Elastic Heart: (The Happy Endings Resort Book 6)

by Evelyne Stone

  Kathy’s gaze dropped off me, and turned to Brooke. “No, of course not.”

  I didn’t know what to say, or where to start. Should I just be blunt, or try to make small talk? Instead, I stared at her, while Brooke kept her occupied with news about her kids. Kathy looked to be my parents’ age. She had wrinkles around her mouth and eyes, but other than that, her face was untouched by age. She wasn’t as beautiful as my mother, but she had a cuteness about her. She smiled as Brooke told her about the pregnancy.

  “So, as you know, this is Jade,” Brooke said, elbowing my side.

  “Hi,” I said.

  “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” Kathy told me, smiling.

  I smiled politely.

  “Alright then,” Brooke intervened. “As you know, Jade is here to clean out Henry’s trailer. We had a couple of questions, if you don’t mind?”

  Kathy looked at me, and back to Brooke. Her eyes were wide. “Okay.”

  The waitress interrupted the uncomfortable silence. “Whadya have?”

  Brooke jumped in for me, “She’ll have a large black coffee.”

  I just couldn’t seem to make words exit my mouth. I’d played out this moment in my mind so many times, I thought I’d know exactly what to say to her. Realizing I could have the story wrong, I wasn’t sure what to say anymore.

  My coffee arrived just moments later. My body responded to the first sip, and I moaned in pleasure. Brooke and Kathy looked at me, as if I’d just taken my shirt off.

  “Sorry, I needed caffeine,” I managed to say.

  “I can’t function without caffeine,” Kathy responded, smiling a little bigger.

  “I miss caffeine,” Brooke piped in.

  Kathy’s shoulders dropped. She opened her mouth and closed it again, finally saying, “Jade, I’m so sorry about your father. I miss him every day.”

  Glad she broke the ice, I smiled at her. “I miss him, too. I need to know what happened.”

  “Can you be more specific?” she asked, eyebrows raised.

  “Did you start seeing my father before he left us?” I held my breath waiting for her response.

  She sat up straight, and leaned into me. “What? No, of course not.”

  “I knew it,” Brooke said, smacking her hand on the table.

  Her reaction to my question was not what I’d hoped for. I wanted her to admit what my mother had told me was true. I wanted her to confirm that years of hating my father were for a reason. My chest hurt, and my eyes began to water.

  Brooke rubbed my arm. “You wanted to know the truth.”

  “I don’t know what I want,” I said, trying to hold the tears back.

  Kathy looked between us, shifting in her chair.

  “I’m sorry,” I told her, picking up the napkin to dab my eyes. “It’s just that, my mom said he left us for you.”

  Kathy’s shock was written plainly on her face, and she leaned over the table, taking my hand in hers. “I can’t imagine what you must be going through. Your father loved you more than anything.”

  The tears flowed freely from my eyes. I hated that I’d turned into one of those girls who could cry at the drop of a hat. I was able to hold my shit together for so long…until I drove into Endings.

  “It’s not my place to tell you what really happened,” Kathy said, squeezing my hand. I could tell she was torn, wanting me to know the truth, but not wanting to be the one to confirm my own mother lied to me. “Maybe you should talk to your mom?”

  “She won’t tell her the truth,” Brooke answered for me. “That’s why we came to talk to you.”

  Kathy nodded, looking down at the table.

  I gathered my emotions, wiping the last tear. “You know what happened. Please tell me.”

  She shook her head. “I loved your father. He had a lot of baggage when he came here, but his smile never wavered. That man could walk into the room, and it would become brighter. He asked me out about six months after the divorce was finalized. I’ve never been happier than when I was around Henry.” She took a deep breath, blowing it out slowly, fighting back tears.

  Knowing I was being insensitive, but desperate for answers, I asked her, “Is there anything else?”

  “Now, I won’t tell you the details, but I will tell you there are emails in your father’s computer that may give you more information.”

