The Truth About Air & Water (Truth in Lies #2) (38 page)

Part 4 - The Truth About Air & Water

“If I know what love is, it is because of you.”

-Hermann Hesse

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Ride -TALLY

You know what they say, don’t you?

Everything comes together.

You know what I’m going to say, don’t you?

Everything comes together and then it falls apart.

But who’s right? You ask.

I am.

February, March, April lands us into May. Sam stays around. Sam helps me rent out the studio apartment downstairs for a screaming deal to an enthusiastic college student who loves kids and will nanny on the side which leads me to Andrea Lynn Dawson.
Andy
is a god-send. My little girl loves her. Andy has no problem playing with Cara for hours. The two take walks and go to the park and play dress-up and when I’m not at the dance studio, I join in on all the fun. My mom and I can breathe a little easier because Andy takes some of the pressure off of us in helping take care of Cara. Andy can be here when I can’t be. We are one big happy family sliding into the middle of May quite nicely.

Sam’s been busy with
The Promissory Note
and other secret career-minded things he doesn’t talk about, and we are still taking it slow, which inexplicably works for me. However, taking it slow is something I think he plans to remedy this weekend. He tells me he has a getaway planned, but he won’t tell me what it is or where. I’ve been told to pack lingerie.

It’s black.

I’ve worked out a doable routine with Linc. He calls on Tuesdays and Thursdays at four in the afternoon just after Andy returns from picking up Cara from preschool on her way home from her own class and before I head off to late rehearsals.

Linc calls. I answer.

And we do our thing that goes like this:

Hello.

How are you?

I’m fine. Good.

Here’s Cara.

Talk soon.

Bye.

Twelve words give or take are exchanged with each of the past twenty-nine phone calls done twice a week since early February, and I’m good with that.
Surprisingly.

I don’t think Linc feels the same, but I am trying to figure it all out, and he still doesn’t remember me, and so I’ve recently begun to believe that I can move on with my life now. I believe I can. That’s probably my second mistake. The first one is believing that everything has finally come together. I’ve apparently already forgotten what I know to be true—it all falls apart in a lot less time than it takes to put it all together.

Don’t believe me?

Just watch.

It’s Wednesday. It’s Linc’s day off. The only day off of two he has this month.

Just a bit of trivia. Things I know but do not say aloud.

I also know it’s Wednesday because I have tonight off too. It’s my only free day to pack for the big trip with Sam this weekend. Because I am finally going to whore it out with Sam this weekend. Or, die trying. One of those two things is likely going to happen.

I have decided that only way to move on is to move on with somebody else. Am I the
last
one to figure this out? Maybe I’ve watched
Silver Linings Playbook
one too many times. It always makes me cry at the end, but maybe it’s the moving on part that has been making me sad. I am in a surreal place because I know Sam wants more, and I know I’m still not ready, but I’m determined to move on.
To do something.

And so I pack and unpack the black lingerie, six times and counting. I leave it out of the bag this last round, deciding this isn’t going to work, and that I need to call Sam and call it off. I need to be honest about whatever this is between us and let him know I’m not ready.
I’m not ready.
Maybe that’s all I need to say. I’m not ready.

But what if I’m not ready precisely because the thing is I haven’t been moving on? The thing about moving on is you need to take some sort of action. You actually need to
move on
to
move on
.

I sit on the bed contemplating my life and debating the packing of the lingerie and wondering what Linc is doing on his only day off this month.

Andy is downstairs with Cara. They’re watching
Frozen
again. I smile because I can vaguely hear the two of them singing Cara’s favorite song,
Human
. They both belt it out just like Christina Perri does.

The doorbell rings. It’s only nine in the morning too early for my afternoon rehearsal and even Cara’s preschool. Andy doesn’t have classes on Wednesdays.
These are all the things I know to be true.

It takes a few seconds to recognize Marla’s frantic voice. “Is she
here
?”

“Yeah, she’s upstairs. Is something wrong?” Andy asks. I don’t hear Marla’s answer I just hear Elliott’s cherub laugh and watch from the top of the stairs as Marla adroitly hands her son off to Andy.

