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I blew out a long breath, not sure I wanted off the hook for any of it. “Yeah.”
“Speaking of Minty, he was a wreck back then, too,” Daniel offered.
“Back when?”
“High school.”
“And he’s not a wreck now?”
Daniel laughed. “Yes, but in high school, he wasn’t even Minty. He was Mitchell, and it was awful what they did to him. He couldn’t hide himself. He was always a target.”
“So you took him under your wing?”
Daniel shrugged. “After how I hurt Margaret, I felt like I had a penance to pay. Then I kind of fell for him. Not likein love—he’s not my type—but you’ve met him. He’s pretty lovable.”
I thought of Minty with his pink tank top slipping off one shoulder, his tight jean skirt riding high up his thighs, and his fists up, ready to beat me to a pulp for hurting his friend.
“He’s kind of scary.”
Daniel laughed again. “I’m sorry he threatened you.”
I flushed. “Yeah, well, he needed to defend your honor, I guess.”
“Makes sense after I spent all of high school defendinghim. And hedoesknow Aikido, by the way. He’s not harmless, but he is cute.” Daniel’s eyes clouded. “I’m sorry, though. He shouldn’t have treated you like that.”
“No, he was right. That’s what I’m trying to tell you. I’m not a good person.” I met his eyes and swallowed. “But I want to be. I want to be more like you.”
“I’m not a good person. I’m a mess too.” Daniel put his hand on the back of my head and dragged me forward into another hug. He kissed my temple, and whispered in my ear, “I’m proud of you.”
“You are?”
“I amreallyproud of you. It’s hard to leave your first love.” Daniel let go enough to gaze into my eyes. “It’s even harder not to go back a few times.”
“I already did that last year. This time it’ll stick.”
He nodded. “Stay strong. You’ll make it through this.”
A woman’s voice cut in, “Danny, I’m back. Oh, who’s this?”
Daniel turned away and stood up, rubbing the palms of his hands against his jeans. “Hey, Mom. Where’s Nadine?”
“She dropped me off.”
“How was the meeting?”
“Good.”
Daniel’s mom had wavy, strawberry-blond hair and was the epitome of a wealthy, well-dressed woman. She was beautiful in the way of someone who’d had work done on their face, but her brown eyes caught my attention the most. They were weary and miserable. I wished I could snap them in a quick picture, but that would be rude. She approached, smiling, but it didn’t seem to touch her pain. She put out her hand. “I’m Marlene, Danny’s mother.”
I stood to shake, finding her fingers cold.
Daniel introduced me. “Mom, this is Peter Mandel.”
“Oh, your new friend,” she said, and lifted her brow, giving Daniel a look. She clearly assumed I was more than just a friend. “I’ve heard Danny mention you. I see he’s being a good host.” She smiled down at the coffee mugs.
“He is,” I agreed.
“Go on and ignore me, boys. Enjoy yourselves. Darling, where are the children?”
