“Grace, I’m on my way to the restaurant now. I’ll explain—”

“Did you?” A sob escaped her. “Just tell me!”

There was silence then, “Yes, but—”

She shoved the phone at Alex, nearly dropping it. She couldn’t breathe; she gasped, trying to catch her breath. “Are you okay, Grace?” Alex put his hand on her shoulder.

Finally, she felt a slow trickle of air enter her lungs as if it were coming in through a straw. But the pain she felt in her heart was brutal. Not even the deaths of her father and grandmother compared to this. Their losses, while devastating, weren’t a betrayal. They hadn’t knowingly done something that they knew would tear her heart out.

She grabbed her things out of the cabinet. Alex was talking but she couldn’t hear him—didn’t want to. All she could think of was running far, far away from the Morenos. All of them. She wanted nothing to do with any of this anymore. Her head was spinning. Somehow, she knew it all along. It was just too good to be true. Things like this just didn’t happen to girls like her and here was the agonizing proof. Grace didn’t even bother trying to wipe the tears that streamed down her face. It was useless; they wouldn’t stop now.

“Where are you going?” Alex asked, still holding the phone to his ear.

“I quit.” She threw the keys to the Jetta on the desk as she stalked by him.

“Grace, wait. How are you getting home?”

She didn’t answer just walked right by a stunned looking Melanie. “What’s wrong?”

Grace pulled her phone out, ignoring everyone that asked the same question as she rushed through the restaurant. Alex ran after her and caught her just outside. “Gracie, please let me take you home.”

She tried walking around him. “No, Alex. I just want to get away from here.”

He stepped in front of her. “I’ll take you. Don’t walk.”

“I’m not walking.” She struggled to catch her breath again and talking was only making it worse. “My friend is picking me up.”

“Grace, he f**ked up, okay? He was drunk. Doesn’t even remember. I know he wouldn’t willingly hurt you like this. But you guys can get through this.”

Yet another agonizing blow to take. Alex knew all along. She thought of how odd everyone had behaved at Sal’s house the day Melissa showed up. Were they all in on it? She glared at him. “Get through this! He’s having a baby with that bitch and…” It really sunk in. Her fairy tale future with the guy she was so hopelessly in love with was over. Just like that. “I’ll never get through this, Alex. Never.” She sobbed and tried walking around him and he attempted to stop her. “Let me go. I have a ride. I have to get out of here.”

“Then wait for your ride here.”

She shook her head. “I’m meeting him up the street.”

“I’ll go with you and we’ll wait together.”

She ignored Alex and dialed Joey, a tough feat with as much as her hands shook. She could barely speak when she asked him if he could pick her up. She knew he hadn’t understood much of what she said only that she needed to be picked up and he quickly agreed.

“Where’s he picking you up?”

“He’ll call when he’s close and I’ll let him know where I am. I need to walk.”

They walked silently for a few blocks. Then Alex finally spoke, “Gracie, alcohol is the devil. It f**ks up so much shit. I only hope that you can forgive Sal—eventually. You really do mean everything to him.”

The fact that Alex knew everything all this time was utterly humiliating. She wanted nothing more than to be away from him—all of them.

She’d finally managed to stop crying and now she felt a boulder sized lump in her throat again. Her entire life was defined by one devastating event after another that changed everything. This was just another one. She only hoped that like all the other times she’d be able to survive this. Her phone rang and she let Joey know where she was.

Without responding to Alex or even acknowledging that she’d heard anything he said they continued to walk in defening silence until Joey pulled up next to them.

“Sal’s gonna come looking for you, Gracie. You know that,” Alex said as she reached for the car door. “I don’t want this to be goodbye.”

Grace refused to look at him.

He touched her arm but recoiled when she flinched. “Maybe not right away. Take all the time you want but your job will be waiting, no matter how long it takes… I’ll miss you.”

Unable to hold back the devastating tears she got in the car with Joey, pulled the door shut and locked it, not looking at Alex.

“What happened, sweetie?” Joey asked his voice full of concern as they drove away.

She waited until Alex was out of sight before completely falling apart.

~*~

Sal banged the steering wheel. He should’ve told her before. He knew this was going to happen but the pregnancy—that came out of nowhere. Although the thought of there being no condom anywhere in the room had popped the idea in his mind a few times he didn’t think he could be that unlucky. Sure, he knew he f**ked up, but he didn’t think it could it get any worse than it already was.

Traffic was the pits. Of course, he’d have to be clear across town when he got the call. After calling Alex back several times to no answer he’d called the restaurant and was told Alex had stepped outside with Grace. Apparently, he hadn’t taken his phone with him. Grace had obviously turned her phone off because his calls were going straight to voicemail. He left one saying he loved her and begged her to give him a chance to explain, but he didn’t her call back after that.