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Ruth turned in at the living room entrance. “Carol, your father’s here.”
Carol looked up warily, glancing at the television as if she were a little embarrassed to be caught watching David’s show. Then she saw the Xbox and jumped to her feet. “Wow! Cool!”
He handed her the box. “I figured I owed you a couple of games of Minecraft. I bought you a new copy to go along with this.”
Very smooth, David.
Carol gave him a shy smile. “Thank you. Can we set it up now? Did you bring any other games?”
David gave Ruth a slightly smug look, then turned back to Carol. “Yeah, I brought a couple. We should be able to get it set up and going here as soon as we get your old one disconnected.”
“Right.” Carol switched off the television set, then flopped down next to her game system and began unplugging.
Ruth gave him a flat look. “Can I look at the games, please?”
“Don’t worry. They’re all E rated.” He smirked again as he handed her the games.
She handed them back after a careful inspection. “Fine. I’ll be in the kitchen if anyone needs anything.”
Carol gave her a worried look, but Ruth ignored it. She didn’t have it in her to make Carol feel good about her father’s behavior.
She left them alone until around ten when she went to the living room to remind Carol of her bedtime. Carol was flushed and smiling, sitting in front of the television set with her controller in her hand, until she saw her mother’s face. And then, abruptly, her smile disappeared and she looked wary again. A more obvious case of divided loyalties Ruth had seldom seen.
And once again, fuck you, David. She didn’t want her daughter to be confused. She wanted her to enjoy her life. But she couldn’t make things seem better than they were.
“I want to take the munchkin out to dinner tomorrow night,” David said. “I’ll pick her up around six.”
Ruth fought down her automatic resentment. Couldn’t he at least have asked her first? Why was it always a challenge? “Have her home by eight.”
Carol looked back and forth between them, probably trying to figure out what was happening, and more importantly, whose side she was supposed to be on.
David gave her an easy smile, then turned back toward the living room. “Good night, kid. Thanks for the Minecraft tournament.”
Carol nodded carefully. “Sure. Thanks for the new system. It’s awesome.”
“Glad you like it. See you tomorrow.” He turned without looking at Ruth and headed down the hall toward the front door.
Ruth waited until the door closed, then turned back to Carol again. “Okay, go brush your teeth. I’ll be up to say good night in a few minutes.”
Carol started toward the stairs, then paused. “Was it okay that I played videogames with him? Should I have told him I didn’t want the Xbox?”
Damn you to hell, David Mobley. “It’s okay. It wasn’t your call. I’m glad you enjoyed it. Go get ready for bed now.”
She sank onto the living room couch as her daughter went upstairs. At this point life sucked on so many levels she’d almost lost count. At least the deli is a success. She almost didn’t want to think about that, as if thinking about Peaches might bring down another catastrophe.
You can’t go on like this.
No, she really couldn’t. She needed to take a stand. David had her on the defensive, and she didn’t like it. But she wasn’t going to do anything to make the situation worse. And if that meant letting her ex-husband take their daughter to dinner, she’d go with it.
…
Liam figured there was nothing to be gained by delay. He needed to start planning for Park City, and to do that, he needed more information. The management company that owned the Park City hotel had an office in their hotel in Antero. He could go over and talk to somebody who might be able to answer his questions.
Besides, getting information would help him keep his mind off Ruth and what was going on between them. Or not going on between them. He needed to clear his head, just like she needed to clear hers. But he wasn’t ready to give up. That much he knew. He wouldn’t let her throw away what they had.
Assuming he had a choice. What do you have, Dempsey? What can you offer her from five hundred miles away?
