Secret Vow Read Online Free PDF Page B

didn’t even come back for your wedding, or to see Brandon when he was born. I gave the excuse that I was too busy with work, and I really was busy—but for the most part I was just avoiding the discomfort of returning to Eastport, and being faced with a certain part of the past that I was trying to escape. But the parts I should have treasured got thrown away in the process. Like our friendship. I’m so sorry.”
    Faith met her gaze with a soft smile. “It’s all right. Things are good for me now.” She glanced down at the little boy sleeping peacefully in the stroller. “I’ve got my own family, and I’m happy.”
    “I’m really glad. I missed you, too.”
    “Next time we get together, we can leave Brandon with Ted and do something fun, just the two of us, like old times,” Faith went on, her smile broadening. “And don’t worry, we can steer clear of Ian McCarthy.”
    Brooke slowed her steps a little, sinking her teeth into her lower lip; she considered remaining silent on the subject, but decided she couldn’t keep what had happened to herself. They had just crossed the street that led to his house, and if she craned her neck she could see the docks of the marina in the distance; the sight of it made her heart stutter a little. Last night had been such a surprise, even now it hardly seemed real. The pictures Ian had showed her of Italy had brought back dreams she’d tucked away years ago, along with feelings for him that she should never have allowed into her heart. It was funny how, in his company, remorse could take hold of her one minute, and the next be replaced by warm contentment.
    Drawing a deep breath, she blurted, “Actually, I was with him last night.”
    Straightening her back in surprise, Faith cast her a withering look. “What do you mean ‘with’?”
    “I went over to his house. Just to talk.” Brooke paused, averting her gaze before she spilled the rest of her confession. “And we kissed a little.”
    Faith abruptly stopped walking, her jaw popping open as her blue eyes did the same. “You kissed him? Brooke, what were you thinking?”
    “I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Brooke added quickly. “But he’s really charming. And you have to admit, he’s grown into his looks.” Despite herself, she felt a smile creep across her face.
    Faith rolled her eyes, one fist thrust against her hip. “I know, he’s gorgeous. But he’s also Ian McCarthy. You can’t get too close to him. I know you; you’ll end up spilling everything.”
    “So what if I did?” Brooke ventured, giving voice to a thought that had been forming in her mind since last evening. “Your dad is gone. We won’t be in any legal trouble. I think Ian needs to know the truth. It still hurts him, not knowing what happened. He wonders whether his mother suffered. We could assure him she didn’t.”
    Faith’s slender eyebrows inched further upward. “What’s he going to think of us if he finds out that we knew all these years what happened to her and never told him?”
    “I don’t know.”
    “He won’t be kissing you again, that’s for sure,” Faith added tartly—just as Brandon yelped, his round, pink face crumpling. Pushing the stroller hastily forward, she continued along the road, making Brooke jog a few steps to keep pace with her. In a moment the baby relaxed, turning his head to the side with a sigh as he settled back into a contended sleep.
    “Can you really go on pretending it doesn’t matter?” Brooke asked then.
    Faith stared forward, her expression hardened. “You don’t think it still eats at me? Not just that I know what happened, but that it was my fault. I have to live with the guilt. While you’ve been away in Toronto, I’ve been stuck here, running into Ian all the time.”
    Brooke blew out a sharp breath, her friend’s words piercing her heart. “It wasn’t your fault, Faith.”
    “Of course it was. My dad was on the road that night because of me. If I hadn’t run