Not My Secret
Maddox
And there it was, the warm welcome I should've expected, with Delaney getting caught in the crossfire.
I wouldn't stand for it.
I told Tessa, "If you want to yell, go ahead. But yell at me, not Delaney."
Before Tessa could reply, Delaney whirled to face me. "Look, I appreciate the sentiment, but she's my sister, and I'll handle it." She turned back to Tessa. "With him, huh? What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh, come on!" Tessa said. "You always did have a terrible sense of self-preservation. What? Was Jack the Ripper not available?"
Delaney smirked. "No, he wasn't – being dead and all."
Tessa's mouth tightened. "You're completely missing the point."
"No, I'm not," Delaney said. "And scratch what I said earlier. You're acting worse than Mom, because even she wouldn't flip out like you're doing now."
"Yeah? Well, maybe I care more than Mom does."
"And maybe I care that you're being rude to my date."
"Your date?" Tessa scoffed. "Do you realize what happened to the last girl he dated? Did you even read her book?"
I stiffened. Fuck.
Ryder moved closer and said in a quiet voice, "Tessa." He reached for her arm. "Come on. He's our guest. We talked about this."
Tessa turned to glare at her fiancé. "Yeah, well that was before he showed up with my sister. And thanks a million for letting me know who she was hiding out with." She threw up her hands. "And why didn't you, by the way?"
He snorted. "You've gotta ask?"
"Yes, actually, because you're not telling me squat."
Ryder shrugged. "Alright. You want the truth? I didn't want you to hate him."
Delaney and I shared a look before both of us turned to eye the door. To hell with the horse and buggy. I'd carry all three suitcases – and the flower – if I had to.
Delaney only had to say the word.
And now Ryder was telling Tessa, "Hey, I told you she was okay. Wasn't that good enough?"
"No," Tessa said through gritted teeth. "It was not good enough. And why was keeping his secret more important to you than my sister?"
That did it.
I spoke up. "That secret – it wasn't his. Or mine. It was your sister's, which meant it wasn't ours to share."
And now, Tessa looked ready to cry. "But we were so worried."
She could cry all she wanted. Right then, all I cared about was Delaney. I let out a scoff. "Right. So damn worried you couldn't drive a few short hours to West Haven?"
Tessa blinked. "But…what are you saying?"
I looked to Delaney. "Go ahead. Tell her."
Delaney looked confused. "Tell her what?"
"Tell her when you moved."
Delaney hesitated. "You mean…from West Haven? It was back in June, so maybe four months ago?"
I looked back to Tessa. "So until just four months ago, you could've found your sister yourself just by hopping in the car. But you didn't, did you?"
Ryder gave me a look. "Hey, you don't need to be an ass about it."
I gave him a look right back. "The hell I don't."
Tessa's gaze darted from me to Delaney and back again. Sounding less certain, she said, "But…I didn't know she was there."
I held her gaze. "Yeah. Because you never went looking."
Tessa turned to stare at Delaney. "But…you told me you were moving."
Delaney shifted from foot to foot. "Yeah, well…I did." She glanced away. "Eventually."
Tessa looked thunderstruck. "Are you freaking serious? You were living in the same place this whole time?"
"Not the whole time," Delaney mumbled.
Tessa shook her head. "And what does that mean?"
Delaney hesitated. "Well…I've spent the last few months in a cabin off Lake Superior. And before that…" She cleared her throat before saying in a rush, "I actually spent a few weeks in Chicago."
Tessa's jaw dropped. "Chicago? The same city where I lived?"
Next to her, Ryder said, "What, you know another Chicago?"
Tessa didn't even look. She was still staring at Delaney. "So you were right there? In the same city I was living?"
"Yeah, but…" Delaney reached up to rub the back of her neck. "Not at the same time, that's all."
"Are you sure?" Tessa asked. "Did you ever stop by my apartment?"
Instead of answering, Delaney turned her eyes toward me. I knew exactly what she was thinking. Not only had she stopped by her sister's apartment, she'd actually stayed there for weeks – apparently without Tessa knowing.
But this, like so many other things, was Delaney's secret to tell.
Or not.
Me? I was still willing to carry the suitcases.
When Delaney looked back to her sister, she still hadn't replied.
Tessa's eyes narrowed. "I know that look."
Delaney shifted again. "What look?"
"It's the same look you had in middle school, when you ruined my favorite sweater."
"Yeah…so?"
Tessa was blinking back tears. "So you obviously feel guilty. Just admit it. You didn't even try to see me."
Delaney snorted. "So that's your theory?"
Tessa gave Delaney a pleading look. "Just tell me."
"Alright, fine," Delaney said. "I did more than stop by."
"How so?"
Delaney sighed. "Okay, well, if you want the truth, I, um…sort of moved in."