“You better not be talking about us to your fancy friends,” my father has warned me many times.
“Fuck, Dad, I’m not.”
“He most definitely will not.Won’t you, Jake?Your dad wasn’t to blame.They took his job.We don’t want the neighborhood to know our stuff.It’s private,” Mom always adds.
That was drummed into my mind repeatedly from a young age.
If I’d told the truth, Dad would have gone to jail.
It would’ve been my fault.
We would have lost Dad, too.
But here’s the thing...I did.I did lose him.He was already half lost, drinking at the bar every day.But after Becca died, that last piece of him vanished.
And so did my childhood.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CAYLEE
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Amy pops her head intothe clinic, and both Brad and I glance up.She gives me a toothy, awkward grin.
“You have got to be kidding me.Who is it today?”I drop the patient file onto the bench and shoot Brad an apologetic look.
“Scarlett and your cute niece are here to see you,” Amy clarifies.
What is going on?I’ve never had lunch with so many friends and family members in one month, let alone one year.
I rip off my lab coat and sigh.“Fine, tell her I’ll be there in a few minutes.”
“Go.But make sure you’re back on time.”Brad waves me off.
I wasn’t asking his permission.What I do during my lunch break is my business.
