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She rolls her eyes, pushing me away. “I’mnotyour mom. Stop making me sound old.”
“Hey, I dig older women.” I mock offense, joining Summer at the counter.
“I’ll give you a tip,Loge,” Summer starts when I sit down beside her. “No older woman is dating a guy that uses the worddigwhen referring to her.”
Joel and Lucy burst out laughing as I raise an eyebrow, crossing my arm in front of my chest.
“They’re not listening to the words coming out of my mouth,Sum. Unless I’m describing what I’m about to do to them.”
Lucy reaches across the counter and smacks me while Summer cringes in disgust. But I get a chuckle out of Joel, so all’s okay in the world. Someone gets my humor.
When Joel and Lucy are deep in conversation, Summer looks at me with a serious expression, and I know what she’s about to ask. “Have you spoken to your dad yet, now that you’ll be seeing him more often?” she questions just as I raise a glass of water to my lips, cringing as I peer over the rim.
I take a sip before answering. “I’m too tired for that question.”
“Shut up. You’re fine.”
“Okay, I’ll never be ready for that question.”
Summer’s brows crease, and she frowns. “I’m the last person to ever preach thelove thy familyphilosophy, but your dad’s a good man. Shouldn’t you at least hear him out? It’s been almost two years since you found out.”
When she says it like that, it sounds petty. But it’s not like I see him every day and continue to give him the cold shoulder. I hardly see him at all. And other than confronting me when Idovisit, he never seeks me out otherwise.
“I know, Summer. And I probably should have spoken to him about it by now, but he was my hero, and he fucked up.”
“People make mistakes, Logan.” I know she’s thinking about the fact she forgave her brother, Thomas, but this is different.
“He didn’t make an error in judgment, Sum. He had an affair that resulted in a child. And never told us until he was forced to.”
“But at least he didn’t move you there because of the affair, like you first thought.”
I shoot her a blank stare because that doesn’t make it any better, and she sighs, reading my message loud and clear.
“Ugh, I know. I just worry about you. I mean, eighty percent of the time you’re the same Logan. But then there are these moments…”
Jesus. I didn’t even know I put off apoor mevibe.
“I’m okay. Really. I’ll try to be more myself.”
“That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
“Is Dylan coming home at all during the off-season?” I ask, completely changing the subject so she’ll drop the topic of my dad.
Summer laughs. “What? You couldn’t even wait for a segue?”
“Nope, I was banking on the fact that you love talking about him. But you called me out.”
She laughs again and then starts to do just that…talking about Dylan in great detail, bringing a huge smile to my face. Seeing Summer happy is all I’ve ever wanted, and I’m so glad she’s found a guy who not only treats her well but keeps up with her humor and calls her on her shit. They’re a good match.
When five o’clock comes around, I kick everyone out to get ready for dinner. If it wasn’t for Liam, I’d probably never visit my parents’ home after what Dad did. Actually, if it wasn’t for Liam, I’d be telling my mom to divorce my dad’s ass and send him packing. I get why she’s accepting of it, to a degree. Liam needs her, so if she walks out on Dad, she walks out on Liam. But still, she acts like it never even happened, and it makes her look weak, even though she’s one of the strongest women I know. Although, I guess it takes a pretty strong woman to put your own feelings aside to care for someone else’s child. She’s my hero, whichever way you look at it.
When I arrive for dinner, Mom pulls me into a warm hug while Liam watches on from behind her. He’s her shadow at home. They bonded so quickly; you’d think they had always known each other. Or at least that they were meant to.
Dad enters the room and immediately sweeps Liam into his arms before throwing him over his shoulder. Liam giggles as he thrashes around, trying to break free, while Mom watches on with so much love in her eyes, and I can’t help but feel sick. My father’s a great dad. Always has been. And I miss that side of him. It’s the shitty husband side of him that I can’t get past.
Dad and Liam play for a beat until he sees me watching and places Liam’s feet on the floor, giving me a tentative smile.
“Son.” He nods.
