“It wasn’t a mistake,” Rusty said. “And Blake is a human being, not aproblem. I’m out here doing you a favor, and I don’t have to take your shit.”
Before his father could respond, Rusty hung up.
He expected to get half a dozen angry texts about it as the day wore on, but he didn’t care. He was tired of hearing about what he had to do, or fix, or be.
He didn’t evenwantto divorce Blake.
He…
Wait.
He didn’t?
“Found it,” Ash said, interrupting Rusty’s train of thought before he could follow it any further. “Declan had it hidden away in the storeroom.”
“Oh,” Rusty said, blinking at Ash as he came back to the real world. “That looks perfect.”
It was a completely standard, full-sized acoustic guitar, which was exactly what Rusty wanted. He’d been afraid it’d be a three-quarter size, since a lot of learners got them and then wondered why it was so hard to get their fingers in the right place.
Declan was obviously a smart man.
“I hope it works out for you,” Ash said. “Good luck.”
“Thanks,” Rusty responded, taking the guitar when Ash held it out. “Tell Declan I owe him one, yeah?”
Ash grinned at that. “He’d love to meet you. It’s been a pleasure.”
“Same to you,” Rusty said. “I’ll stop to chat when I bring this back, okay?”
“Works for me,” Ash called after Rusty as he left, slinging the guitar over his shoulder by the strap.
He intended to focus on playing a few songs at the wedding, and not on the conversation he’d just had with his father.
Or rather, the thought he’d had immediately after the conversation.
That was way too big a thing to worry about right now.
