Page 42 of Home Ice

“Just what?” Barrett asks, and his tone is so familiar that the words fall out.

“I haven’t earned it. Is Kasen allowed to mean so fucking much when we don’t know each other at all? He hates me, and I can’t even blame him for it. But it’s killing me that he does.”

Without taking his eyes off the road, Barrett reaches over, large, calloused hand closing over mine. He doesn’t say anything, just squeezes tight before pulling into the cafe parking lot. Five minutes early.

“No matter what happens, I’ll be waiting for you once you get back.”

“You’re supposed to tell me it will be fine.”

He parks the car, then pushes up his sunglasses as he turns to look at me. “It will be fine.”

“You could not have said that with less emotion if you tried.”

A laugh sneaks past his lips. “I actually worked really hard to sound that deadpan. Now, get your ass in there.”

With a sigh, I push open the car door and try not to feel as though I’m walking to my doom.

Amelia is already there waiting, of course, and she watches me approach as she sips her coffee. I try for a smile, but it’s like a candle flickering before it dies.

“Thanks for meeting me.”

“Of course.” She sets down her cup.

I’m about to suggest that I buy us both a drink, but I really don’t think I’ll be able to stomach anything, so I sink into the seat across from her. “Ah, Kasen didn’t want to come?”

“I didn’t think it was a good idea. He’s at a friend’s place.”

“Right.” I clear my throat. “So⁠—”

“You bought him a car.”

Oh, fuck. We’re jumping right into that, are we? Maybe I should have asked for a glass of water to help clear the boulder blocking my throat. “He only asked me for two things, so I figured with all the birthdays and Christmases I’ve missed …”

“You can’t buy him a car. It’s unreasonable.”

Those two sides of me war with each other again. The side that’s pissed off she’s telling me what to do with my own son, and the side that acknowledges I have no fucking clue what I’m doing. I try to keep my tone light, but I don’t think I pull it off. “Well, it’s too late now.”

“He said it’s in your name.”

“Yeah, but⁠—”

“So take it back.”

My jaw flexes with the effort it takes not to tell her to fuck off. The thing is, I can see a lot of Carly in her mom, and those same features are also all over Kasen’s face. If I really want to do this, I need to make sure Amelia is on board. But I’m not going to be a pushover. We both know how easily we could make each other’s lives hard. “Are you going to be the one to tell him the car has to go? Or is that yet another thing I have no choice in?”

“I’m trying to be very patient with you, Jensen. I understand this is a confusing time, but since you’re the one who bought the car, you need to be the one to tell him why it wasn’t appropriate.”

“Do I?” I cross my arms, and it’s probably not smart, but I’m already getting flustered. “Because I don’t think I even know the reasons.”

“He’s a child, and children need boundaries. Dropping a hundred thousand dollars on a car isn’t setting a good example or role modeling how a stable adult behaves.”

“Was Carly role modeling how a stable adult behaves when she hid my son from me?” It’s a low blow, and I regret it immediately, but it’s out there now. Carly fucking hurt me. She lied right to my face the few times I bumped into her. I know you’re not supposed to speak badly about the dead, but at what point will anyone acknowledge that she fucked up on this one?

Amelia’s whole face is tight with tension. “She had her reasons.”

“I’d love to hear them, actually.”

At first, I think she really will tell me, but after struggling against words for a moment, she shuts down. “That’s not my business to tell.”