He shook his head. “Listen to me, Brianna. I understand what you think you saw. But there are two sides to every story. You saw what was happening. But what you didn’t see was why.”

She jerked her hand away from his. “I can’t believe this! You’re actually taking her side! He was kissing her, Dad! Right there in his office! And she was letting him!”

“I don’t suppose you gave her a chance to explain.”

“No! I ran! I didn’t want to hear her lies. I know what I saw!”

He straightened in the chair, wincing with pain. “I told you there are two sides to every story. It’s time you heard the rest. Garrett has been helping the Mob get control of my business. They made him some promises, and he was ambitious enough, and naïve enough, to believe them. Allison and I both knew it, but before we could do anything legal to stop them, we needed proof. Allison went to work for Garrett to get that proof. That included pretending to be on his side.”

“Like a spy, you mean?” So far, the story sounded pretty far-fetched.

“Yes, like a spy, although I hadn’t thought of it in that way. I haven’t talked to her since this happened, but I’m guessing she might have been caught searching Garrett’s office. Letting him kiss her may have been the only way to protect herself and get out of a bad situation.”

“And you really believe that?” Brianna shook her head. “I know what I saw, Dad, and it didn’t look like play-acting. What would you do if you found out she was lying—that she and Garrett were having an affair? Would you divorce her?”

Sadness, like a passing shadow, transformed his face for a moment. “If that were true, and if Allison said she was sorry, and meant it, I’d forgive her.”

It wasn’t what Brianna expected to hear. “You’d forgive your wife for such a terrible thing?” she asked. “How can you be so sure of that?”

His eyes held hers with a tenderness that was almost painful. “Because I did it once before,” he said. “And I’ve never been sorry.”

“Once before?” Brianna was stunned. “You mean Allison—?”

“No. Not Allison.”

No! The numbness of denial dissolved into a flowing wound that drained her memories of warmth and trust. She would have given anything to have her father take back what he’d just told her. But she realized he’d had no choice. It had been the only way to make her understand.

“It was after your mother lost the baby,” he said. “She needed somebody to be there for her. It should have been me. But I failed her. It was as much my fault as hers.”

“How . . .” Brianna’s voice quivered. “How did you manage to get past it all and stay together?”