Page 47 of Shattered

“I’m sorry she called you Jake,” I said finally.

“Don’t keep apologizing.” He turned to look at me. “It’s fine.”

“Is it though? Did it bother you—being called him?”

He went quiet for a moment. When he spoke his voice was quiet. Measured in a way that meant he was choosing every word deliberately.

“What bothers me,” he said, “is that even in your mother’s failing mind, you’re tied to Jake. That she’s convinced herself you’re married to someone who left you.”

The words felt heavy, and for a heartbeat, I didn’t know how to respond.

“She just wants me to be happy,” I said.

“Are you? With him?”

“I’m not with him.”

“But you’re considering it.”

It wasn’t a question. I didn’t answer anyway.

We drove the rest of the way in a silence that felt less like quiet and more like all the things neither of us was brave enough to say.

Back at my apartment, Axel changed and went out, mentioning a work dinner. I went to my bedroom and took a warm shower. Wishing I could escape my thoughts the way water flowed to the drain.

That night, I lay on my bed unable to sleep, it was almost midnight and Axel still wasn’t back.

My phone buzzed. I grabbed it too quickly, too hopefully.

It wasn’t Axel. Jake’s text lit up the screen, thanking me for today and telling me he’ll prove that he’s changed.

I stared at it until the screen went dark.

CHAPTER 11

Axel

The next Sundaydinner at the Santoro house was going to destroy me, and I knew it before we even pulled into the driveway.

Jake was coming. Elena had invited him yesterday during one of her confused spells, thinking he was still Delia’s husband, and nobody had the heart to call her back and tell her the truth. That would require explaining to a woman slowly losing her mind that the man she believed was her son-in-law had actually abandoned her daughter on the altar.

So Jake was coming to dinner. And I was going to sit there and watch it happen like some kind of self-imposed punishment.

We pulled up to the house. Jake’s car sat in the driveway already. He’d arrived early. Of course he’d want to make a good impression, to erase his absence with a single evening of performance.

I gripped the steering wheel tighter than necessary before forcing myself to let go.

Inside, Elena was already fawning over him like he was some kind of miracle. Jake stood in the living room holding a bottle of wine with that charming smile in place.

My mother figure patted his arm and told him how glad she was that he came, complimenting how handsome he looked, and how wonderful it was to have him home.

Home. Like he belonged here. Like he hadn’t thrown away every right to this family.

“Jake brought wine.” Elena’s face lit up when she saw us. “Isn’t that thoughtful? Delia, your husband is so considerate.”

Delia went rigid beside me, her expression tight. “Mom, Jake isn’t?—”

“Oh, don’t be modest.” Elena waved her hand like she was swatting away something insignificant. “Marriage is about appreciating the little things. Your father always brought me flowers on Fridays. Remember, Miguel?”