“How do you mean?” I asked, my voice small.
“The disease robbed him of all his independence, Wrenn. Even the smallest thing, he needed assistance with. Early on in his diagnosis it wasn’t so bad, but as things progressed...it was hard, even for me, a person outside of their circle, to watch.” She looked at me earnestly. “I’m not going to lie to you, Wrenn. How Mary and Dalton coped with that is beyond me. Huntington’s disease is relentless. It’s a terrible, horrible illness. And it’s not just the physical symptoms you need to watch out for. Things like depression and other mental illnesses are common symptoms that can occur way before any physical symptoms kick in.”
“What scares me the most is losing him. I don’t know if I can handle that. How can I be strong for him when I can’t cope with things myself?” My voice broke.
Layna stood me up and hugged me again, her warm embrace comforting. “You’re stronger than you think, honey. And there is so much love and passion inside of you. Your mom would be very proud, you know that?”
I nodded, wiping my eyes. She would be proud of me. Not so much the falling for the teacher thing, but everything else. How I’d handled everything I’d been through the past year. And now this.
“God, Wrenn, I can’t be mad at you. Everything should horrify me, both as your aunt and as his boss, but both of you have been through so much. And no matter what, you’ll always have me. Whatever you decide, and whenever you need me, I’ll be right by your side. You won’t be in this alone, honey.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled. “That means a lot to hear you say that.”
I rubbed the side of my head and stifled a yawn, only just realizing how tired I was. The last couple of days had been huge, and so stressful I’d only managed a few hours of sleep.
“So what happens now? Is this enough to get Paige’s claim thrown out?” I asked nervously.
“It will certainly be enough to create doubt in her story. And if you’re right and all she wants is to ruin you, then your admittance should be enough for her to drop her accusation.”
“And Dalton? How will this affect his career?”
Layna shook her head. “Unfortunately, that’s not completely up to me. I’ll do my best for this not to go on his record, but I can’t promise you anything. You should stay away from him for a few days, though, Wrenn. It will be best for both him and you. Until this is cleared up. Until after your graduation.”
I nodded and hugged her again, wondering how I was going to go without seeing him, but at the same time relieved I had the time I needed to think. Without the distraction of him.
Chapter Thirty
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Wrenn
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The eve of my graduation. One more day until I was free.
One more day until I could start the rest of my life, and I still hadn’t worked out what to do. I refused to commit to Dalton unless I was sure.
God, that sounded horrible. As bad as this felt for me, it had to be worse for him. He didn’t need me changing my mind in five years, or ten years. If I was with him, it was for all of it.
I tried to put things into perspective—life with Dalton, and life without him. My feelings for him were beyond love. I loved this man more than I did anything else in my world right now. If he did have this disease, was twenty years with him enough? Was it better than not having him at all? I couldn’t imagine loving anybody the way I did him. That had to count for something.
Kass took me shopping for a graduation dress, mostly to take my mind off Dalton and everything else that was going on. Paige had recounted her accusations against Dalton, but the board had insisted on investigating my relationship with him. After countless interviews with various members of the school board, they were meeting today to decide his fate, and I was a nervous wreck.
I hadn’t seen or spoken to him all week. We had sent texts—a lot of texts—but it wasn’t the same as hearing his voice. I longed to hear that deep, husky voice whispering sexy and dirty things into my ear.
“How about this?”
Kass held out a short purple-and-black chiffon dress. I screwed up my nose at the wide straps. I didn’t do straps. They made my shoulders look huge. I searched through the rack in front of me, only half focused on the task at hand.
“There, what about that?” she said.
I stopped at looked at the dress I was holding in my hands. Okay, this one wasn’t half bad. It was strapless, long, and fitted with a built-in corset. I ran the dark blue silk fabric over my fingers, loving the way it felt against my skin. This was perfect.
The winter formal was set to follow the small, informal ceremony for the half dozen students graduating early. It wasn’t usual for students graduating early to have a midyear ceremony, but Layna had insisted on marking the occasion.