Raleigh’s heavy biker boots landed in front of me, pulling me out of my memories.
“Don’t brood in the corner with me,” I said, staring into my drink. “Go dance with your drunk-as-hell husband.”
Raleigh laughed and sat down next to me. “My drunk-as-hell husband is currently dancing on the bar with Jack. I’m not the jealous type, but if I was, the wicked hangover tomorrow will be punishment enough.” When I fell silent, he nudged me with his elbow. “What’s on your mind?”
I gave a bitter laugh. “So much.”
Raleigh put an arm around my shoulder and pulled me into his side. “You’ll be a great dad, Ryder.”
“She already has a dad. She doesn’t need another one.”
“Says who? Aren’t you always saying two is better than one?”
I gave him a dry look. “That’s not what I was talking about and you know it.”
“I wasn’t talking about that, either,” he said softly. I followed his gaze across the bar to his husband.
“No way,” I said, pulling his attention back to me. A smile crept across his mouth. “Kids?”
He took a deep breath. “I mean, Angel still has a long way to go, but we’re talking about it.”
“I guess if you can do it, so can I. Right?”
“Consider yourself lucky. You missed the crying, screaming, puking phase.”
“Hey, mine’ll be drinking soon. If she’s anything like me, she’s already started,” I laughed.
Raleigh shook his head. “Nah, she’s a good kid. Who knows? Maybe she’ll bring you down a notch.”
A loud laugh broke through the bar, followed by a crash. Angel had toppled off the bar, pulling Jack down with him. We let out sighs of relief when they both got up unscathed.
“Go put him to bed,” I said.
“What about?—”
“Nope. We’re not doing the big goodbye. You know you haven’t seen the last of me.”
Raleigh stood, placing a hand on my shoulder. “You know I’m just a phone call away if you need me. I can be in Salem overnight.”
I covered his hand with mine, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I know,” I said, feeling an uncharacteristic tightness in my throat. “Thank you.”
With that, he retrieved his husband, and the two disappeared upstairs. Everyone else was preoccupied with theirdrinks and each other, giving me the perfect opportunity to escape without a fuss.
I stood and placed my empty glass on the bar. I pulled my black satin vest from my back pocket, straightened it out, and laid it across the polished wood. With one last look around the place, I snuck across the room and slipped out the back door.
I chosea great time to travel across the country.
Between severe weather in the Midwest and a blizzard in Chicago, a three-day road trip took me a week to drive. The silver lining was that I was too busy dodging tornadoes and black ice to dwell on the magnitude of the decision I’d made. It wasn’t until I crossed over the Massachusetts state line that my hands grew clammy against the steering wheel. By the time I entered Salem’s city limits, my heart was pounding.
Everything was exactly how I remembered it. Fall was in full swing, and the small, Halloween-centric town celebrated the season with decorations on every storefront and lamp post in sight. As I waited at a stoplight outside City Hall, someone on the street waved at me. I shouldn’t have been surprised. I hadn’t changed much in fifteen years, aside from filling out a little around the middle. Still, I slumped down in my seat and turned my attention elsewhere.
Had Erin said anything about Hannah and my return? Even if she hadn’t, my homecoming was sure to start the rumor mill. That realization was enough to make me forgo stopping until I arrived at my new place.
I pulled up to the two-bedroom, two-bathroom house, killing the ignition and sitting in the driveway longer than I cared to admit. I stared at the brick building with its freshlypainted red door until the cold from outside crept its way into my car and forced me to decide between freezing to death or getting my ass in gear and heading inside.
The place was mostly furnished. I hadn’t wanted to bother with a moving company, so I paid extra to have the place ready. Besides, the contents of my tiny studio apartment in Vegas wouldn’t have filled all the extra space. I unloaded what I’d brought with me and organized it by room. Thoughexhausted, I started on Hannah’s room rather than crawl into my new bed.
My daughter was the entire reason I’d rented a two-bedroom in the first place. I hadn’t spoken to anyone about her staying with me, but if she chose to—even for a night—it was important that she had her own space. She’d have her own bedroom and bathroom, separate from mine. Other than the kitchen, she wouldn’t have to cross paths with me at all.
