Page 36 of SEAL of Valor

“Of course.” I push open the screen door and step aside so she can come in. “That’s Aragorn.”

“Hey there, buddy! You are so handsome. Yes, you are.”

As Tessa loves on my dog, it gives me a moment to catch my breath. The last time I saw Tessa was the day we buried Weston’s sister.

She straightens, her brown eyes so familiar. Though she has aged a bit, the kindness that was always there despite her nightmarish home life is still present.

“Coffee?” I ask.

“That would be great, thanks.”

“Sure thing.” I retrieve my mug from the table, then head over toward the pot to pour her a cup and me a fresh one. “Cream and sugar?”

“Yes, please. Just however you make yours. Caffeine is caffeine in my book.” She laughs. “I hope it’s okay I stopped in like this,” she says as she slides onto a chair in my mom’s dining room.

“Of course it is. It’s good to see you, Tessa.” I set two mugs down, then take my seat, pushing my laptop to the side as I go.

“You, too. Seems surreal.” She laughs nervously, and then it hits me. She’s just as uncomfortable as I am.

Rip the bandage off and get the awkwardness away. I gently tap both hands onto the table. “Okay, so first of all, I’m sorry. Let’s just get that out of the way.”

“Sorry?” Tessa asks, her brow furrowed. “Whatever are you sorry for?”

I sigh. “I should have been there for you. I’m sorry I left before your wedding.”

“How could you have—oh.” She laughs, her cheeks turning pink. “Reese, Zane and I didn’t get married until about two years ago.”

I can’t do anything but stare at her. How is that true? I was with her when she bought her wedding dress. I worked alongside her while she was saving up every penny to buy it herself. “What do you mean?”

She looks away for a moment, then takes a drink of her coffee. “Uh, it’s a long story, and not a pretty one.” She sighs and meets my gaze. “Well, here goes—I left before Zane and I got married. The night before our wedding, actually.”

I gape at her. She left? Why? “You guys didn’t get married? But why? You were so perfect for each other. What happened?”

“That’s the thing about perfection,” she says. “I’d put us up on that pedestal, too, so when I realized things with us could never be truly perfect because of who I was and what I came from, I bailed. I was terrified that Zane would be tainted by what was in my veins, so I removed myself from the equation. I hadn’t seen or heard from him until he saved my life two years ago.”

I hang on every word she says, trying to rationalize a world where Zane and Tessa were split for so many years. “Now I’m doubly sorry. I should have been here for you through all of that, too. Ugh.” I shake my head. “That must have been what my mom was trying to tell me back then. But I just didn’t want to hear anything about this place. It made it too hard. I told her that I didn’t want to hear anything about this town or the people in it. I am so sorry.”

Tessa leans forward and takes my hand. “What happened with you, Reese? You talk about Zane and me being perfect. But you and Weston? You guys were an absolutely beautiful love story.”

Tears prick the corners of my eyes. It’s been two decades of holding this inside. Of clinging to secrets because I was too afraid of what might happen to me if they saw the light.

But maybe it’s time.

After all, she told me her hard truth. Maybe if I share mine, it’ll be easier to carry.

“It’s not a good story, either.”

“Then you’re in good company to share.”

A tear slips down my cheek, so I wipe it away and bring one leg up onto the chair so I can wrap both arms around it. “Weston and I were going to have a—” I take a deep breath. “A baby.”

Tessa’s eyes widen, her understanding expression morphing into shock. “A baby? Really?”

I nod. “Long story short, I let myself be convinced that, if I didn’t take him to bed, I would lose him.”

“That’s not Weston.”

“I know that now. Honestly, I think I knew it back then, too. But stupid teenage girls do stupid things sometimes.” I swallow hard. “Afterward, we were just lying there in the silence, and Weston told me that he loved me but that he didn’t feel right about what we’d done. He told me that he wanted to marry me and do everything in the right order.”