“They weren’t foryou!”His eyes glistened with unshed tears. “They’re for me. I need them.”
My mouth fell open before I smashed my lips together. I’d never heard him shout before, but hearing anyone raise their voice at me made me want to curl within myself. I took a few deep breaths before pulling the letters out, including the two I hadn’t read, and handing them over to him.
He snatched them out of my hand. “I don’t even want to know what went through your mind when you read these.”
“I didn’t read the two your mom gave me today, not since I found out you didn’t want me to read them.”
He shook his head. “All forty-three letters,” he mumbled, tossing all of the letters on the muddy ground, and pushed off the bench. He stumbled forward, and my arms flew out to catch him. My hands curled around his shoulders as we stared into each other’s eyes.
There was so much pent up emotion behind his eyes. He backed a few feet away from me. “I’m sorry.” He hesitated before casting one last look back at me and left me alone.
A jolt went through me, and I dropped to the ground. I scrambled to pick up all of the letters I could find. I sat on the bench and counted all forty-three of them before stuffing them in my purse.
I don’t know how long I sat there, staring out at the lake, before I got to my feet and walked back to my car. My eyes stung as I pulled out my phone and called Mrs. Rockwell.
“Thank you, hon. He’s home. Drunk as a skunk, but collapsed in bed a few minutes ago.”
“I’m happy I could help. Could you have him call me when he sobers up?”
“Of course,” she said before we hung up.
I climbed into my car and drove home. Flynn must be harboring worse demons than I’d thought. But I had my own demons that I needed to deal with before I could help him with his.
The aching in my skull ebbed as my eyes cracked open to the dimly lit room. Waves of nausea added to my misery. I glanced at the clock at my nightstand. It was midday, and my head still felt like an axe was planted in it. I’d acted like a real asshole last night. To both Ma and Evelyn. But my privacy was violated, what’d Ma expect?
Pain shot through my right side. My eyesight struggled to cope with the daylight as I fumbled with my prosthetic leg that was still attached to my swollen nub, detaching it and rubbing the end of my limb. I dragged myself out of bed, grabbing the crutches, and went downstairs to the kitchen to make something to eat.
When I reached the bottom step the smell of breakfast overwhelmed me. Sitting on the kitchen table was a platter of eggs, bacon, sausages—perfect for a hangover.
“As you know, your dad got drunk a lot. I know how to remedy these things.” Ma poured a glass of water and sat it on the table next to some aspirin.
I couldn’t meet her gaze as I collapsed into the chair. I popped a couple pills in my mouth before downing the whole glass of water. The guilt was like a fire blazing in my gut. I couldn’t believe I’d acted like him. Alcohol was a poison I couldn't indulge in.
“Did you read them?” My voice was hoarse as I scarfed down the food in front of me.
“Of course not, Flynn. They weren’t addressed to me.”
I nodded. That was one less thing to worry about. I finished my plate as Ma talked about the farm and what needed to be done that week. She grabbed my dirty dishes and took them to the sink.
“Oh, Evelyn called me last night. She sounded upset and wanted you to give her a call when you sobered up.”
Realization slammed into me like a bag of bricks. I’d left all the fucking letters with Evelyn. My head dropped into my hands.Fuck.
“I’ll leave you to give her a call.” She went to walk away but paused at the archway. “She went to your dad’s funeral when he passed, you know. In hopes of seeing you, but you weren’t there. That woman’s been through hell, and she’s always cared about you somethin’ fierce.”
Ma shuffled back toward her bedroom as I sat in the chair mulling over what the fuck I was supposed to do. I knew one person who’d always called me out on my shit, and that was exactly what I needed. I called Oliver.
“Hey, man. What’s up?” He sounded tired.
“I made an ass out of myself last night.”
“What happened?”
My brows furrowed. “Are you alright? You sound off.”
A long sigh came through the receiver. “Fine, just adjusting I guess. Millie’s been supportive, and our daughter is just a joy.” He chuckled, but there was something behind his voice. “Anyway, what’d you do this time?”
I decided not to push him as I rubbed my nub, the ache in the limb was worsening. “Ma found my letters and gave some to Evelyn. I freaked out, got drunk, and basically threw them at Evelyn last night before leaving.”
