That afternoon, Ryan phoned, and Emily answered on speaker.
“Hey, beautiful. How’d everything go?”
“Okay. Mom’s here.”
He hesitated.
“Oh. Did you tell her?”
“She knows about the surgery.”
“Good. That’s one less thing to worry about.”
I moved closer.
“Ryan, did you know Emily told me she needed emergency heart surgery?”
He fell silent.
“She said she was going to ask you for help.”
“That’s not what I asked.”
“Look, I didn’t tell her to lie.”
Emily disconnected.
“Mom, please don’t start.”
Later, she showed me Ryan’s texts to demonstrate his support.
Some sounded affectionate. Others were unsettling.
“Once you get this done, nobody will have anything to say about your pictures.”
Another said, “You’ll finally be able to walk into a room without worrying what people think.”
Then one message caught my attention.
“After surgery, we can finally start going out with everyone again.”
“What does he mean by finally?” I asked.
