Emma's Secret (17 page)

Thundering footfalls ripped through the ceiling above her, and a mere second later echoed down the stairs. She rushed to tidy up her lists and managed to turn over the details about the birthday moments before Alexis slid into the kitchen.

“I can’t find my bathing suit anywhere.” Hands were on her hips as she sported a bright-yellow Big Bird T-shirt and green knee-length shorts.

Megan sighed. It had taken her only fifteen minutes to realize her bathing suit wasn’t upstairs.

“Where did you put it last?”

Alexis’s brow rose. “If I knew that, I’d be wearing it; don’t you think?”

Megan snorted. “If you think it’s okay to talk to me like that, we can do a beach day tomorrow.”

Alexis thinned her lips but kept quiet.

“Where did you last leave it?” Megan kept her voice calm. This wasn’t a battle she was willing to fight. Not today.

Alex glanced around the room before heading to the patio door.

“We all left our bathing suits outside to dry yesterday. Why is mine the only one left out there?”

Megan stood and gathered the sheets of paper. “Maybe because I asked you last night to bring it inside.” She opened the cupboard by the kitchen desk area and stuffed the papers into it. She’d finish the planning for Alexis’s party later.

“But there are bugs in it now!” In a sudden rage, Alexis turned red in the face as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared.

Megan shrugged. “Guess you should have listened to me last night then.”

“That’s not fair.” Alexis stomped her feet before yanking the sliding door open and heading outside.

Megan watched her retrieve the bathing suit by the tips of her fingers and fling it side to side. Alexis hated bugs. Megan checked her watch again before turning her attention to the sideshow outside. The child was being thorough, at least, in how she was shaking that tiny piece of clothing.

“If you really loved me, you would have brought mine in, too, instead of leaving it outside,” Alexis muttered when she came back inside.

Megan cocked her head to the side. “Excuse me?”

Her daughter stood stoic; arms crossed and lips in a tight line.

“I do love you, Alexis. It’s why I told you to bring your suit inside last night. It’s not my fault if you didn’t.” Everything inside Megan screamed. What was she supposed to do? She was blamed for coddling one child and being too hard on the other. No matter what she did, she couldn’t win. It was as if Alexis expected—

“I bet you brought in Emma’s.” She stared defiantly into Megan’s eyes.

And there it was. It always came back to Emma. She’d noticed Alexis tore up the stairs after Peter told Emma she could go with him to get coffee.

“Why would I do that?”

Alexis’s nostrils flared. “All you care about is Emma. No one else.”

Megan lifted her hands up in exasperation. “Are you kidding me?” Her voice rose an octave as she stared down her daughter. How could she think that?

Kathy had warned her that Alex might lash out like this. Megan had thought she was prepared, but some days she wasn’t sure how to handle this—be a mother to three different children and meet all their needs. She felt like she was failing them all.

“You know Alex, I can’t seem to win with you. What do you expect of me?”

“Love me like you love
her
.”

Megan’s mouth dropped. Had she failed her daughter so much that she thought she wasn’t loved?

“I do love you,” Megan whispered.

Alexis snorted. “Actions speak louder than words, Mom. Isn’t that what you keep telling us?”

“I…Alexis…” Megan wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “What can I do to show you I love you?” It hurt more than she thought it would to know she wasn’t meeting Alexis’s needs. She’d tried so hard, made more of a conscious effort ever since that note came home from Alexis’s teacher before Emma’s return. What else could she do?

“It’s the little things, Mom. Like bringing my bathing suit in.” Defiant, Alexis stood her ground. She reminded Megan so much of herself.

“Both Emma and Hannah brought in their own suits last night when I asked them to. You were the one who promised you would do it after your show was over.” Megan reminded her.

“Oh.” Alexis’s shoulders deflated.

