PART 10 – The Woman in the Red Dress Began Asking Questions, and I Realized Terrence Had More Than One Past to Explain

Terrence's fiancée approached us a few minutes later.

She had been quiet for most of the morning.

Now she looked directly at him.

"I need you to tell me everything."

Terrence turned toward her.

"Not here."

She shook her head.

"Then when?"

He glanced at the children.

She followed his gaze.

"I understand they're here. But I also understand that you never told me you had children."

Terrence looked uncomfortable.

I stepped back.

This was their conversation.

I had no intention of becoming part of an argument between two people whose relationship I knew very little about.

But his fiancée turned toward me.

"Did you two have a difficult divorce?"

I considered the question.

"Yes."

She looked at Terrence.

"Was she pregnant when you left?"

He didn't answer.

I did.

"Yes."

The woman closed her eyes briefly.

When she opened them, she looked at him again.

"You told me there were no children."

Terrence rubbed his face.

"I didn't know about them."

I watched her expression.

There was a difference between not knowing something and never having tried to find out.

I couldn't tell her what Terrence had said during their relationship.

I could only tell her what had happened to me.

"I told him I was pregnant before the divorce," I said.

She looked at me.

"He didn't believe you?"

"No."

Terrence shifted his weight.

"Keahu, please."

I looked at him.

"You invited me here. I'm not going to lie about why we're standing in this room."

His fiancée stared at him.

"Did you ever try to contact her afterward?"

Terrence remained quiet.

I remembered the changed phone number.

The unanswered questions.

The years that followed.

I didn't need to add anything.

His silence answered enough.

The woman looked toward the engagement ring box.

She picked it up.

For a moment, she held it in both hands.

Then she placed it on the table again.

"I need some time."

Terrence nodded.

I didn't ask what that meant for their engagement.

It wasn't my place.

I had come to Christmas dinner with my children.

I hadn't come to take anyone else's future apart.

Still, I couldn't ignore the way the room had changed.

Before we arrived, the engagement ring had probably been one of the happiest things in that house.

Now it was sitting beside the Christmas decorations while everyone tried to understand the past.

Lorraine approached.

She had heard enough to know that the conversation was serious.

"Please, let's not argue in front of the children."

Her voice was gentle but firm.

The fiancée looked at her.

"I'm not trying to argue."

"I know, dear."

Lorraine turned toward Terrence.

"But we need to understand what happened."

He nodded.

I looked at the children.

They were still occupied with their grandmother.

Mason was asking about something on the Christmas tree.

Wyatt was standing beside him.

The girls were smiling.

I was grateful they weren't paying attention to every word.

I didn't want their first meeting with their father's family to become an argument about the adults.

Lorraine returned to the children.

The fiancée stepped away.

Terrence remained near me.

For a moment, he looked as though he wanted to apologize.

Then he spoke.

"I never thought I'd see you again."

I looked at him.

"Neither did I."

He nodded.

"Things could have been different."

I felt something tighten in my chest.

For years, I had imagined hearing those words.

I had imagined him acknowledging what had happened.

But now that I was standing in front of him, they didn't carry the meaning I once thought they would.

"Yes," I said quietly. "They could have."

He looked at the children.

I followed his gaze.

"But they are the way they are," I continued. "And I'm grateful for them."

He nodded.

I could see that he wanted to say more.

But I had nothing else to offer him.

Not yet.

Perhaps not ever.

I returned to the children.

Savannah reached for my hand.

I took it.

And for the first time that morning, I stopped watching Terrence's reactions.

I had spent enough years paying attention to what he did.

Click here to continue reading: PART 11: Lorraine Wanted to Know Every Detail About Her Grandchildren, While Terrence Sat Nearby Discovering the Family He Had Missed