“We’ll be upstairs,” Marla says to my nanny. I grip the railing and closely examine the stricken look on Marla’s face. She takes the steps two at a time, and as soon as she reaches me and says, “let’s talk.”

She heads to the master bedroom without waiting for my response. I follow more slowly filled with instant dread.

Somebody died or somebody’s going to.

She grips a newspaper under one arm. “Have you talked to
him
?”

Linc.

I swallow hard. “No, it’s Wednesday.”
Like that explains everything.
“It’s early. What are you doing here so early?”

“Tally.”

My name becomes a four syllable word and I am underwater all at once straining to hear my best friend’s words because this rushing sound comes out of nowhere and clamps down on my entire existence at a soul level.

“I haven’t talked to him yet,” Marla is saying. “God, as soon as I saw it…well, I was standing in the check-out line, I bought all the copies they had and then headed here.”

“Saw what?”

She’s pale, shaking her head back and forth. “I know it looks bad but he
told
you
nothing happened.
”

“LA,” I say as the air rushes out of me.
It is clear. I hate that town.

Marla comes over and puts both arms around me. Our foreheads mash together. “Yeah. If it’s true, it’s bad. And I wanted to be…with you because I know what it will mean to you,” she whispers.

She starts crying.

I step back and just stare at her. Marla doesn’t cry.
It’s bad.

“Show me.”

I’m calm as if I’m ordering up the daily special in Manhattan at our favorite diner. Maybe I am. Maybe I’ve transported myself back to five years ago when it was just me and Marla against the world. She holds my hand the same way she did then as she unrolls the tabloid.

The headline reads: Trinna’s Pregnant! Lincoln Presley’s baby? The son he really wants.

Nice.
The photo says it all as if the headline hasn’t covered it enough already. It depicts a slightly pregnant Trinna blissfully smiling and looking straight into the camera. She holds a Starbucks cup in one hand and her already bulging tummy with the other wearing these little yoga pants and matching top. They’ve photo-shopped a smiling Linc in the photograph right next to her—I recognize this one from another tabloid last season—and yet; my stomach spins up.

Even so, I miraculously manage to keep it together.
It’s like I’ve finally made it to the grown up section on the game board of Life. But now what?

“Maybe it’s not true. Look, he’s photo-shopped in,” I say a little too brightly. “Kimberley warned me about this kind of stuff a long time ago. It’s probably nothing.”

Marla stares at me like I’ve lost my mind.
Well, there’s that.

“She
gave
an interview. She’s quoted in the article. She
named
him, Tally. She said something about genetic testing being done as soon as the baby is born and that Linc has already agreed to do it.”

Now THAT gets my attention.

I secretly implode on the inside, while Marla stands only inches away from my face and stares me down obviously getting ready for my expected meltdown.
Wait for it.

“Okay,” I say at last on one long gasp for air. I turn and head downstairs to find my cell phone. Marla follows.

I’m still calm, still keeping it together.
This is a miracle. God and Marla and my beloved sister Holly can stand as my witnesses.

Marla is enough of an emotional wreck for both of us. She’s
still
crying.

The kids glance over at her and look a little taken aback when they are normally riveted to the best part of
Frozen—
when Elsa runs away and turns everything to ice in her wake.
Everyone
loves this part.

I

am

Elsa

today.

I pause from my mission to take a few precious moments to watch this scene because
it is crucial
to get it exactly right.

“What
are you doing?” Marla asks wiping her face with the back of her hand.

“Just looking at how it’s done. It’s important to know exactly how to turn your world to ice, stone, or fire and brimstone. One of those. Unleash the power. Watch out.” I actually laugh a little and Marla eventually does too.
Oh good, we’re both going to make it to the other side together.
I grab her hand and dance around with her. She’s looking at me like I’m crazy, but the kids are happy and Andy is smiling wide trying to take it all in and understand what has happened to Tally Landon.

Everyone wants to know. Don’t they?

“How do they know Linc wants a son?” Marla asks after our few minutes of levity ends. “I mean,” she pauses, “who would have told them such a thing?”