Megan crossed the room and wrapped her arms around her daughter’s rigid body. “I do love you, Alexis. No more and no less than your sisters.” She pressed her lips against her daughter’s hair and waited for a response, but Alexis refused to bend. With a sigh, Megan let go and stepped away. “Go on up and get ready. Then you can help me pack a picnic lunch if you want.” She gently pushed Alexis toward the hallway. “Now, where is your father?” Megan mumbled to herself.

“Right here.”

Megan turned and found both Peter and Emma standing in the front doorway. Emma’s mouth was smeared with chocolate icing, and she held a box of donuts in her hands.

Megan took the proffered coffee Peter held out and waited for Emma to leave the room. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough.”

“And you didn’t step in to help me?” She turned her back, placed the coffee on the counter, and leaned down. An overwhelming sense of exhaustion filled her. She could go back to bed and sleep for hours if she could.

“What did you expect me to do, Meg?” Peter came up and stood behind her.

She turned. “Oh, I don’t know. Support me, maybe? She’s so angry with me, and I don’t know how to reach her anymore.”

“Have you tried listening?”

Megan’s eyes widened as she stared at him in dismay. Not him too?

“Yes, I listened to her. Sure, I could have brought her swimsuit in last night, but to be honest, I didn’t think to check that she’d kept her promise to me. So what? How does that turn into me not loving her?”

Peter shrugged. “Why don’t you take her out on a mother-daughter date like you used to? You haven’t done that with any of the girls since Emma came back.”

Megan closed her eyes, sighed long and deep, and then realized something.

“The alarm didn’t go off when you came in.”

“I figured you’d turned off the system when I left.” Peter walked over to the box on the wall by the front door and pushed buttons.

“No. It was on.” Megan stood behind him and peered over his shoulder.

Peter glanced at his watch. “Are you sure?” Peter half-turned and leaned forward to kiss Megan on the cheek, but she stepped back.

“What took you so long this morning?”

Peter’s eyes widened for a fraction of a second before a smile appeared on his face, but it was enough to catch Megan’s notice.

“It’s hard to say no sometimes.” A sheepish look crossed his face.

“I thought you had a meeting you couldn’t miss?”

Peter shifted his feet. “I do. I didn’t think the coffee run would take as long as it did.”

Megan stepped backward until she stood at the bottom of the stairs. She sat down, pulling her legs up and resting her arms on them. The way Peter’s gaze shifted around the room set her on edge.

“It’s a five-minute drive there and back. Surely it didn’t take twenty minutes for her to eat a donut?” She thought about all the text messages he’d received but wouldn’t tell her about and the way he’d been so distant lately with her. “Did you meet someone there?”

“What?” Peter’s body went rigid, and he fisted his hands at his sides. “No, she just wanted to eat her donut. Don’t make it out to be more than it was.” There was an edge to his tone now.

Megan nodded her head. “Okay.” It was time to drop the subject. “Why don’t you join us at the beach for lunch if you have time after your meeting?”

Peter’s stance relaxed, and he pulled out his keys from his pocket.

“That sounds like a good idea. Noon?”

Megan nodded.

Peter stepped forward and brushed a kiss across Megan’s lips. “I do love you, you know.”

“I know,” she whispered.

She watched him as he walked out the front door and waited for the sound of his vehicle to leave before she stood up. Every time she thought they were going to be okay, something else came up between them, and instead of dealing with it, Megan kept backing down. Why? What happened to the woman who faced things head-on, come hell or high water? Why did she back down now? What was she hoping for?

No. She wasn’t hoping for anything. She was scared. Scared that Peter would realize their marriage wasn’t worth fighting for. He was willing to walk away once, what if he did it again?

Peter loosened his tie as he leaned back in his office chair and sighed. He was half-tempted to kick his feet up on the desk and have a nap. He rolled his neck, groaning at the kinks as they popped, and made a mental note to book a chiropractor appointment.

“You busy?”

Peter cracked open his eyes to see Sam standing in his doorway.

