“Yep, but sisters have to do what sisters have to do,” Harleigh declares.
I close my eyes, letting the warmth of them seep into me. The ache of the night softens, replaced by the knowledge that even if the house is quieter than it used to be, I’ll never carry anything alone.
“Okay,” Charli says, standing. “Now that that’s settled, I need to go wake upmybest terrible idea.”
Ididn’t sleep a damn wink last night.
Every time I closed my eyes, my mind drifted back to the night of my graduation party. Or it tried to. As soon as a flicker of a memory started to form, it evaporated into fog and slipped away, leaving me wide awake with my heart pounding and my jaw clenched.
I grip the edge of the vanity as I stare at myself in the bathroom mirror, eyes bloodshot, stubble darker than usual against my skin.
“Come on, asshole,” I mutter.
I squeeze my eyes shut, and I can see Shelby’s face from last night. The anger, sharp and blazing, and then the way it shifted,turning to hurt when I stood there like a fucking statue as she told me what had happened between us all those years ago.
I open my eyes and glare at my reflection.
I truly am a selfish prick. Destroying everything I come in contact with. Trampling through lives like a bull in a china shop and leaving devastation in my wake.
This is why I have no business being here. No business taking care of a tiny human.
I’m better off by myself, with no one depending on me but me.
“Fuck you, Waylon Ludlow,” I snarl at the mirror. “That’s no longer an option. You’ve hidden yourself away long enough. Time to be a man and face the consequences of your choices. Make it right.”
The words echo back at me. I splash water on my face, grab a towel, and scrub. Then I get dressed. Jeans. A flannel. Boots.
I don’t have the luxury of giving up. Not in front of my kid.
I head for the main house, determined to make pancakes with my baby girl.
When I walk into the kitchen, Momma and Ruby are already there, wearing matching aprons—yellow with little cornflowers stitched across the front. Both of them look surprisingly awake for this early hour.
“Daddy!” Ruby shrieks when she sees me. “We’ve been waiting for you forever!”
“Forever?” I scoop her up before she can reach me on her own. “How long is that? Five whole minutes?”
She giggles as I rub my stubble against her cheek, throwing her arms around my neck. “No, silly. Longer.”
I set her on her feet, and she takes my hand and drags me to the island, climbing up onto one of the stools and perching on her knees so she can reach the mixing bowl. Momma startsadding ingredients while Ruby stirs with fierce concentration, tongue poking out the corner of her mouth.
I kiss Momma’s cheek. “Morning.”
“Morning, son.” She gives me a look—soft, assessing, knowing. “You look tired. Everything okay?”
I scrub a hand over my face. “Yeah. Just had a hard time sleeping last night.”
She pats my cheek. “A little food in your stomach will help.”
I sit at the island while they work, Ruby narrating every step as they go.
“Now we put in the eggs,” she says.
“I can help with that part,” I say as I take one from the bowl on the island and crack it against the ceramic bowl.
“Careful. Daddy, if you get shells in it, it’s ruined.”
“Noted,” I say solemnly.
