How the fuck did things fall apart so quickly? Molly was gone, Mason was acting like a deflated balloon, and here I was, hoping alcohol would show me a path out of this shitty situation.
Maybe it was pointless. Mase may think she was leaving because she didn’t want to weigh us down, but it could just as well be because of me. I tended to drive people away. I thought it would be different with her, but maybe it was just the same old story again.
I took a big gulp before putting the bottle back on the coaster. The song on the sound system changed to one of my favorites, “Boilermaker” by Royal Blood.
Huh. This was on the bartender’s playlist? I looked over my shoulder to see him serving a few shots to a couple sitting in a booth.
I began to tap out the song’s rhythm against the thin wooden bar. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the guy in the hoodie take a sip of his beer. “Good tune,” he said.
“Agreed.”
“I just heard these guys for the first time a few weeks ago, and I love everything they’ve put out,” he said, turning to me.
I turned to him and nearly dropped my beer.
It was my father’s face staring at me.
For a moment, everything in my head went quiet. He had my eyes, the exact shade of green I saw whenever I looked in the mirror. I’d never been close enough to him to notice until now.
“Oh, yeah?” My voice had gone hoarse. I tipped my bottle against my lips, unable to tear my gaze away from him.
“Mm-hmm.” He had a short beard growing, kind of messy, as if he hadn’t bothered to shave in at least a week.
“I think they’re going on tour soon,” I said numbly.
He gave me a closed lip smile. “I’d love to see them live.”
I could feel my pulse in my throat. This had to be some kind of a sign, right? I’d been putting off confronting him for months only to sit down beside him at a random ass bar.
Eyeing his nearly empty glass, I waved down the bartender. “I’ll get the next round.”
He lifted his glass in my direction. “Thanks. I wouldn’t usually accept drinks from strangers, but tonight isn’t a normal kind of night.”
“Same here.” I slid a twenty across the bar. “Celebrating something? Or mourning?”
He chuckled. “Stewing after a fight with the wife. You?”
“Trying to figure out how I can win a girl back.”
“Sounds like we’re in a similar boat. Flowers and chocolate didn’t work?”
“It’s more complicated than that.”
“Don’t I know it. Thanks.” He sipped on the Stella before dragging his gaze back to me. “You look young though. At my age, you’d think I’d know better.”
Going out on a limb, I asked, “What happened?”
He sighed and cracked his neck, as if gearing up for what he was about to tell a stranger. “You know those DNA test things you can do these days? They ship a kit to you, and you swab it in your mouth, and then they tell you about your ancestors?”
“Sure.”
“Well, I did one a few years ago and uploaded it to a DNA matching site. I was looking for a cousin of mine from Italy who I’d lost contact with decades ago. When I saw all the DNA matches, I was overwhelmed. I hired someone to go through them all. A genealogist. A few months back, I got an email about a match.” He ran his hand over his beard. “Only it’s not my cousin. Turns out I’ve got a son.”
I pulled at the neck of my T-shirt, feeling very hot all of the sudden. “That’s wild.”
“It was the biggest surprise of my life,” he said. “At first, I didn’t believe it. I’ve been with my wife for over fifteen years, and I’ve never fooled around outside of my marriage. I love that woman with everything I’ve got. But then the genealogist told me my son is in his twenties, and it all clicked.” He placed his elbows on the bar and linked his hands behind his neck. “There was a woman, a long time ago.”
My mother. “Before you met your wife?”
