Emma's Secret: A Novel

moment she saw her daughter. Once Peter had told her where Emma was, it was as if her whole world had exploded in front of her. She didn’t want to believe him. She couldn’t believe him. All his talk about trusting him flew out the window in that moment.
    “Megan, wait.” Megan almost yanked her arm out of Laurie’s grasp but stopped. Thank God for Laurie being there. She’d driven to the donut shop after Megan managed to get their neighbor’s eldest daughter to watch Hannah and Alexis.
    The small donut shop was silent when she screamed her daughter’s name. She looked around the space, took in the dozen small tables and the single waitress standing behind the counter, and noticed how all the people in the store stared at her.
    She focused on the men who stood at the table where her daughter sat. Her husband and…Jack.
    She took tentative steps toward the table, refusing to look at Peter or anyone else.
    “Megan.” Laurie reached her hand out and forced her to stop. “Try to calm yourself before you say or do anything, okay?”
    Megan searched her best friend’s eyes. All she read was concern. “I know,” she whispered.
    It wasn’t hard to miss the sense of feeling overwhelmed on Emma’s face when Megan reached the table. She sat down in the empty seat in front of Emma and lightly touched her daughter’s knee.
    “That was quite the ride you took this morning.” Megan bit her lip as she kept her voice low and calm.
    Emma’s lips trembled as she met Megan’s gaze.
    “I was really worried, honey.” Megan placed a gentle kiss on her daughter’s forehead. She still felt a bit warm, just like earlier, and riding her bike for several blocks wouldn’t have helped. She needed to be home, resting, drinking lots of fluids.
    Megan looked up at Peter with accusation glaring in her eyes. This was his fault.
    “I wanted to see Papa,” Emma whispered.
    Megan smoothed her daughter’s hair and sighed. She glanced up at Jack, and from the look in his eyes, she knew the guilt he carried outweighed her own.
    “I’m sorry, ma’am. I had no idea she would come by herself.” The sound of
that
man’s voice sparked a wave of fury she struggled to bury.
    Megan’s back was tight; her shoulders back as her breathing slowed. It took everything in her not to lash out at this man she so desperately wanted to hate. But she didn’t. She lowered her voice instead. “No, but you knew she’d come with Peter.” She looked away, unwilling to hold his gaze.
    She was conflicted over what to do now. She could insist Emma leave with her and come home, but how much damage would that inflict on Emma, forcing her to leave Jack again? Or she could allow this visit to continue, leave with Laurie, and trust Peter to take care of the situation—or stay, and deal with the repercussions later with Peter.
    “Megan.” Laurie stood behind her. “Why don’t we go get some coffee?”
    With careful precision, Megan stood, her back rigid, as she stepped away from the chair. She leaned down, kissed Emma’s cheek, and whispered, “I love you,” into her ear before she stepped away. She angled her body enough not to touch Peter as she passedhim. She was furious with him, and it took all her control not to lash out.
    “I can’t believe he did this behind my back,” Megan hissed to Laurie as they walked toward the counter.
    “Really, Meg? It’s not like you gave him much choice.” The look on Laurie’s face had Megan’s cheeks burning with shame. Laurie ordered two coffees and pulled out her wallet.
    “That’s not fair.”
    Laurie’s brow rose. “What part?”
    “Excuse me?” Disbelief laced Megan’s tone.
    Laurie took the coffee mugs and headed toward a table. Megan followed once she realized Laurie wasn’t going to answer. She couldn’t believe Laurie would side with Peter on this.
    “What is your problem, Laurie? How can you say something like that?”
    Laurie gazed across the room. “I can say that because Emma is the one who is hurting here, more than you and Peter combined.”
    Megan watched how her daughter’s gaze flitted between Jack and Peter as if she was unsure of who she’d wronged more. That was when it hit her: Laurie was right.
    Emma was caught in the middle.
    Megan wanted to cry. It was her fault her daughter was in this predicament. Her fault that Emma thought she had to keep her visits with Jack a secret, that she couldn’t trust her parents enough to be sure they would continue. It was why