The dog didn’t move.
“Well, you know where the water is if you want a drink.”
The timer beeped. Elias checked the pasta and poured the contents of the pot into a colander. He’d made more than he needed. “I could have invited someone over and still had enough leftovers for lunch.”
Though not just someone.
Tasha.
He appreciated how polite she’d been after Higgins’s leash tripped her. She was also beautiful, and her smile…
Elias shook the thought from his head. He had a foster dog and the ice rink to supervise. The Christmas show fundraiser for the community fund, which supported local nonprofits, was also on his task list, but he kept hoping someone else would step up.
Higgins barked and ran toward the front door.
Interesting. The dog mustn’t be hungry.
A knock sounded.
Or there was someone at the door.
Elias made his way over to the entryway, scooped the dog into his arms, and opened the front door. He did a double take. “Dad?”
Dad didn’t wait for an invitation. He held onto a bag and pushed past Elias into the house.
A sarcastic remark wanted to come out, but Dad was in the living room already. Elias closed the door and set Higgins on the ground.
Surprisingly, the dog remained next to him.
“I went into the office today.” Dad pulled out a stack of folders. “These were on my desk.”
Elias crossed his arms over his chest. “They’re the cases you gave me. The same ones you knocked off my desk. I don’t have time to do them.”
“Tonight?”
Saying it was the weekend would do nothing. Instead, he shook his head. “I have to be at the ice rink when it closes tonight. And I’m supervising the volunteers tomorrow.”
Dad muttered something under his breath. “You’re probably happy you have to neglect your job.”
Most people in town thought Elias was so lucky to have a father like Marc Carpenter, who had taken been at his debate tournaments, hockey games, and other extracurricular activites. He’d paid for Elias’s college and law school, but Elias had never asked for that. He didn’t have nearly the same amount of experience as his grandfather and father. All he wanted was to be treated with respect.
Elias stood taller. “I’m not happy about it, but it’s the weekend. Most people, usually you and Gramps, get Saturday and Sunday off. Why shouldn’t I, even though much of it will be spent at the rink?”
Or with Higgins.
“You must pay your dues.”
“I’ve paid them long enough here. I shouldn’t be made to feel bad for taking a weekend off. And that’s one question I’ll be asking when search for a new position.”
Dad’s face paled, the same way it had the other night, but he recovered quickly. “Words are easy to say. Your grandmother—”
“Wants me to be happy.” Dad had a good poker face. That was crucial when standing in front of a judge, but the tick at his jaw gave him away. “She wants me to meet a nice woman and settle down. Don’t you remember her trying to get me to take out one of Sabine’s daughters? But it’s impossible to have a serious relationship when I’m doing the work of three attorneys.”
Dad didn’t say a word, but his nostrils flared.
Elias didn’t blink.
A standoff. Sometimes he and Dad were too similar.
