Just Rules by Anna Casanovas, Carlie Johnson Read Free Book Online

still married.”
    “Shit, Tim, it’s probably just a mistake.”
    “It’s not.”
    “Shit.”
    “Amanda and I got married, and then —he swallowed— when we got in a fight and she left, I sent her the divorce papers.”
    “You never checked to see if she signed them?”
    “No,” he cleared his throat. “You know perfectly well how I was in the beginning, and then I guess I just forgot. It doesn’t matter now.”
    “Of course it matters, Tim, if not, you wouldn’t have called me at this time from whichever airport you’re at.” He sighed, exhausted, and asked his friend another question. “Why are you going to Paris? Make it quick, please.”
    “When I received word that the judge had denied the marriage license, I decided to go find Amanda to ask her to sign the papers, but her family obviously refused to tell me where I could find her.”
    “Obviously.”
    “And I hired a private detective.”
    “And?”
    “Amanda is in Paris.”
    “Great, they’ve got everything in Europe, and I don’t know if you’ve realized, but they’re more civilized than we are. I’m sure you can send her an email or hire a lawyer from here to ask her to sign the papers.”
    “It’s not that.”
    “Keep it short, Tim.”
    “Amanda has a child that is almost eleven years old. His name is Jeremy, and he’s my son.”
    “Shit, Tim, how do you know? Maybe he isn’t yours.”
    “He is. The dates match up.”
    “Tim…”
    “I’m on his birth certificate as the father, and you know that Amanda hates to lie.”
    “If she hates to lie so much, then why didn’t she tell you?”
    “Leaving something out is not the same as lying.”
    “That’s debatable.”
    “I don’t know why she hasn’t told me and I need to know. That’s why I’m going to Paris. Amanda is the chef at one of the most distinguished restaurants in the city. I have to go see her.”
    “And I suppose that Susan broke up with you when you told her, because surely she never made any mistakes when she was young.”
    “No, Susan isn’t like that,” said Tim, in her defense. “If I had asked, she would have gone with me.” Hearing Tim sigh made Mac feel like his friend was ashamed of himself. “I didn’t ask her, Mac. I couldn’t do it. I didn’t even tell her the whole truth. The only thing I told her was that I couldn’t marry her because I was already married to someone else and that I was going to Paris. I didn’t give her any explanation, and I didn’t even think about asking her to go with me…or to wait for me.”
    “Wow,” was all that Mac could say, or at least the only thing that made sense, because his mind was full of questions about Susan. How did she take it? Was she at home crying by herself? “So, what do you need me to do? I’m sure Susan has it all under control and can postpone the wedding until you get back,” he forced himself to say.
    “I’m not going to marry Susan, Mac. I broke up with her,” explained Tim, sure of himself, and although Mac couldn’t see him, he rubbed his cheek where his ex-fiance had slapped him.
    “Shit, I can’t believe you’re saying this. Don’t you think you’re getting a little ahead of yourself?”
    “No. Do you know what the first thing I thought of was when I received that message from the private detective saying that I had a son with Amanda?”
    “No”
    “That I finally had an excuse to track her down and ask her to forgive me. I know you’re going to think I’m a pathetic coward, but in that exact moment it was as if all of the memories I had of Amanda that I had been repressing for years jumped out at me. We were in the restaurant and I saw Susan walking towards me, I think she was coming back from the bathroom, and I realized that I have never felt for her anything close to what I still feel for Amanda. And I haven’t even seen Amanda for eleven years.” He took a breath and let Mac digest everything that he had confessed. “The wedding is off, and Susan