Page 12 of Falling for the Unexpected

“The only birthday gift I need,” Jim stated, grinning at me. “And my brownies, of course.” He winked, and then gave both Stella and Marla a bear hug. I smiled fondly at Stella, who was grinning from ear to ear, and I was really glad I’d decided to come. Even though they babysat Stella several days a week they always acted like the last time they saw her had been ages ago. I loved that about them. They were the image of happiness as they held Stella, who was giggling and happy with all attention. Then my eyes took in the rest of the kitchen and my stomach dropped.

Sitting at the island was Trent, his friends Kyle and Erik, and someone I hadn’t seen in two years—Kyle’s younger sister, Addison. There were a lot of windows, all of them open, but all the light from the late morning sun seemed to shine directly on her.

The only interaction I’d ever had with her was when I had showed up at her house looking for Brad so I could inform him that I was pregnant. Seeing her staring back at me with her own frozen, tense expression made me re-live that day. And I knew she was going through the same thing. I felt clammy all over, my stomach rolled with tension, and I felt a little nauseous. I figured, at some point, our paths would cross. How could they not, considering the complicated relationships of everyone involved? And if anyone had told me she’d be here, I probably would have used Brad’s excuse and avoided this moment. But we were both here now and I reminded myself that Addison had a longer history with this family than I did and she’d been the one hurt. If she had things to say to me, I’d take it, but I hoped it wouldn’t turn ugly.

“Hi there,” I managed to squeak out at all four of them. I stood by the doorway, not willing to venture in any further.

“Hey,” Trent answered, getting up to give me a hug. I returned it hesitantly while stepping back a little. Marla and Jim usually let me initiate physical contact. They figured out early on that it made me uncomfortable at times. Especially during tense or stressful moments, which was pretty much all the time being married to Brad. Trent had never really noticed or he figured I would say something if it bothered me. With an encouraging smile, he moved over to grab his niece out of his mother’s arms. Jim had his arm casually around his wife; their need to always be close was evident. He gave me a fatherly smile while Marla looked between everyone.

Erik gave a small wave and a close-lipped smile and then retreated toward the back of the kitchen in an attempt to avoid getting caught in the middle of a potential showdown.

“Hi, Simone,” Kyle said, his deep voice was kind… and sexy.

His voice drew my gaze to his and his stare made me feel like he waslookingat me, like he really saw me—it always did. I wasn’t used to that from a man, especially one as attractive as Kyle. I’d only been in the same room as him a few times over the past two years, and we rarely talked to each other. The longest conversation we’d had was when he had been seated in my section at the restaurant, and that was only because I had a job to do. It was the only reason I hadn’t been as rattled since I knew I couldn’t screw up at work. But here, without my job as my shield, I felt a little exposed.

“Um… hi there,” I muttered, my throat dry. God, I was an idiot, I’d already said hi. I clammed up, not sure what else to say since every single person was watching me. It made me feel a little vulnerable, like it was me versus all these other people. I was nervous all over again but for different reasons this time. The heaviness in my stomach was gone, but the kitchen suddenly felt a little too warm.

“Did you have a nice drive here?” Kyle continued. It was obvious he was trying to lessen the tension in the room and I was grateful for that.

“Yeah… it was nice,” I said, slowly. I felt my cheeks burn, wishing I wasn’t so nervous.

Seeing Kyle though always reminded me of the day he’d opened the door. So tall and lean, his eyes peering down at me curiously and his light brown hair a bit tousled. He’d looked handsome in his gray slacks and an aqua-blue shirt. The entirety of his focus had been on me, and I’d almost forgotten why I was there. Or that maybe I’d rung the wrong house, but glad if I had. I’d always thought Brad was the best looking guy in San Diego, but the minute my eyes had landed on Kyle… it’d all gone to hell.

Today, he was in a plain green shirt; the color nearly matched his eyes, and dark fitted jeans. He looked like someone who had his act together and there was a quiet confidence to him that was almost intimidating. I was always tongue-tied around him and didn’t know how to be easy-going when he talked to me, or any of Trent’s friends, really. I was the ‘other woman’. They never made me feel like that, but I had a difficult time not feeling it when other people were around that knew all the sordid details.

I licked my lips and darted my eyes away, looking around the kitchen, taking a moment to collect myself. I concentrated on not saying something stupid or making a fool out of myself. Without Brad here I couldn’t just fade into the background. Brad usually made a scene right away so I was used to not being the center of attention. Not today, though. I felt everyone’s eyes on me.

Hi,” Addison finally said, somewhat forcefully. She sounded just as nervous as I was feeling and it was almost a relief since she didn’t look angry or like she was about to yell at me.

“Where’s my other son?” Jim asked, breaking the silence after our awkward hellos. Another uncomfortable silence fell as everyone turned toward me. Jim even looked behind me, as though Brad would walk in any minute.

Flustered, I tried to come up with an excuse more plausible than the one Brad had given, but I couldn’t. “Brad isn’t feeling well,” I lied, feeling absolutely terrible for doing so. Everyone just stared at me for a moment and I knew that none of them believed me.

“That’s bullshit!” I heard Trent mumble from beside me. “What’s the real reason he isn’t here?”

“Watch your language in front of Stella,” Marla reprimanded, glaring at Trent.

