The Perfect Secret

Chapter Twenty-Three

Hannah’s phone rang the next morning on the way to work; her eyes widened at the caller. “H…hello?” Her stomach dropped. Maybe seeing her yesterday made Dan miss her. Maybe he’d explain what Tess meant about his being an addict.

“What did you tell Tess?” Dan’s voice was frantic.

Her heart rate quickened as the voice she’d missed gave no indication of his care for her. “Excuse me?” No hello, no how are you. An immediate accusation. The man she’d loved was gone.

“Tess told me you said something to her. What was it?”

Hannah leaned against the building as commuters rushed past her. “I said a lot of somethings to her. You’ll have to be more specific.”

He remained silent for a minute. Hannah wondered if she should hang up. They weren’t together anymore. He didn’t miss her. If Tess was right, he was an addict. She didn’t have to deal with him or his issues. The only reason she talked to him now was because of Tess.

“Tess accused me of getting rid of everything I love, except her. She said you told her something, but you’re wrong. What did you tell her?”

She blinked the tears out of her eyes. “I told her no matter what she might think, you loved her more than anything, and everything you do, no matter how much it might not make sense, is for her.”

Again, there was silence.

“Dan? Are you there? Because I need to get to work…”

“Thank you.” His voice was hoarse. Despite everything, his obvious pain hurt her. She shook her head. Making him feel better was no longer her concern. He’d never wanted it when they were together, he wouldn’t want it now. He’d been more than clear on that one. Getting involved would only make her suffer.

“I have to go, Dan.” She hung up and took a deep breath. She had a presentation today and she needed to focus.

After the presentation, Stan stopped her on her way out of the conference room. “Hannah, got a minute?”

“Sure.” She pulled out a tall-backed black leather chair and sat at the table across from her friend.

“That was a great presentation today. You nailed it.”

Hannah’s chest filled with pride. “Thanks. I appreciate you saying so.”

He squared her papers, picked them up, and walked to the conference room door. “You okay, though?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You don’t seem yourself.”

“Just stuff going on at home. I’m fine.”

Stan turned and put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m available if you want to talk.”

Hannah blinked. “Thanks, I appreciate it.”

As Stan walked away, he called over his shoulder, “Whoever he is, he’s not worth it.”

Sighing, Hannah headed to her office. The problem was, he was.

Dan closed the door to his office and sat at his computer. His hand hovered over the touchpad. He rubbed his forearm as he contemplated what he was about to do. His stomach roiled.

He closed his eyes and images of Tess laughing played in his mind. He hadn’t heard her laugh since had broken up with Hannah.

Tapping the touchpad, he opened his internet browser:

Nar

He stopped. He was fine. Sure you are, as long as you keep away from everything and everyone you enjoy.

He let out a breath and typed:

cot

It shouldn’t be this difficult. He didn’t need it. Except Tess says you do and she might be right.

He slammed the keys with his fingers:

ics anonymous

Information popped up on his screen. He jumped as if it was going to explode out of the screen and rain burning sparks around him. He pushed his chair back and looked at his door. Still closed. Scooting forward, he searched for meetings in his area. There were three locations close to him—one near his home and two near work. He didn’t want anyone to see him, but based on the times of the meetings, one of the churches near his office was the most convenient. He checked his calendar and made a small notation. He’d see what happened between now and then.