The New Ever After (The New Ever After Series)

by Farley, Julie

  “I know. I’m not going to read it. That’s what I was about to write back.”

  “I want to read it! I want to see if she’s really writing about you!”

  “A little jealous, Mrs. Adamson?”

  “Definitely. I want her to know she can’t have you even in her writing.”

  “Well, she can’t and you know that.”

  “Does she text you a lot?”

  “No. This is the first one in a while. I want to appease her and make sure she doesn’t make anymore trouble for us though.”

  “I want to tell her to fuck off and to leave my husband alone.”

  “How about we just delete it and I don’t answer it at all?”

  “What will you tell her if she texts again?”

  “I’ll handle it then. Maybe I’ll pawn her off on Richard.”

  Which was exactly what he intended to do to keep Aidan happy and quiet. Richard, his agent, could do whatever he wanted with her manuscript. Peter wasn’t even sure she had one to begin with. He thought she might just be trying to get a rise out of Heather…and that worked.

  “Let’s forget about Aiden and her book.” Peter smacked his lips on Heather’s distracting her the only way he knew how.

  Chapter 17

  After a perfect week filled with sun and easy living, they headed back to reality. Peter returned Heather’s phone back to its normal state as the car pulled away from the hotel for the airport.

  "Holy shit, I have 17 texts!" yelled Heather.

  "What on earth did you miss?" asked Peter.

  Heather opened them up.

  Monday

  8:35 Matt: I really need to talk to u.

  10:00 Matt: Are you ignoring me?

  11:03 Matt: k Jenny just told me u r away. When u get this pls call me

  2:05 Victoria: Give me a shout when you have a minute sweetie.

  Tuesday

  11:15 Victoria: Too busy for me?

  3:37 Matt: I'm sending u an email. Maybe u will get that.

  Wednesday

  5:30 Matt: Heather, I can't stand it anymore I have to tell Jenny.

  5:31 Victoria: I don't know what you think you saw but you didn't see anything. But it's made poor Matt feel so guilty he's about to turn our lives upside down for nothing.

  5:31 Matt: I'm taking Jenny out tonight and confessing the whole thing. Victoria is acting crazy and I can't deal with her anymore. The only way to end it is to tell Jenny.

  9:00 Jenny: How could you fucking know about Matt and Victoria and not tell me? Were you ever going to tell me?

  9:02 Jenny: My life is over. My marriage is over and you knew and you're on fucking vacation.

  9:05 Matt: I'm sorry but I had to tell her you saw us. I knew it would get out. She's really mad.

  9:06 Jenny: How could you leave when you knew what was happening? You talked to me when you knew. You didn't even mention it. You were supposed to be my best friend.

  9:07 Jenny: I stood with you through everything. And you're not here for me.

  10:00 Victoria: If this gets out I am holding you responsible. You will ruin Ken's career. You will ruin everything I have.

  Thursday

  12:03 Jenny: Our friendship will not recover from this betrayal. Don't call me or try to contact me.

  12:04 Jenny: And I quit.

  8:00 Janie: Don't worry. I'm helping your mom. I spoke to Jenny. It will be ok.

  Peter saw the tears and knew what had happened. He just wrapped his arms around her.

  "Let me see, baby." Heather handed him her phone.

  "First of all, Victoria is a fucking bitch. She did this to herself, so ignore all that crap. I'm glad Matt told Jenny. She’ll come around. You two are so close. She just needs some time."

  "I don't know if she'll recover. I don't know if I would forgive me if I were her."

  "There's nothing you can do at this moment. We have three flights to get through before we get home."

  "I wish you hadn't made me turn off my texts."

  "That wouldn't have changed anything. Jenny still would have been pissed. Matt still would have told her, and Victoria still would be acting crazy." He did feel guilty, but their week had been so amazing that he wasn't about to let this wreck it.

  "I know, but I could have dealt with it then."

  "And tainted our week."

