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“I shouldn’t have …”
“I appreciate you sharing,” Beau said quickly.
They stood there for almost a full minute. Myra must’ve finished her phone call, but she didn’t come back in. She faced away from them.
“Dude.” Beau tilted his head. “Relationships are messy, and maybe you and I are both an emotional mess, but isn’t she worth trying to make a go of it?”
Myra was worth a lot more than that. Yet what if he hurt her? He’d made her cry the other night. What if he made her cry a lot? What if he died or she died? Was his dad wrong and a relationship could work for him? Or was his dad dead on and Ike needed to protect himself and anyone he loved by staying detached?
He didn’t move.
“Come on. Get out there.” Beau laughed at him. “I haven’t even seen you two kiss. Do you love her or not?”
“Love her?” Ike’s heart beat far too fast. What did he know about love? He could admit he wanted to spend every minute with Myra. She made him feel more bubbly than the Perrier. He wanted her happiness above his own. Wasn’t that something she’d said to Beau about Bermuda?
“Go kiss her. Tell her how you feel. I’ll be a good boy, sit on the couch and Google recent videos of Bermuda, ignoring the ones from the hockey arena, while I wait for you two.” He tilted his head. “Come on. I’m not in danger right now. Get out there.”
Ike looked at his friend.
Then he set the Perrier on the counter and stormed to the patio doors.
Chapter
Sixteen
Myra shut the patio door behind her and slid the phone on. “Hi, Dad,” she called out, forcing happiness she didn’t feel. She and Ike had connected deeply. She understood why he wouldn’t pursue a relationship, but it gouged at her every time he looked her way, smiled, or brushed her hand.
“Hey. How are you? Am I interrupting a job?”
“I’m good. I’m on a job, but in a spot where I can talk.” Interesting that her dad didn’t ask if he was interrupting a date. On a Saturday night. Most normal, single twenty-six-year-olds would probably be out doing something social. But what did she know about normal?
“Great.”
“Tell me about everybody.”
Her dad proceeded to share what each of her five siblings were up to. She appreciated the updates, grateful they were all doing well, and promised she’d call and chat with each of them when she finished this job.
She snuck a glance over her shoulder. Ike and Beau were standing by the fridge. The conversation looked pretty intense.
“What about you?” he asked. “Is the job going well?”
“It’s good.”
“That’s not very convincing. What’s going on, Myra?”
She took a deep breath and for some reason she spit out, “If I fell in love, would I be a complete idiot?”
There was silence on the line. She almost yanked back the question, but she wanted his answer. She shouldn’t have even brought it up. Ike had said he’d never marry, never have a family. So why hash it out with her dad?
“Are you in love with someone?”
“I … maybe.” She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter. Forget I asked.”
“Myra. I want you to be happy.”
She appreciated that answer, but … “Dad. You trained me to be a warrior. To make a difference in the world. To be unselfish. Not to be happy.”
“You are making a difference, and you are unselfish.” He swallowed and said quickly, “I’m proud of you. If you’ve fallen in love, I would want you to have that happiness.”
