when something unusual caught his attention. The subject line was “Peace Corps interview.” He clicked it open and read.

  Dear Parker DuBois:

  We received your application for the Peace Corps and are ready for the next step in the process. I will be in the area on Thursday at 10 a.m. and would like to interview you face-to-face. Please call 202-555-3099 to confirm.

  Peace,

  Caleb McDaniels

  His pulse accelerated. He checked the time. 9:29. “I can’t believe this.”

  “What?” Hannah asked.

  “I got an e-mail from the Peace Corps. They want to interview me this morning.”

  She put down her water. “You should go!” This was the most enthusiasm Hannah had shown in days.

  “It’s in half an hour. I’m not sure I can even make it. Besides, it’s a crazy idea.”

  “You said it’s your dream.”

  He rapped his fingertips across his desk. Was it possible?

  Hannah sat on the edge of her seat, watching him. “Don’t think. Just go. What can it hurt?”

  His fingers kept thrumming while he considered it. Grabbing his phone, he dialed. His heart pounded when a male voice answered. “Caleb McDaniels? This is Parker DuBois. I just received your e-mail.” Why hadn’t he checked his spam folder sooner?

  “I’m glad to hear from you. Can you meet me at the Java Lounge in half an hour?”

  “Sure. Should I bring anything?”

  “I already have all of your paperwork.”

  If traffic were light, he might make it across town in time. He made eye contact with Hannah who mouthed, “Go.” “I’m on my way.” He hung up the phone. “I’m meeting him at a coffee shop. Want to come along?”

  Just then the three interns walked in. Parker introduced them to Hannah and Larry offered her a treat from the Dunkin’ Donuts box in his hand.

  Hannah pushed her long, brown hair behind her ear and almost smiled. “Sure.” Rising, she selected a chocolate glazed. “Where do you go to school?” She took a small bite.

  “Michael and I are roommates at Notre Dame,” Larry said.

  Hannah swallowed her food. “I’m thinking of going there, too.”

  Larry raised his eyebrows. “It’s the best. Like the Ivy League of the Midwest.”

  After waiting a beat, Elaine stepped forward. “And I go to I.U.”

  Parker started jingling the keys in his pocket. “Hannah, I’ve got to go. Are you ready?”

  She looked at the donut in her hand as if she didn’t know what to do with it. “Um. . . . I could stay here, if you want.”

  Elaine cleared her throat. “She could help us with our project.” She faced Hannah. “We’re brainstorming ways to make Mall Land appeal to young adults without children.”

  Parker checked Hannah’s reaction; she nodded, then took another bite. “If you’re OK, I need to go.” The interns always seemed to be sharing inside jokes and laughing about their weekend activities, so hopefully Hannah would find them more interesting than sitting in on his interview. “Have fun.” As soon as the words left his lips, he felt stupid.

  He addressed Larry, Michael and Elaine. “Try to get some work done, you guys.”

  Balancing the box in one hand, Larry took a powdered donut and nodded. He still had white crumbs in his moustache from the last one he ate. Except for Elaine, Parker wasn’t too impressed with the interns’ work ethics this semester. They seemed to need constant direction and praise for the smallest of accomplishments. Plus the
y ate a lot of donuts.

  Remembering he had more pressing matters to worry about, he headed for his SUV.

  He zoomed through the first few intersections, but once he was on Grape Road, traffic stopped. The light in the distance turned green, yet the cars in front of him remained still. Craning his head, he saw that there’d been an accident in the other lane. The light eventually turned yellow then red, all without him moving an inch. He hit the steering wheel in frustration.

  A check of his watch revealed that he had eight minutes left. Again the light went from green to yellow to red but nothing else changed. He shook his head and looked around him at the other drivers, some of whom appeared to be yelling and others busy talking on their cell phones. People in the left lane were merging into his in order to get around the accident. On his right was a poor guy trying to exit a gas station. He didn’t have a chance.

  After the light turned green again, the car in front of Parker moved a few feet. Parker looked over to the gas station where there were now two cars lined up trying to exit. His good nature battled with his personal agenda. Keeping his foot on his brake, he waved for one of the drivers to merge in front of him. The guy waved back and smiled. Then the stoplight turned red and Parker felt mixed emotions.

  Once again he was late. Although this time it wasn’t his fault, at least. Over the last few weeks, he’d noticed he would forget important meetings or conference calls until Tina would remind him and he’d arrive late. He’d noticed the looks people exchanged across the table, but no one had dared say anything to his face because he was the founder of Mall Land. Perhaps he needed to step aside and let healthier executives lead the company now. And going to Africa to help small business owners set up shop was the perfect excuse to walk away. He’d be happy, the company would thrive and no one would need to know about his terminal disease. No one would need to feel sorry for him.

  He checked his watch as he dashed inside the coffee shop. Looking around the occupied tables, he wondered how he would know Caleb McDaniels. He inhaled the floral-enzymatic aroma of Ethiopian coffee as he heard the grinder whirring. Then he saw a man wearing an unusual round cap in yellow, green and red. That had to be him. The man smiled and Parker walked over to shake his hand. “I’m Parker and you must be Caleb. Nice hat.”