“Your father’s going to be calling. He wants to talk to you.”
“Well, I don’t want to talk to him.”
She grunted. “I don’t either, but we don’t always get what we want.”
My scowl deepened. “You gave him my number.”
“He’s your father, Keelie.”
Somehow, my mother saw me as the one thing holding our family together, whereas I wanted nothing more than to forget my father existed.
I clenched my teeth. My phone beeped, telling me I had another call. “I have to go.”
I pressed my fingertips to my forehead, over the spot where a deep ache had developed.
“Hi.”
“What’s wrong?” Cormac asked.“You sound sad.”
“Nothing. The flowers are beautiful.”
“They were too much. Dammit. I didn’t mean—”
“No, they’re beautiful. Perfect. They made all of us smile. Thank you.”
“Then, what’s wrong?”
“Did you arrive in Edmonton all right?” I asked.
“Yes, we finished practice, and the guys are deciding where they want to eat. Keelie, what’s wrong?”
“My father.” My voice cracked. “After twenty-one years, suddenly he wants to talk to me. Probably because my name’s linked to yours.” My tone brewed bitterness, and the ache spread, pounding against my skull.
“That worthless piece of…” Cormac bit back the curse.
“Yeah.” My shoulders dropped. “He is.”
“Do you think he’ll bother you?”
I considered the question. “Yes.”
Cormac growled. “Will you let me take care of it?”
I nibbled my lip. My initial reaction was to tell him no; I’d handle my father. But couples worked through problems together. I took a deep breath, wishing I could calm my racing pulse. “We can come up with a plan together.” The words rushed out of me.
“Yeah, we could do that. But I don’t want you meeting him or even talking to him before I get back,” Cormac said.
“Okay.”
“Keelie?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
I smiled as worry about my father slid away. Cormac loved me. I could handle anything.
Chapter45
