Growing and listening and adapting.
Together.
CHAPTER 27
AVERY
“Anybody home?”
“Back here, hon,” my dad calls. I’d bet a crisp twenty he’s in his office.
I beam at Gabriel and take him by the hand. It’s been a solid week since we got back together. He had to return the delivery truck, so we spent a few days in Sugar Creek. I finished my final chapters while I was there, and sent them to Jill. I haven’t heard back yet. Hopefully no news is good news.
I pop into the office. Gabriel stands in the hallway, out of view. “Hey, Dad. I have a surprise.”
He removes his glasses and sets them on the desk. “Is it about your book? Did you finish?”
“It’s not about my book. And yes, I finished.” I reach out into the hallway, and pull Gabriel into the room.
“What the hell?” my dad says, astonished. He pushes back his chair and rounds the desk. His arms open, and Gabriel gives him a long hug, and solid pat on the back.
“It’s good to see you,” Gabriel says when they break apart.
“Gabriel,” my dad puts a hand on his shoulder. He shakes his head like he can’t believe what’s in front of him. He sends me a questioning look. “What’s going on?”
I deliver a condensed version of Sugar Creek. My dad’s gaze switches from me to Gabriel and back again. He waits until I’m finished to ask, “Are you officially back together? Is that what all this means?”
“We’re back together. Officially.” We discussed taking it slow, but given all the history and time in Sugar Creek, we decided to do what feels natural, whatever that means. No extensive thought, no should be or shouldn’t be, or considering what other people might think.
I’d assumed my dad would trip over himself welcoming Gabriel back into the fold, but he’s regarding Gabriel with a wary gaze that confuses me. “I trusted you with her the first time around, and you betrayed that trust. One day, if you’re lucky enough to have a daughter, you’ll understand what it was like to watch my little girl suffer.”
Shock freezes my expression in place. I’ve never heard my dad talk like this. He loves Gabriel.
Gabriel nods once, maintaining eye contact. “I’m sorry I made you experience that.”
My dad inclines his head toward me. “If Avery has decided she trusts you again, I’ll go along with that. I’m all for second chances and learning from mistakes.” He eyes me meaningfully. “Lara is in the backyard. Let’s go tell her. She’ll be so happy for you guys.”
Gabriel backs out of my dad’s office. Instead of following him, I throw my arms around my dad. My dad hugs me back.
“You sure?” he whispers.
“I’m sure.”
“I have a shovel,” he says, louder.
I chuckle. “And you know places where a body will never be found?”
“Exactly.”
“Message received, sir,” Gabriel says from the doorway.
CHAPTER 28
GABRIEL
“Loser wearshis underwear on the outside of his clothes for a day.”
I’m not sure who said it because I’m bent at the waist, stretching my back before Pat’s Run, the 4.2 mile race that’s minutes away from starting. I look sideways and watch Gutierrez cup his hands around his mouth and crow, “What if we don’t wear underwear?”