  “Let’s go find them,” Brooke said, gulping down her apple juice.

  How she could be so excited about finding information that could turn my world upside down, was beyond me. I wanted answers, but excitement was not something I was feeling. If I hadn’t known Brooke was a good soul, I may have punched her.

  I turned my attention to Kathy. “I’m sorry I’ve hated you so long.”

  “I would have hated me, too,” she said, standing up, and placed money on the table. “After you find the answers, maybe we can have a real talk.”

  “I’d like that,” I said, meaning it. If she turned out to be the innocent one in all this mess, I did want to talk to her more. She was, after all, the last person my father was with, before he left us all forever.

  I watched her walk out the front door.

  “Let’s go,” Brooke said, smiling so big her white teeth shined.

  My stomach growled in protest. “Let me get something to eat, and then we need to go shopping. I may have a date tonight.”

  “What?” she yelled out. A few of the customers glared over in our direction.

  “Well, funny story, Zack asked me to go to the beach with him tonight. I may have imagined it, but I wasn’t that drunk, contrary to popular belief.”

  She clapped her hands, and jumped in her chair. “Could this day get any better?”

  Brooke obviously needed to get out of the house more, if my drama was making her day. If the tables were turned, would I have been enjoying this as well? Probably. Who doesn’t love a good, real-life drama? I just wish I could fast-forward this episode.

  Chapt

  er 7

  After a very long hour in the local boutique, trying on clothes I would never wear, I found the perfect outfit for a night by the beach. Brooke kept pushing me to go for a low-cut tank, but my chest wasn’t big enough to show off. I picked a dark beige, lace hoodie and cut-off denim shorts that showed off my legs.

  “All right, I suckered her into staying one more hour,” Brooke said, getting off the phone with her babysitter. “Let’s go in.”

  We were parked outside of my dad’s trailer.

  “Come on,” she said, taking the keys from my hand.

  I followed her, dragging my feet.

  The inside looked bigger without the couch. Brooke went directly into the bedroom. She came out a minute later, holding up a laptop, smiling like she’d won the lottery.

  “You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?” I asked. I took a seat at the table.

  She giggled. “We have drama happening around here all the time, but this is my first opportunity to have a front row seat.”

  “You’re a terrible friend.”

  “No, I’m not,” she rolled her eyes at me. “If it wasn’t for me, you’d be crying in the corner.”

  Damn, she was right.

  “Hopefully, this isn’t password protected,” I hoped, opening the laptop and starting it up.

  No password was required. The desktop didn’t have much and the files that were there were alphabetized. I clicked on the “Divorce” file, while Brooke watched over my shoulder.

  “Looks like your typical legal bullshit,” she said.

  The child support documents jumped out at me. He’d been ordered to pay my mom almost $700 a month.

  “She always told me he didn’t help her out,” I accidentally said out loud.

  “Hmmm,” Brooke replied.

  I closed the files, not understanding any of it.

  “What’s that one?” she asked, pointing to a folder marked “Evidence.”

  The folder contained pdf’s, all of them named using dates
. I opened the first one.

  “These are screen shots of emails between my mom and Matt. Why would he have these?”

  “I don’t know,” Brooke replied, moving in closer to the screen. “Looks like these were written when they were first getting to know each other.”

  I didn’t want to read them. They weren’t my business. Brooke grabbed the mouse and scrolled down. I stood up, and let her sit down. It felt like I was invading my mom’s privacy.

  “Why would he have those?” I wondered out loud.

  “All the other files are more emails.”

  I opened the bottom drawer, looking under the pile of returned letters for any clues.

  “This last email was written after they’d hooked up for a weekend.”

  “Please spare me the details,” I said.

  “Wait, did your dad leave right after the new year?”

  “Yes. Why?”

  “Was your mom with you the weekend after New Year’s?”

  I thought back. “She went out of town that weekend with some friends. Why?”

  “You may want to look at this one,” she said, moving so I could sit back down.