Trent looked appropriately chastised, giving his mother an apologetic look. I glanced over at my brother-in-law mutely. He and Brad had similar facial features but their looks were otherwise very different. So were their manners. But I could feel Trent’s anger radiating off of him, which felt the same as when Brad was mad at me. I almost shrank back from it. I knew he wasn’t mad at me, but his fury still made me uncomfortable. I just stood there frozen in place, not knowing what to say. I didn’t want to hurt his parents’ feelings or make things worse.

Trent then turned back to me calmer than a moment before. “It’s because I’m here, isn’t it?” he asked, still angry but keeping his voice milder.

They all knew that was part of it. Still, I wanted to somehow give a better explanation, one that would not make Brad look like a terrible person. I looked to my daughter making sure the tense conversation wasn’t having an effect on her, but Stella was none the wiser. I felt a slight pang at the way Trent held my daughter close to his chest—the way a dotting, loving uncle would. Even Trent’s friends showered Stella with attention when they were around her. It was a stark contrast to the fact that Brad rarely held Stella, or played with her, or even looked at her. I’d been ignoring that glaring fact but I couldn’t anymore. She was currently playing with the buttons of his light blue, button-down shirt with a content expression on her chubby, cute little face. Here, surrounded by her family, Stella was genuinely happy.

“I don’t know, Trent…” I said, quietly, staring at my daughter, “all he told me was he wasn’t coming.”

“Don’t worry about it, sweetie,” Jim said as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. His fatherly hug felt like he was on my side, but he didn’t hold on for long, much to my relief. At this point, I really just needed some space. “More importantly, where are my brownies?” He winked, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t really work, but I pretended it did.

I smiled back, tightly. “Oh. They’re in the car along with Stella’s things. I’ll be right back.” I quickly exited the kitchen, the smile falling right off my face as soon as I was out of view. I took several deep breaths. I needed a few minutes to myself before I had to face everyone again—for the rest of the day. Not only was I upset with Brad for choosing to not be here, I was still a little shaken from coming face to face with Addison.

“Simone, wait up,” I heard a voice say, just as I reached the door.

I paused with my hand on the knob and waited for Addison to catch up. Panic had me freezing in place and wondering if now was the time she was going to unleash her anger on me. I gulped, terrified but also wanting the confrontation that I had been anticipating to be done already. It was unnerving, knowing that I was going to be alone with the woman my husband betrayed in such a horrible way. I had no idea what she thought of me. Did she know that I was in the dark about their relationship or did she think I was some slut who hooked up with him not caring that he had a fiancée?

I’d heard that she had gone back to San Francisco a couple days after I had interrupted their holiday meal. I had no idea if she was just visiting or was back in town for good now. The various times I’d known she was in San Diego for a visit, I’d always thought about this moment, and apologizing, but now that it was here, I was dreading it.

I turned around when Addison entered the living room. Like her brother, she was tall, lean and the all gray maxi-dress she was wearing made her seem even taller. She was stunning with her green eyes that seemed to pop against her lightly tanned skin; they were slightly lighter in color than her brother’s and I was a little shocked to realize that I could tell the difference. Her light brown hair had streaks of blonde throughout and was up in a chic ponytail that accented her angular cheekbones and oval face. I could see why Brad fell for her.

“You mind if I help?” she asked, grabbing the knob and opening the door for me. “Gotta make sure your famous brownies stay safe from the boys. I hear they’re pretty great.”

I blinked at her slowly. I hadn’t expected this from her. Instead of saying anything, I nodded and we walked silently down the driveway, side by side. The silence, the weight of our history, made us both uneasy. Neither of us uttering another word until we reached the trunk of my car.

She put a hand on my arm. I tensed, but then looked up at her. “Simone, I know we haven’t ever had the chance to talk…” she started, then trailed off and appeared to be thinking of what to say next. “I’ve never blamed you for what happened between Brad and me. Even Brad more or less admitted that you’d had no clue he was engaged…” She paused, swallowing hard. “I thought it was important for you to know that I don’t have any bad feelings toward you. And I’m sorry if you felt like what Brad did to me, to you, was in any way remotely your fault. It wasn’t.”

“Uh… ah, um, well, th-thank you,” I stuttered. Her statement caught me completely off guard. I never expected her to be so nice to me. “That means a lot, Addison. I want you to know that—”

“You don’t have to explain yourself,” she said, gently cutting me off with a kind smile. “Truthfully, I knew things were off with Brad. Once I had time to really reflect on our relationship, I wasn’t that surprised to find out he had been cheating on me. It hurt but all the anger I had was directed at him not you.” She grabbed the brownies from the trunk while I threw the diaper bag over one shoulder. “And please call me Addie. Only Kyle calls me Addison and that’s just when he wants to annoy me.” She rolled her eyes, and then gestured with her head for us to go back inside.

I looked at her for a moment as she walked back to the house. Having this conversation with her had suddenly relieved a burden I’d been carrying around for two years. To have her understanding, as much as her forgiveness was more than I’d ever expected or even deserved. I decided at that moment that Addie had given me the opportunity to let go of my guilt and I needed to take it. I was not responsible for Brad’s behavior. That was something I was reminding myself of more and more each day.