True to Me - Kay Bratt Page 0,2

had been kind and loving, completely devoted to Quinn. Whatever she’d done or whatever secrets she’d kept, there was no doubt it was out of love. Now that her mother was gone and Quinn had no one but Ethan, she ached to know her father, or at least know who he was. She also realized that whatever she uncovered might be better left buried, but she was ready to learn the truth, good or bad.

And here she was, holding a small cardboard box that could be the key.

She stood and put the box on the table beside the door. Ethan was expecting her to call and give him a rundown of her day. He wouldn’t understand if she tried to tell him that she’d barely been able to function, much less figure out dinner. That she’d faked her way through the day, accomplishing almost nothing on her list, her entire system on full alert because of what she was about to do.

Ethan assumed she was still off because of her mother’s death. He also knew that Quinn couldn’t think of much else other than fulfilling her mom’s wishes by taking her ashes to Maui and putting her to rest. He’d bought tickets and insisted she book the hotel reservations, declaring they’d make a vacation out of it. After Quinn memorialized her mother, of course.

They were set to leave in a month.

“It will help lift you out of this mood, Quinn,” he’d said.

While he went on and on about the adventures Maui had to offer, Quinn was quiet, thinking of the moment when she’d have to leave her mother behind on the island. Traveling there was not going to be the mood-lifter he thought it was. Not for her.

There were things he didn’t know, like the mystery of who her father was. It didn’t feel right to tell him yet—she wanted this to stay between her and her mother for the time being. Quinn had a strong suspicion that the information her mom had been so intent on keeping to herself had probably poisoned her body, inviting the cancer in and allowing it to eat away until nothing was left but the shell of the woman Quinn had nearly worshipped. But even as her mother made her final will and testament, she’d not been able to bring herself to disclose the details of a story that could set her daughter free. Why?

She took a deep breath and readied herself, then picked up the phone.

Her fingers stiffened stubbornly, as though they didn’t want to obey, but eventually there was a ring. Ethan picked up quickly.

“Hi,” Quinn said.

“What’s up?” he answered, his voice already hurrying her along. He was always running behind. “You headed for the gym?”

“No, I’m not. Listen, I need to talk to you.” She felt her stomach clenching.

“Can it wait? I have a meeting in ten.”

“No, it can’t. I need to tell you now.” While I’ve got the courage, she almost added.

“Hold on,” he said. “Let me shut the door.”

She could hear him bumping around, not sure what he was doing, but when he returned, her resolve weakened. Then she thought of her mother. A woman who deserved more than her daughter doing a quick dump of her ashes and then living it up around the island.

“I’m going to Maui alone,” she blurted out.

“What do you mean?” He sounded confused.

“Ethan, I appreciate that you want to go and support me, but I need to do this by myself. I’m not looking forward to saying goodbye to the last of my mother. I want this to be a quiet and reflective time. A time to honor her in my own way.”

“And you don’t want me with you?” he said, his tone turning petulant.

“It’s not that I don’t want you with me. This just isn’t the time to try to enjoy a vacation.” And I am hoping to find my real father. That was another detail she wasn’t ready to tell him.

“Quinn, I know you are still in a bad place, but you aren’t thinking straight. We’ll talk about this when I get home this weekend.”

“No, we won’t, Ethan. I’ve already canceled your flight. I’m serious about this. I’m sorry if it hurts you, but we’ll plan to go again together after I’ve done what I need to do.”

He sighed, long and frustrated.

“Sounds like I don’t have a choice,” he said. “I need to run.”

He broke the connection, and she was left holding the phone to her ear, grasping it so tightly