  Heather turned and looked out the window watching the palm trees go by.

  How could I let this happen? Why didn't I tell her right away? I've lost my best friend. My right hand, she thought.

  Heather and Jenny had never had a fight before. The kids teased them about fighting all the time. Gracie used to think they were fighting when they were trying to decide who would do something or who would pay for whatever they were getting. But they weren't fighting and this fight was breaking Heather's heart. She’d already lost one husband; she couldn’t lose her best friend too. Jenny wasn't one of those friends who could just disappear without a trace either. They had been through too much together. This couldn't end...it couldn't dissolve.

  Peter broke the silence. "How could he hook up with Victoria? I just don't understand why he'd do that."

  "I don't either. I'm texting Jenny now. I don't care if she ignores it. I have to do it before I get on all these freaking airplanes. I don't want anything to happen to me without her knowing that I was going to tell her and that I’m sorry."

  Peter knew there was no way to change Heather's mind, and he wanted it all to be her decision anyway.

  8:36 Heather: Jenny, I wanted to tell you but I didn't want to tell you and leave you alone for a week. I was planning to tell you this evening as soon as I got home. I guess I never thought you'd find out this week. I didn’t see your texts until just now. My heart is breaking for all you are going through. I am here for you and I'm not going to let you give up on our friendship. I will help you get through this. I love you. I’m so sorry. Xo

  She wasn't sure Jenny would even see it. And she was positive she wouldn't respond. But she had to do it for herself. Peter grabbed her hand and held it. Heather looked down at her phone and a little tag popped up under the text:

  Read at 8:38 a.m.

  At least she knew Jenny did see it. She sighed and set the phone down in her lap.

  "Quick drink when we get to the airport?"

  "No, I don't even care right now."

  Peter wished their vacation wasn't ending on such a sour note. He couldn't remember a more intimate and amazing time he had ever had with anyone. Heather made him feel things he didn't know existed. And he worried about her. He knew this whole thing with Jenny would devastate her.

  Chapter 18

  After three long flights with lots of time to think, Heather walked into the house and hugged the twins. As much as she had enjoyed her time away, she had missed them. And apparently Peter had as well. He ran in, grabbed George and tossed him in the air. He failed to realize George had just finished his bottle. He proceeded to throw up all over Peter.

  "Welcome home!" said Heather.

  Heather kissed her mom, whose bags were packed and sitting at the front door. Obviously, she was ready to go. Heather couldn't imagine how much this week had exhausted her.

  "I want to hear all about your trip, but I really can't wait to sleep in my bed. Ok if I come by tomorrow or the next day?"

  "No problem. We can't tell you how much this meant to us," said Heather.

  "Well, you both deserved it, and I was happy to do it."

  Peter kissed Diane good-bye and off she went.

  "Hey, would you mind if I went over to Jenny's?"

  "Nope. Go ahead. I'll put these two in the tub. Take your time."

  "I love you and can never thank you for this week...and for everything." She kissed him before she took off.

  Peter took the twins up to the tub and got them ready for their bath. He had missed them and was happy to let Heather go see Jenny. The big kids wouldn't be back till tomorrow. Ten minutes later, Peter was washing the
shampoo out of the twins' hair, and Heather walked into the bathroom.

  "No luck?" asked Peter.

  "Nope. No one was home. Everything looked really closed up. Neither car was there. I wonder if she went to her mom's?"

  "Why don't you call Janie and ask her? She might know."

  "Good idea."

  She went downstairs leaving Peter to tend to the twins and called Janie. She answered right away.

  "Welcome back. How was it?"

  "It was amazing. But, that's not why I'm calling. Where's Jenny?"

  "She went to her parents' house. She needed some time to think."

  "Did she tell you I knew?"

  "Yes."

  "I planned to tell her. I didn't think Matt would tell her before I got home. I didn't want to open up this can of worms and then skip the country.”

  "She's pretty mad. I get it. It was all bad timing. She just can't understand why you wouldn't have told her right away."

