AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hello? I’ve been calling your name for the last few minutes.”
“What is it?”
Madeline huffs. “Are we going to Andy’s tonight?”
“I can’t go anywhere tonight. I have dinner with my parents.”
“Your dad is back in town?”
“Yeah.”
Madeline doesn’t know the extent of my dysfunctional family dynamic. We’ve been friends since we were little. She knows my dad has always worked a lot and that his job involves frequent travel. She remembers my mom the way she rarely is now: attentive and put together. The way she acts when my dad is back in town. She’ll spiral when he’s gone, letting him deal with the police calls and not answering his calls, probably to remind him she exists when he’s off doing who knows what with who knows who. Whenever he returns, she snaps out of it. Proving to him—and herself—she’s fine.
It’s like living with two different people.
Constant whiplash.
“Aren’t you glad he’s back? He hasn’t been home since May, right?”
“Right,” I reply, dodging her first question.
I sit up, yanking the elastic out of my hair and redoing my ponytail. “I should get going. I told my mom I’d help with dinner.”
Madeline laughs. “Do you even know how to cook?”
“I’ll figure it out.”
My dad told me at breakfast this morning he wanted to have a family dinner tonight—the first one in months. And the last one was a work event for him. We hosted the families of a couple of his bigger clients.
Madeline shakes her head. “All right. Want to go to the lake tomorrow morning?”
“I’ll text you,” I tell her.
“Okay.” She stands. “Have fun with your family.”
“Thanks.”
I stand and gather up my stuff before heading toward the deck. Wes is standing by the grill with Josh. He breaks away and walks over when he sees me walking toward the door that leads inside.
“Hey,” I greet, pausing.
“Hey.” He lowers his voice. Steps closer. “You okay?”
“I’m great.” I paste a bright smile on my face.
Wes’s eyes scan my expression, looking for cracks. The last time we had a full conversation, I told him I’d just come from a police station. I get why he’s worried. And there was a time when this attention would have felt really good. Right now, I just feel drained.
“You sure?” he asks.
Plenty of people are nearby—and watching us. I know he won’t push any further. It’s well-known Wes and I share history. And he knows my family isn’t anything I want anyone gossiping about.
“I’m sure.” If we were alone, I’d ask Wes if he’s told Maeve about transferring from Lincoln. But I can’t do that here. If it were common knowledge, a few dozen people would have mentioned it by now.
Wes nods. “Okay.”
I punch his shoulder. “I’m headed out. See you later.”
“Okay,” he repeats.
