“Yes, have fun. Stay safe. Call if you need a ride,” Dad added, almost begrudgingly.
“I will,” I told them just as Lara pulled into the driveway. “I’ll be back later tonight.”
I slipped into my jacket before rushing out the door and walked briskly down the walkway, thankful for the break from the tension. Both of my parents had been acting strange since they found out about Asher.
Mom was depressed. She was trying to hide it from me—from us—but I could see it in her expression and hear it in her voice, as hard as she worked to keep it from me. Dad sensed it; I knew he did, but he was still amped up about the big revelation.
He was angry at Cal, almost irrationally so. Since overhearing their argument Saturday morning, I hadn’t been able to unhear the weird remarks Mom had made—something was amiss—but I couldn’t put my finger on what exactly it was.
Lara waved at me as I approached, her grin wide. “Hey, girl! How are you doing?”
“I’m okay, I guess.”
“I take it you won’t be coming back to Dalhousie with me tonight?” she remarked, noticing my lack of a bag.
“Yeah, not yet. My professors said I could take the week to grieve. Turns out the dean knew Gramps,” I replied. “Honestly, I’m glad they gave me another week. I need it. I keep bursting into tears at the most inconvenient of times. It’s almost embarrassing. I’ve been handing in assignments remotely.”
“Well, we miss your face, but I get it,” Lara said. “I’m sure it hasn’t beenall badthough, am I right?”
“What are you talking about?”
“According toCelebrity Hearsay, Dare has a new girlfriend he’s been spotted with locally.”
“What?!” I demanded, my brows furrowing. I grabbed my phone out of my clutch, bringing up theCelebrity Hearsaywebsite that practically stalked my brother and his bandmates.
She was right. The latest post was about how bassist Dare had found someone to occupy his time with while back home. It had photos snapped of us at Westhaver’s Beach. You couldn’t make out my facial features, but my hair was unmistakable, and the way Dare smiled and gazed at me was telling.
“Crap.” I gnawed on my lower lip. Of course, the first—and so far, only—time we’d gone out in public, we’d been spotted. And called out. Maybe I shouldn’t have let him hold my hand on the beach, but I’d felt safe enough and hadn’tthoughtanyone was watching.
“So, spill the details. How long has this been going on? Because you guys looked pretty cozy together.”
“Since my birthday,” I admitted, burying my face in my hands.
“Wait, what!” Lara practically shouted, her car swerving a little with her enthusiasm. “This has been going on since your birthday? And you kept it from me?” She sounded genuinely wounded.
“We kept it from everyone,” I corrected. “It…happened after I walked in on Jason. I ran into Dare, and, well…one thing led to another.”
“One thing led to another, and you didn’t even tell your best friend about it,” Lara said, sounding offended. “I thought we were past the point of keeping secrets from one another.”
“We are, this is literally the only secret I’ve kept from you. At first, it was because I didn’t expect it to happen again. I thought Dare would get wigged out and back off, but he didn’t. Then…I just wanted to keep it to myself. I was afraid announcing it would ruin it.”
“Fine. I guess I can forgive you. But you better not keep any more secrets from me. And if it sucked reading about it inCelebrity Hearsayforme, imagine how your brother’s going to feel.”
“He doesn’t pay attention toCelebrity Hearsay, or any other gossip site for that matter. But you’re right. Dare says it’s getting harder to keep it from Calum. We’re planning on telling him soon, but…” I trailed off, Cal’s secret on the tip of my tongue. “Cal’s had a lot going on himself.”
“How so? I mean, you all lost your grandfather. What makes Cal’s loss more important?”
“It’s not so much of what he’s lost, it’s what he’s discovered,” I answered. “Between me and you—he’s just found out he’s a father of an almost eight-year-old.”
Lara’s jaw fell open. “You’re kidding. With who?”
“His high school girlfriend. The one he left behind without saying goodbye when they went on tour.”
“Shit. That’s intense. How did he handle that news?”
“Pretty good, actually,” I said, proud of him. He wasn’t going to waste his second chance. “He’s buying a house and staying local so he can be around from here on out.”
“How does his ex feel about it?”
