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“I know it’s for kids, but you never got to go.” He shrugged, looking sheepish. “I thought we could go be kids for the day.”
“Walt Disney World!” I squealed, throwing my arms around him and bursting into tears at the same time.
“Hey!” Dale looked alarmed, pulling back to look at me. “Are you okay?”
“I just…” I was crying so hard, my voice was halted and hitched in my chest. “Never… thought… I never… got… to go…”
“I told you I was going to give you everything you ever wanted.” Dale cupped my wet teary face in his hands, kissing each cheek “And I meant it.”
I threw my arms around him again, still crying, but they were happy tears.
o;Hey, I want to show you something.” He reached over and opened the glove compartment, pulling out a newspaper. I recognized it immediately. There we were, making out, on the front of the entertainment section. It still made me wince.
At least that hadn’t created the fallout that Greg, Mr.Doom and Gloom, had predicted. He’d mailed us a Teen Beat magazine with that picture of Dale and a poll of his girl fans. Sixty-eight percent said it bothered them that Dale had a girlfriend. That same sixty-eight percent said they would still listen to his music anyway. Ninety percent said if they found he had a girlfriend, it would make them jealous. That same ninety-percent also said it would just make them more determined to win the rocker’s affections.
I told Dale I didn’t like Teen Beat giving his fans ideas.
“Look.” Dale pointed to the picture of him putting the garter on my leg at Aimee’s wedding. “Look at your shoulder.”
I brought the paper closer, holding it tilted toward the sunlight. My dress had a scoop neck and back, revealing cleavage in front and a good expanse of my bare back.
“My birthmark,” I whispered. It was right there for everyone to see.
“It may not mean anything,” Dale murmured, reaching over to touch my shoulder. “That’s why I didn’t show you. I didn’t want to spoil things if he really was your dad…”
Lies. All lies.
He had just wanted money, after all.
“I can have him investigated,” Dale offered. “I mean, he could still be who he says.”
“I don’t care.” I tossed the paper on the floor. “He never wanted me, whoever he is. He only wanted to take advantage of you.”
“I’m sorry, Sara.” He gathered me in and I fit myself against him, soft curves melting into sharp angles.
“I’m the one who’s sorry. I should have listened to you,” I murmured. “Let’s go home. I want a do-over on this day.”
But the worst part of the day was yet to come.
Chrissy was gone with her new found friends to the local mall but John was waiting for us, looking concerned.
“We’re fine.” I assured him, giving him a long, long hug when we got into the door.
“You got a phone call.” He hugged me back. “I told him you’d call back.”
“I don’t want to talk to Ben,” I replied wearily, disengaging myself and heading toward the stairs. “I want to go back to bed.”
“It wasn’t Ben,” John said, glancing over at Dale. He still looked very worried. “It was the prosecutor’s office.”
I froze.
“What did they want?” Dale grabbed my hand.
“Your stepfather…” John met my eyes and I felt everything inside me turn to ice water. “Peter Holmes is getting out of jail. Parolled. Time served for good behavior.”
“Good behavior?” I laughed. The irony was too painful to bear.
“Sara?” John called as I turned, zombie-like, and started up the stairs. “Are you okay?”
