Dad stepped up beside me. “I’m tired of hearing your truck on my street whenever Taryn comes home. She’s made herself clear.” He moved directly into Derek’s space.
Though Derek had Dad by a few inches in height, Dad’s years as a college wrestler still showed in his shoulders and chest. A smart man wouldn’t tangle with him. From the way Derek flexed his fists at his sides, I guessed he wasn’t smart.
Before I could say something, Dad added, “Now I’m going to becrystalclear.” His stance gave the impression he was twice his size. “You will leave my daughters—all of them—alone. You will stop harassing Taryn every time she comes home. You will not approach any of the three of them if you see them out and about in town.” His voice dropped a menacing octave. “Do you understand?”
“Are you threatening me?” Though Derek went for tough, his voice cracked a bit on the question.
“No. I’m telling you. Now walk away.”
More than anything, I didn’t want a scene, especially not one involving my dad in a fistfight. But I couldn’t tear my eyes from the drama silently playing out between the two men. After a long beat that took years off my life, Derek turned on his heel and pushed the person behind him out of his way as he stalked off down the street.
As I let out a relieved sigh, Tally materialized beside me. “I got one for each of us and for Mom,” she said, holding out a cardboard carrier with four cups of hot chocolate in one hand and sipping from a fifth cup in her other hand. “Show’s over, right? Too bad you missed the fun way the guy at the booth makes these.” With a shrug and a grin, she said, “Maybe next year.”
My big sis was good at defusing tension.
We each tugged a cup from the holder and returned it to the vendor, then we made our way through the crowd to where Mom was holding our spot on the sidewalk. Linking my arm through Tina’s, I squeezed her, letting her know I appreciated her standing up for me. Other than that, we let the matter of Derek Watson drop—at least for now.
“You’ll be home for more than a minute at Christmas, won’t you, Taryn?” Mom asked as she hugged me at the front door.
The parade had only lasted an hour, and I’d had my bags packed before we’d left the house to watch it. While I hated driving at night, with the game starting at noon and the team playing in front of a sold-out stadium of fans, I didn’t want to risk arriving late and not hearing Danny’s name called as a starter. Sheila had texted she’d be taking her shift after all, so I didn’t have to worry about missing the kickoff because of work.
“I’ll have a few days off from the coffee shop.” I hugged Mom back. Hard. “And yes, I’ll text you as soon as I get back to my place,” I said before she could.
“Cheer extra for us at the game tomorrow,” Dad said as he wrapped me up in his arms.
“The Wildcats will probably hear you cheering across time and space.” I laughed. Then I sobered to whisper in his ear, “Thanks for taking care of Derek tonight.”
“I’m your dad. It’s my job.”
I hugged him tight and turned to Tina.
“See you in a few weeks, loser,” Tina said as she hugged me last. I’d said my goodbyes to Tally at the parade since she was joining friends downtown after it finished.
“When I come home for Christmas, we’re playing Scrabble.” I may or may not have pinched her hip. “So don’t fry your brain during the next three weeks.”
Grinning, I sidestepped her swipe at me and grabbed my bags. “Love you guys!” I called as I stepped out the front door into the crisp November night.
As I pulled out of my parents’ driveway, I smiled at the thought of maybe beating Tina atsomethingwhen I came home for a few days over Christmas. Reflexively, I listened for the telltale loud engine of Derek’s truck rumbling down the street behind me. As I eased past the stop sign at the top of our street and into the light traffic passing on the four-lane avenue running perpendicular to it, I heard no obnoxious trucks in the mix. With a relieved sigh, I relaxed into my seat, cranked up Taylor Swift’sSpeak Nowon my Bluetooth, and settled in for a noneventful drive back to school.
When I arrived at my apartment, I saw I’d only be sending one “I’m home” text this evening. Beside my designated parking space sat Danny’s Mustang. I climbed out of my car and walked around to the trunk to retrieve my overnight bag and backpack. Danny was waiting for me there.
“Hey,” he said. “You’re back.”
Giving him a tired smile, I said, “Yeah, I’m back.” I closed the trunk, and he snagged my overnight bag from my hand.
“Shouldn’t you be at your place sleeping in your monster bed so you’re all rested for tomorrow?”
He gestured for me to lead the way. Clearly, he wasn’t going to listen to his girlfriend about rest before the biggest game of his life so far.
“Shouldn’t you have been home about fifteen minutes ago?” he asked as he followed me up the stairs.
As I walked along the landing to my place, I tried to decide if and how much I wanted to tell him about Derek’s antics while I was home. I resettled my backpack on my shoulder and keyed open the door to my studio. Dropping my pack on the floor by the table beside the door, I flipped on the lamp and kicked off my shoes. Danny closed the door and shot the deadbolt before toeing off his boots and walking straight to my bedroom. Before I could ask him exactly what he thought he was doing, he returned without my bag, stepped right into my space, cupped my face in his big palms, and dropped a kiss on my mouth.
That one move simultaneously comforted and disarmed me.
“I missed you a bunch,” he said against my lips before kissing me again.
I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back, letting him know with my touch that I’d missed him too. With a groan he pulled away and rested his forehead on mine.
