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That fucking loser. He comes up with story after story and Liv believes them all.
“Tell him to take a cab!”
“No! Come on, Tug. Please.”
Her whining isn’t about to persuade me. If I go, I may end up in jail for murder.
“You aren’t drunk. Go get him.”
Maria turns to me and quietly says, “Think about what you’re saying. If she gets pulled over, the local policia will keep her for as long as they want.”
“I can’t do it,” I whisper. “If I have to be in a car with him, I’ll lose it.”
Maria looks over at Liv. “You know what, I’ll drive you.” She turns her head back to me. “Your brother is leaving, and you should spend some time with him.”
“Oh, God, thank you,” Liv says with relief.
“It’s fine.” Maria smiles at me. “Give me your keys.”
Without hesitation, I hand her my keys. I watch them walk away and second guess myself. When she and Liv reach my car, I yell, “Wait, Liv. I need to tell you something.”
“Not now, Tug. Harrison needs me.”
“He must really like you,” Liv says, her tone light and playful.
“What makes you think that?” I ask.
“Because he let you drive his Porsche. No one is allowed to drive his baby.”
“It’s just a car.”
She laughs. “Tell Tug that.”
“So, Harrison went for ice, huh?”
“Yep.” I can tell by the tone of her voice that she thinks he’s full of shit.
“Okay.”
“He’s a good guy. Being with me has been hard for him. He was there when my mother shot herself. I didn’t expect us to end up together, but he took care of me afterward. I was so lost, and he kind of saved me.”
“Being someone’s savior sounds like a lot of pressure for a guy.”
“It was. It is. I guess I’m still a little lost, and we fight quite a bit. He thinks I should be over it already.”
I wish I could tell her that what he’s really doing is justifying his own behavior by manipulating her into believing she’s doing something wrong in the relationship, but it isn’t my place to interfere.
“Losing a mother isn’t something you get over easily. No matter what she did, she was still your mom.”
“Exactly.” Liv stays silent for a while, staring out the passenger side window. “Right before she pulled the trigger, she said, ‘I love you, Liv’ — not Aidan, not Brady, me. I still have nightmares.”
“And Harrison doesn’t understand?”
“I don’t know. I think he’s so angry with her that he wants me to be, too, and I was at first, but the more time goes by, I want to remember the good times, like her singing to me when she tucked me in at night, or helping with homework. She was a good mom. Despite everything horrible she did, I still love her.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that.”
She rubs her legs, and smiles at me. “Are you close to your mom?”
