He won’t even look me in the eye.
“I appreciate you doing it, son.”
I want to laugh when I hear that word fall from his lips. It sounds so forced that I can't even bring myself to be hurt.
I’m just angry.
“Whatever,” I snap. “All the contracts Jenny sent me are good to go. I'll do a final check before I leave tomorrow.”
My dad looks up, seeming startled by the venom in my voice, but I don't care. I'm done tiptoeing around and pretending like he didn't throw our relationship away when Mom died. If he wants to play that game, he’s more than welcome to.
I'm just not going to be a part of it.
“Yes, that sounds great,” Mary chimes in, looking between me and Dad in confusion. “Jenny and I can get things signed and ready to send out for Monday once we get the green light!”
Dad and I stare at each other for a long, tense moment before he glances off to the side. He clears his throat and wipes his hands clean on a paper towel before stepping away from the potatoes he's been preparing.
“I’m just going to run out and make sure Bill and Tony are good to start the day,” he says to Mary as he leans over to kiss her cheek. “I'll be back in a second.”
I watch him walk toward the door, frustration and bitterness boiling in my gut. I’m used to the look in his eyes—the disappointment, the blame, the regret. But I'm not used to him walking away from what could easily turn into a shouting match. I want to call him a coward, to hurl insults at him, but it won't make me feel any better. It'll just be the same as it always is.
Quiet falls over us as the door swings shut behind my dad.
“So is Katie going on this camping trip, too?” Jenny asks in an attempt to diffuse the sudden awkward tension.
“What?” I blink at her in confusion, uncertain of where she got that idea from. “God, no. Why would she? It's just the guys.”
Jenny’s brows cinch together for a moment, as she looks at me in blatant disapproval. I'm half-surprised she doesn't spit at me with how her lip curls in distaste.
“The guys from high school?”
I roll my eyes at the judgement in her tone. She never liked my friends, which I don't really get. They all stayed out of her hair when we were in school.
“It’ll be me, Aaron, Cody, and Travis,” I tell her. “Cody’s getting hitched, so it's sort of a stag party, minus the strippers.”
Jenny scoffs at me, sharing a look with Mary that speaks volumes. Honestly, I'm just being an ass to get a rise out of her. This trip has nothing to do with Cody’s bachelor party. I don't even know if he's having one.
“How lovely,” Jenny says witheringly. “What’s up with you and Katie, anyway? You two are spending an awful lot of time together.”
My mind immediately jumps to that night we had dinner at her place, conjuring up plenty of memories of exactly what we've been up to. I'm not about to tell my sister that I've been sniffing up Katie’s skirt for the past month. She'd beat me senseless if she thought I was trying to get myself some easy nookie while I'm home, especially with the family vet.
Although sleeping in Katie’s bed and watching the sun play over her hair as it rose this morning doesn't really fit with the idea of keeping things casual.
Good sex will make anyone go insane. I'm not different.
“Nothing, dude,” I huff. “What, I can't have friends?”
“You're going camping with yourfriends,” she points out.
God, why can she be so reasonable sometimes? It's fucking annoying.
“Oh, right, I forgot I have to hang out with all of my friends at once.” I sneer at her, intentionally inflammatory. I really don't want to have this conversation right now. “God forbid I’m friends with people who don't all do the same things.”
Jenny shakes her head as I push up from the table, her brown hair waving with the movement.
“You're kind of a douche, dude,” she says drily.
“Pot, kettle,” I say with a careless shrug. “Let me know when dinner’s ready.”