  The letter to Matt was thanking him for the best weekend of her life. She went on to say that while she knew she was in love with him, she wasn’t yet ready to leave her family.

  “What the hell?” I asked out loud.

  Brooke stayed silent. I really didn’t blame her. What do you say to someone when they just realized their mom was cheating?

  I shook my head, hoping it would help this make sense. It didn’t. The room was getting hotter, and I was having a hard time breathing. I jumped up, and ran outside. Brooke followed me.

  Pacing back and forth, I went over the events of my father leaving in my head. Mom had gone out of town. Dad took me shopping at the mall. He was on the phone a lot with his best friend. Mom came back, and they had a fight. I stayed over at a friend’s house that night. Two weeks later, he left.

  “My mom cheated on my dad, and he left.” Hearing myself saying those words made my chest feel heavy. I bent down, trying to catch my breath.

  Brooke rubbed my back. “Breathe, Jade, or you’re gonna pass out.”

  My phone rang. I reached for it in my back pocket. “It’s my mom.”

  “Don’t answer it…not right now,” Brooke said.

  I looked down at my phone, and knew I should ignore her call, but I was too angry and hurt. I needed to scream at someone.

  Putting the phone up to my ear, I screamed, “How could you? How could you do this to your own husband? To me?”

  “Where are you?” she asked.

  “What the hell does that matter?”

  “I drove to the resort. I’m parked in front of your room, now tell me where you are.”

  How could she sound so calm? I felt like the whole world was caving in on me, while she didn’t sound surprised. I knew one thing…she was the last person I wanted to see.

  I ended the call. “Can we go to your place? Like right now?”

  Brooke looked confused, but she said, “Sure.”

  I ran inside to grab my purse. Brooke was in her van waiting for me.

  “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” she asked.

  “My mom is here.”

  She nodded, and drove to her house without any more questions.

  ~*~

  “I can’t go out with Zack tonight!”

  “You can, and you will,” Brooke demanded, handing me a towel. “Get in the shower, and I’ll do your makeup.”

  “But he’s gorgeous and yummy, and I’m all like…gross.”

  “Stop whining,” she groaned. “If he puts out, you’ll feel much better in the morning.” She winked at me with her award-winning smile.

  “I’m in no position to have sex tonight!” Thinking about his body gave me chills. “I bet he’s a really good kisser.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he is.”

  “Besides, why would I want to start something I can’t finish?” I asked.

  She rolled her eyes. “Maybe you should stop thinking. You need to get laid, and he asked you out, which is basically an invitation to jump him.”

  “No, it’s not. Dork.”

  She left me alone in her guest bathroom, with my naughty, and very inappropriate, thoughts. Horrible timing. I looked at myself in the mirror. Red, puffy eyes glared back at me. She was crazy to think I should go on a date after the shit I’d been through. I needed a shot of something strong, and a bed to pass out in, not a make-over.

  “Don’t forget to shave your legs,” she hollered through the door.

  “You suck,” I replied.

  I could hear her giggling down the hall. There was no way to win this fight.

  The hot shower felt amazing. The water wasn’t able to wash away the pain, but the bags under my eyes shrunk.

  Staring at myself in the mirror, I noticed a change. Aside from the puffy eyes, something was different. My hazel eyes looked the same. My lips were still pouty and pink. I couldn’t find the change, but something was off. I most definitely did not look sexy enough to go out with Zack. What was the point of going out with someone, if I was leaving? And worse, what if I liked him?

  I wrapped the robe Brooke had left me around my body, and opened the door, fully intent on convincing her that I shouldn’t be out in public right now. I walked down the hallway, and should have stopped when I heard voices in the kitchen, but my common sense was all out of whack.

  Zack, Michael, and Brooke all stared at me when I entered the room.

  “Oh my God, you’re early,” I said, feeling mortified. Knowing how shitty I looked, I turned, and ran back down the hall before Zack could tell me he’d changed his mind about our date.