  "In hindsight, I should have told her immediately. What can I do?"

  "Give her some space. Let her know you're thinking about her though too."

  "I will. I texted her this morning before we left. Peter messed with my phone when we arrived, so I didn't see all of her texts until this morning."

  "Blame him! He deserves it!"

  "Spoken like a true sister. Thanks for helping with the twins."

  "No prob. Can't wait to hear about your trip. I'll pop in tomorrow."

  "Sounds great."

  Heather went upstairs to help Peter put the twins to bed. As soon as they made it back downstairs to unwind, the doorbell rang.

  "Who in the hell could that be?" asked Peter.

  "No idea. Maybe it's Jenny." Heather walked to the door saddened to find it was Victoria. She stormed in passed Heather and set her keys and her phone on the counter.

  "How could you do this?" asked Victoria.

  "Do what?"

  "Force Matt to tell Jenny. Everything's a mess, and it's your fault."

  "Hold on," said Peter. "You’re the one who was screwing around with Matt, not Heather. You did this as soon as you cheated on your husband with your friend's husband. Heather has no blame in any of this."

  "But she saw us!" Victoria started crying, and Heather almost felt bad for her for a split second until she remembered what Victoria had done.

  “You saw us and it forced Matt to tell Jenny. If you had just kept going and not stopped and stared at us on the sidewalk everything would be the same.”

  "What the hell are you talking about? You were sitting there jamming your tongue down Matt’s throat in broad daylight at a busy restaurant. Jenny's my best friend. I cannot believe what you did to her. You ruined her life. You ruined your own. What the hell were you thinking?"

  "I don't know. Matt paid attention to me and listened to me, and I got a little thrill from it all."

  “A little thrill? You have six kids between you, and you did it for a thrill?”

  “You’d never understand. You have Mr. Wonderful over there.”

  Peter stood at the island kind of afraid to move.

  “I don’t understand because it was wrong. You are married and you had an affair with a married man. It’s pretty black and white.”

  “No, there’s a lot of gray, Heather. I don’t expect someone like you to understand. Jenny’s not the perfect wife either. She’s not blameless in this.”

  Heather took a deep breath. There was never any rationalizing with Victoria, and she didn’t want to hear anything else she had to say.

  "Actually, Victoria, I don't really want to hear it. We just got home. It's time for you to go," said Heather.

  Peter smiled and walked her to the door.

  "I'm proud of you," Peter said after he closed the door. "She's a pain in the ass."

  "She stuck her tongue down Matt's throat and who knows what else and she blames me? I couldn't look at her after that."

  "I think you should text Matt and find out if he knows when Jenny is coming home."

  "Good idea. Maybe I can corner her somehow."

  8:45 Heather: Do you know when Jenny is getting back?

  8:46 Matt: Tomorrow morning. I'm taking the kids out.

  8:47 Heather: Do you know what time?

  8:48 Matt: I'm taking them out at 9.

  8:49 Heather: k

  8:50 Matt: I'm sorry this is hurting your friendship too. I didn't mean for all of this to happen.

  8:51 Heather: thx

  Heather didn't want to correspond with Matt any more. She put her phone down and sat next to Peter on the couch.

  "It's so much fun being back," said Heather.

  "Not quite as relaxing as our little spot on the beach."

  "I hate coming back from vacation. It’s my least favorite day. Kind of like the day after Christmas."

  "And you have the Jenny thing hanging over your head. Why don't you go up and take a bath. I'm going to do some stuff down here."

  Heather got in the tub and tried to recapture the feeling of relaxation she had felt a short twenty-four hours ago.

  Chapter 19

  Heather woke up determined to see Jenny before the kids arrived home around two. She wanted to put this behind them as soon as she could. Peter agreed to watch the twins, so she got Jenny's key and went over to her house. Jenny's car was in the driveway. Heather pulled in, walked up to the garage, unlocked the door and walked straight in through the laundry room and found Jenny meditating on the screened porch. Jenny jumped when she looked up and saw Heather standing there.

