“It’s fine,” Adam said. “You can put him on speaker, and we can both talk to him.” He swallowed, the only sign of nerves Joey saw in him. Her heartbeat stampeded throughher veins, and she wished she could be calmer, more confident.
“You know what you want,” Adam said. “You’re a grown adult, and you’re one of the strongest women I’ve ever met.” He gently put his thumb over hers, and they pressed the send button together.
Messages streamed in, even faster now, some of them only emojis of the mind-blown smiley face or a heart. Only seconds later, her phone rang, andDaddy Dearestsat there.
“Told you,” she said, and she jumped to her feet, because she couldn’t have this conversation sitting down. She swiped on the call, and then tapped the speaker button. Then she drew a breath as she waited for the call to connect, and then she said, “Hey, Daddy, you’re on speaker with me and Adam.”
CHAPTER
EIGHTEEN
Otis Young turned and faced the closed door of his office. His wife called it his music studio, and Otis could be found plucking through chords on his guitar from time to time.
Sometimes a song would come into his head fully formed, and he could barely keep up with his fingers to get it out. Sometimes he knew exactly what to say to his children, and sometimes, no matter what he did, he felt blank, hollow, and empty. Without words. Silent.
He hated it the most when he didn’t have lyrics and music in his life, and sitting on the phone with his oldest daughter and finding only silence terrified him.
“Daddy?” Joey asked, and Otis cleared his throat.
“Yeah, I’m here.” He blinked, and he could see the picture of Adam and Joey, their heads tipped together, theirsmiles wide. OJ had been in the middle of his song, and Otis had interrupted him and sent him out to the kitchen for a snack.
“Just a minute,” he said. “Your mother is knocking on the door.”
“You’ve barricaded yourself in your office, haven’t you?” Joey teased, and somehow the fact that she wasn’t nervous helped Otis feel more comfortable.
His wife had not knocked on the door, and Otis prayed for forgiveness for the little white lie. As he crossed the room and opened the door, he heard voices down the hall—Georgia’s and OJ’s—and then Georgia stepped past the dining room table and looked down the hall.
Even from twenty feet away, Otis could see the concern in her eyes, and somehow that soothed him too. He lifted his phone away from his ear and said, “It’s Joey.”
She nodded, though they both knew that he had called her and not the other way around. Georgia gave him a soft smile, which reminded Otis to bury anything that would drive Joey further from them.
He’d been worried about his daughter for a great many months now, though she was a good person and a hard worker. She took care of his mother and father, and they both adored having her in their condo. Otis simply wanted her to realize how integral to the family she was and how much joy she brought into all of their lives. He wanted her to feel loved and valued, and he knew she didn’t.
He stepped back into his office. “Sorry, we have something withOJ.”
“Yeah? What’s he doing?” Joey asked.
“He wants Bailey to come for the holidays,” Otis said, reaching up to rub his eyes. His mother had told him that every child came with their own set of wants, needs, and problems, and boy, was she ever right.
“Is she not coming?” Joey asked.
“I think for Christmas,” Otis said, as he sank into his office chair. “But not Thanksgiving, and you know how OJ can get.”
“Oh, I know how OJ can get,” Joey said with a light laugh. “I know howyoucan get too, Daddy, and you didn’t interrupt something with OJ to call me and talk about him.”
“No, I didn’t.” Otis blew out his breath. “So you like Adam, huh?”
“Yes, I like Adam,” Joey said, and her tone carried sunshine and sparkles. Otis remembered he was on speaker with the two of them, and he could only imagine them making goo-goo eyes at each other.
“What’s your objection?” she asked.
“Who says I have an objection?” Otis said. “You just haven’t dated in a while, and maybe I’m a little surprised.”
“Yeah, you’re a little surprised becauseit’s Adam,” Joey said. “I know you, Daddy. Just tell me what it is, so that I can talk you out of it.”
He smiled. “I used to be the one talking you out of the things you were worried about,” he said.
“Oh, you still do,” she said. “So, what is it?”