  Brooke followed me, giggling.

  “Why do you find such humor in my humiliation?” I asked, sitting on the toilet seat with my hands covering my face.

  “Oh, stop. You look great in that robe. Maybe you should wear it tonight?” Her giggling turned into a full fledge laugh.

  I threw a comb at her.

  “Okay, okay, okay. I’m done,” she said, trying to compose herself. “Let’s get you presentable.”

  “I don’t think that’s possible. Look at me,” I groaned.

  “Are you kidding? After everything you’ve been through, you’re still hot! Now, sit still, and let me give you some added sparkle.”

  I didn’t have the energy to argue. My phone beeped at me numerous times, while I endured the torture of being a human sized doll. I knew it was my mother, and I couldn’t care less that she was worried. Maybe she would take the time to think about what she’d done. The no-talking tactic worked on me growing up. There was nothing worse than when my dad had looked at me in disappointment, and threaten, “we’ll talk about it in the morning.” I’d spend the entire night worried about what he’d think of me. It was my mom’s turn to worry about everything I’d have to say to her.

  “And, perfect!” Brooke stood back, appreciating her masterpiece.

  “Thank you,” I said, getting up and heading towards the door. I needed to get dressed.

  “Don’t you even want to look in the mirror?”

  No, I didn’t. Not wanting to hurt her feelings, though, I turned around, and stood next to her in front of the large mirror.

  “Holy shit. How did you do that?” I asked, shocked that the bags weren’t visible, and I actually had some color on my cheeks. I looked great! Not at all the freakish zombie I felt like.

  “I’m just that good,” she replied, giving me a wink and pushing me out the door towards the guest bedroom. “I laid out your clothes. Now, hurry up.”

  After getting dressed, I checked myself out one more time in the mirror. Brooke should have seriously gone into some type of beauty career. She did a fabulous job covering up the hurt and anger eating at my body. I took a moment to gather myself before I walked out into the living room.

  Zack stood up from the couch to greet me. His ey
es took me in from head to toe. “You look great.”

  “Thank you,” I said, feeling heat burn up my cheeks. He was the one that looked amazing, in his khaki shorts and fitted black t-shirt. Even his flip flops looked sexy. I couldn’t seem to return the compliment without drooling.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  I nodded, smiling. He was definitely the distraction I needed right now. I just hoped I could keep my hands off him. A one-night stand would only make things worse. Oh, but he smelled like the ocean again, and when he put his hand on my back, leading me out the door, I swear my insides did a happy dance.

  “You two have fun tonight,” Brooke yelled out from the front door. “But, not too much fun!”

  “Does she have a filter?”

  Zack laughed. “I don’t think so.”

  He opened the door for me. I had to jump to get into his truck. He grabbed my waist, so I wouldn’t fall. I almost fell just to feel his hands catch me.

  “How was your day?” he asked, buckling his seat belt.

  “Let’s not talk about that.”

  His eyebrows lifted.

  “It was a horrible day.” I had no intention of telling him the details. He didn’t ask, as he drove towards the beach.

  The wind had picked up, blowing leaves up into the air. Once we reached the restaurant next to the main parking lot, the dark sky over the ocean was visible.

  “We should eat, fast, if we’re going to have enough time to sit in the sand before the storm hits,” Zack said, after opening my door.

  I wouldn’t have minded skipping the meal, so we wouldn’t miss the storm. My stomach thought otherwise, as it growled louder than the thunder that was sure to come.

  The waitress made small talk with Zack before taking our orders. Seafood took up three fourths of the menu, but it didn’t sound good. I decided on a chicken salad.

  “You know, you don’t have to eat salad just because we’re on a date, right?” Zack asked, leaning towards me from across the small table.

  “Is that what most girls do when you take them out?”

  His smile disappeared for a splint second, and I was afraid I’d offended him.

  “Actually, I haven’t been on a date in a while.”