  "Don't. Don't come near me," said Jenny slowly standing up.

  Heather didn't listen. She walked right to Jenny and wrapped her arms around her and refused to let go. Jenny resisted at first and then Heather thought she might reciprocate. But she didn't. Instead, she pulled away.

  "Listen. I planned to tell you. I came right over last night to tell you. I didn't even think that Matt would confess before I got home. I just couldn't bear to tell you and then flee the country. I wanted to be here for you. I was beyond selfish. I'm so sorry," explained Heather.

  "If I had known and could have confronted him, I would have had the power. I could have taken the information and done what I wanted with it. But instead he caught me off guard, and I didn't even see it coming. You could have given me that power,” said Jenny wiping away the tears as she spoke.

  "And I intended to, but I was stupid and thought it could wait just a little longer. Jenny, I am so sorry and will do anything to make it up to you. I want to make this right."

  Jenny sighed. Heather felt like their friendship hung in the balance of the next few words.

  "You can't make anything right at this moment. I just need some space from him and from you."

  With tears in her eyes, Heather walked out the door as fast as she could. She left completely dejected. She drove home and plopped down on the couch.

  "Didn't go so well?" asked Peter.

  "Nope. She doesn't want to talk to me or see me."

  "Just give her some space. She'll make her way back to you." Peter sat down and rubbed Heather's shoulders. "You’re as tense as before we left."

  "Yep,” she said in a daze.

  “We've got to keep going forward though. The kids will be back soon. We have the twins’ birthday next weekend and then Maine."

  "I know." Heather sighed and put her head back just as Emily climbed onto her lap.

  Donna and Phil arrived with the kids as planned at two. Heather hugged them so tight that Henry complained of not being able to breathe. They exchanged stories of their trips and slowly unpacked. Henry regaled them with tales about the hermit crab he lost in the beach house that poor Phil stepped on in the middle of the night. And the shark that he saw when they were paddleboarding that turned out to be a dolphin and finally the seagull that pooped all over Hayes' sandwich one afternoon at the beach. Gracie had a couple of canvases that she had painted and Peter promised to hang them in her room for her. Hayes asked Peter i
f he would go paddleboarding with him tomorrow on the river since he had so much fun on the Sound. The twins were thrilled to see the bigger kids. George kept trying to headbutt them. Heather smiled looking at all the happy and refreshed faces that surrounded her.

  After the kids went to bed, Heather jumped on Facebook. She was curious about what Victoria had been up to. When Heather logged on to Victoria's page, it looked like all of her photo albums had been placed on Facebook. She had wedding pictures, honeymoon pictures and all kinds of recent photos of the two of them at events. Her page was like a flashing neon sign reminding everyone she was married to Ken. Heather clicked over to Jenny's page and couldn't find it. She searched for her name in her list of friends and realized she wasn't there anymore. Jenny must have been blocking Heather out of Facebook as well as the rest of her life.

  Chapter 20

  Heather started the week with a to-do list a mile long and a black cloud hanging over her head. She missed Jenny's presence in her everyday life. It hurt to know she had done something to make her friend so mad. Friends took a role of honor in her life. Hank had told her ever since they were in high school that she relied on her friends too much. But over the last three years her dependence on Jenny had grown even more. And maybe there was a piece of Heather that hadn't wanted to tell her about the affair because she didn't want their relationship to change.

  She had no choice but to put the fretting aside and focus on the twins' first birthday and their trip to Maine. Janie had set up a Pinterest board for her with the best ideas for twin birthday parties. Janie had pinned no short of three dozen ideas. She wanted her to do a Dr. Seuss Thing One/Thing Two theme. She thought everything should be red and white and had even purchased little outfits for the twins that matched the theme. In an act of desperation because she missed her right hand, Jenny, so much, she called Janie to ask for some ideas and a little bit of help.