“Swamped,” Peter said. He forced a smile onto his face. The last thing he wanted to do right now was talk with Sam, but he beckoned her in with the hook of his finger. “You look like hell.” He didn’t think he’d ever seen her like this. Gone was the put-together woman men normally drooled over, with her skintight shirts and thigh-high skirts. Dark bags hung beneath her eyes, she wore hardly any makeup, and she’d either just climbed out of bed or was about to go to the gym. Except—he peered at his watch—it was too late in the day for that.

“Thanks for noticing.” Sarcasm dripped from her lips, but Peter ignored it. He was too tired to worry about Sam’s recent emotional roller coaster. He had enough to deal with at home.

“Did you tell her?” Sam dropped into one of the plush seats in front of Peter’s desk. She leaned back and crossed her legs.

Peter shook his head.

“God, you’re stubborn.” Sam gathered her hair together in her hands and quickly pulled it into a ponytail.

“And you’re too insistent. Lay off.” He growled.

Of course he was going to tell Megan, but on his terms. Not Samantha’s.

Sam’s lips tightened until they were a straight line. “I don’t like this. She hates me as it is and thinks there’s something going on between us. I’d prefer to leave on good terms if possible.”

Peter snorted. “Do you honestly care about how my wife feels about us?” He smirked because he knew the answer even before
the sly look on Sam’s face appeared. The only one Sam cared about was herself. Up till now, that never really bothered him. They had a good working relationship. They understood each other’s strengths and weaknesses. While Peter preferred to work with his home-buying clients and creating relationships, Sam was the cutthroat one who went after the larger businesses and local government.

She shrugged. “Not really. But I do care about you, and I see what this is doing to you. You can’t keep secrets from her forever. She deserves to know.”

Peter took a deep breath and stood. He moved beyond his desk and sat in the chair opposite Sam.

“She will know. Once things are finalized. You gave me conditions, and they all haven’t…been met yet.”

Sam leaned forward and placed her hand on Peter’s knee. “I only made those conditions to see if you were serious.” A sad smile filtered across her face.

Peter placed his hand over hers and squeezed. “I am.”

This was what he’d wanted for a long time now, and she’d given it to him on a platter. He cleared his throat and lifted his hand, rubbing his neck as he stood and paced his office.

If she did this—if she gave in and agreed—it would mean the answer to so many problems Peter faced right now. Problems in his marriage, problems with some clients, and definitely problems for his reputation. He valued Samantha for the very reasons others loathed her: She was good at her job, and it didn’t always matter who got in the way.

There was a soft touch on his shoulder. Peter turned and found Samantha behind him.

“Is this really what you want?”

Peter nodded.

Sam squared her shoulders and tilted her head, the gaze in her eyes now steel.

“I’ll have the paperwork done this week. I’ll even provide the champagne when you tell Megan.”

Peter shook his head. “Don’t worry about that. But thank you. I know I’ve asked a lot—”

Sam’s brow rose. “You asked for everything. No holds barred. I taught you well.” She leaned forward and softly kissed his cheek.

Peter stepped back and clasped his hands behind him. He watched as Sam left his office, lingering in the door with a soft smile on her face.

“No regrets, Peter. It’s been a ride…”

E
mma held her hands over her ears. The beach was busier than Megan had expected, filled with the sound of the crashing waves, the noise from the children’s park, and the squawking caws of seagulls as they snatched up stray french fries from the parking lot.

Megan reached into the back of her Jeep and pulled out a multitude of beach bags stuffed with beach toys, towels, water bottles, suntan lotion, hats, extra clothing, and anything else she thought they might need. Megan scanned the crowds on the sand and in the water and looked for a place they could put their stuff.

There were so many people here. She’d known that was likely, but seeing the swarming crowds firsthand unnerved her. She wasn’t sure she could do this, and she was worried about Emma, who was covering her ears. Maybe it was too much, too soon. They could have gone to the local pool where there would have been fewer people. That might have been better.