ONCE OUTSIDE, WEshared our plan with Kiki to send Penny to my apartment in Denver while I stayed at my dad’s house in Fort Collins, which seemed to quell some of her anger.
Kiki took out her keys and handed them to me. “Take her to my apartment for now. I’ll go to her house, pack up some of her things, pick up Milo from school, and drop him off at my mom’s.”
Penny merely nodded and handed over her own keys. Her lips were dry and the cold air was not helping. She looked sick. Shewassick, and tortured. She gave Kiki her keys and Kiki gave me hers. Penny attempted a smile, but her swollen lips cracked and began to bleed. I wiped the blood away with my thumb and rubbed it on my jeans.
I walked Penny to the passenger door of my car and helped her in. “My fucking knee,” she said, but I knew that wasn’t why she was weak.
She looked out the window the whole time during the short drive to Kiki’s apartment.
“You know Kiki would let you stay here instead of my place?” I told her as I unlocked the front door.
She wandered into the living room and curled up on the couch. “No, it’s too close. I want to get away.”
I draped a throw blanket over her and squeezed her shoulder.
“Thank you, Gavin.”
I nodded. “I’m going to talk to him. I want you to know that.”
“He won’t listen to you. He’s too hurt.Ihurt him. I’ve been hurting him for our whole marriage.” She started to cry again.
“Just let me talk to him. I won’t start a fight with him, I swear. I won’t let it get to that. You just focus on getting some rest. I’ll be back later and we’ll figure things out.”
She waved me off, turned over, and fell asleep.
27.Fourteen Years Ago
GAVIN
Why am I in Carissa’s bed? Fuck.I was naked and alone. Blurry memories from the night before came flooding back to me.
We had gone out and I had gotten drunk. I started spilling my guts about Penny. Carissa told me she could make me forget about everything for a little while.
Liar.
Carissa stood in the doorway, wearing a kimono.
“Did we...?”
“That has to be the most insulting morning-after statement ever, Gavin.” She looked pissed.
“So... we did?”
“No, we didn’t. You wouldn’t shut up about Penny. Total turnoff.”
The doorbell rang and Carissa left the room to answer it.
“Gavin!” she yelled. “Your daddy’s here!”
What the hell?
I threw on a pair of jeans and stumbled over to the door, glancing at the clock on the way. It was eleven a.m. “You look like shit, kid,” my dad said when I opened the door.
“Thanks.” I gave him a quick side-hug.
“You smell like shit, too.”
“How’d you find me? You could have called.”
