Within These Walls (Within These Walls #1)(63)

“Lailah,” my mother cried, instantly pulling away from Dr. Marcus as if he were on fire. “I’m sorry. This was a mistake.”

She took a step forward, but I held out my hand in an attempt to halt her. I couldn’t help the slight laugh that escaped me from finding my mother in a compromising position, considering all the illicit behavior Jude and I had engaged in over the last week or so.

“Please, Mom, don’t be sorry. If you want to date my doctor, you shouldn’t feel like you have to sneak around hospital hallways and hide it from me. Allow yourself to be happy, Mom,” I said with a warm smile. I was suddenly very proud of my maturity.

She and Dr. Marcus gave each other a brief glance filled with emotions I couldn’t quite decipher. They both looked hurt and angry and deeply filled with regret, and I could only wonder why. I turned around and took the hand of a very silent Jude, who had his gaze fixed on Dr. Marcus.

“Molly, I can’t keep doing this—the back and forth between us and the lying. We need to tell her,” Dr. Marcus said with an edge to his voice.

“Please, Marcus, don’t,” a tiny voice pleaded.

“I’m your uncle, Lailah,” he whispered.

I spun around and saw hurt and regret in the eyes of the man who had taken care of me since the day I was born.

“Your father was my brother. We should have told her a long time ago, Molly.”

I turned to my mother, waiting for her to dispute it or to offer some other alternative for why they both felt the need to lie to me throughout my entire life. But she didn’t say a word. She just looked at me like she’d been mortally wounded.

“Why?” I asked them both. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

“I wanted to, but it wasn’t my secret to tell. But I’m tired of being just a doctor to you Lailah,” Marcus said. “And your mother has her reasons. Don’t be angry with her. She went through hell and back with my sorry excuse of a brother. The fact that she even allowed me to be a part of your life was more than I could have ever asked.”

I shook my head, trying to expel the words and images out of my head.

It didn’t work.

“No, I can’t handle this right now. I’m being discharged tomorrow. In the morning, I’m going to pack, and I will be leaving—with Jude. Please give him all my discharge paperwork. Mom, I’ll come home when I’m ready to talk.”

Her echoed cries were the last thing I heard as I left that hallway.

Sometimes, being a grown-up sucked.

Twenty-two: Yertle the Turtle—Jude

SLEEP COMPLETELY ELUDED me as I waited for the minutes to pass by until morning came.

I should have told her.

I should have said something the second after it had happened. But I hadn’t. I’d walked away from Marcus and her crying mother, holding Lailah’s hand as she’d softly sobbed. Then, I’d comforted her as we made our way back to the cardiology floor. I’d helped her take down her hair and wash away what was left of her makeup. She’d changed out of her dress, and I’d held her as she fell asleep.

I never said a word.

I’d known Marcus was her uncle. I had known, and I hadn’t told her. I’d kept his secret because, like Marcus, it wasn’t mine to tell. Too many cards had been stacked up in this crazy lie, and I hadn’t wanted to be the one to bring it to a tumbling crash.

But now, I was stuck in it, and I had to find a way to tell Lailah.

The first rays of sunlight began to stream through my window, and I sat up. I looked around the sparse room, wondering if I would have her here with me tonight or if I’d be alone again.

Only one way to find out.

I jumped out of bed and headed for the shower.

Twenty minutes later, I was throwing a T-shirt on and grabbing an apple as I headed out the door.

It was early, but I knew Lailah would be up with the sun, packing and getting ready to leave. I wanted to be there, helping her. It didn’t take long to drive to the hospital and park. A short elevator ride later, and I was at her door. It was open today, and I saw her before she noticed me. Her long blonde hair was loose and falling forward, still wavy from the braids her mother had done. As she folded a shirt and placed it in a pile, I felt like I’d been slapped with déjà vu. On the eve of her last discharge, I’d walked in and watched her do the exact same thing. Finding out she was leaving that day had left me feeling frightened and happy all at the same time. I’d been frightened because she was leaving me and happy because she was finally getting to go home.

Today, I felt all of that and more.

Please don’t change your mind. Please come home with me, I silently begged as I stepped forward, announcing my arrival.

She turned and smiled. “You’re here early.”

“I figured you would be up, so I thought you might want some help packing.”

“I do, thanks. Can you get that bag over there?” she asked, pointing to a duffel bag next to the bed.

I grabbed it and placed it on the bed beside her.

“I have to tell you something,” I said, my hesitance weighing down every word.

She turned to me with nervousness lining her features. “What?”

“I knew Marcus was your uncle,” I admitted.

“How?” She sat on the edge of the bed with the shirt she was folding still balled together in her hands.