Page 68 of On One Condition

Both he and Ford swear I’m just like our father. They tease me about it relentlessly.

But after the revelations of the past week, the thought sits differently with me now.

“Hey, Callahan?”

“Hmm?”

“Remember that last night we were here? In Cedar Falls?” I ask.

“You mean when Dad had a deal go sour, and we had to get home right away so he could salvage it? That night?”

“Yeah.” My chest constricts.

“What about it?”

My mouth opens, my need to tell him everything—finally, after keeping it quiet for so many years—eating at me. But I don’t say a word. I find myself shoving up out of my seat and walking to the window to look outside, one hand fisted, my jaw clenched.

“Ledge? You there?”

“Yeah. Never mind.” I can’t do it. As much as I want to tell him, I can’t ruin his vision of who our father was. I can’t tarnish a memory simply to make myself feel better.

Like that night and its aftermath, I’ll have to stomach this one alone.

“You sure? Because it sounded important.”

I smile simply because I’m hoping it will carry over to my voice. “Not important at all. I just happened to drive by that old field we used to go hang out and drink at.”

“It’s still there?”

“It’s about a quarter of the size because it has houses on three sides now, but . . .” I continue rattling on about a field neither of us cares about. Because I’m afraid if I stop, my brother, my triplet, will pick up on something in my voice that tells him otherwise.

“I swear I thought you were going to tell me you ran into Asher and either hit it off or found out she has six kids or something like that.”

“Uh . . .” I’m caught flatfooted by his comment, rattled by a moment of uncertainty.

“You’re fucking kidding me,” he says. “You have seen her, haven’t you?”

I scrunch my nose up, wanting and not wanting to tell him simultaneously. “Yeah. It slipped my mind. I just so happened to run into her at a bar.”

“You didn’t forget to tell me shit.” He snorts. “You’ve always been so damn secretive when it comes to her. Back then, it was like she was everything and then suddenly, poof, she was nothing. It was like she’d dropped off the face of the earth, and now you tell me you ran into her, and that’s all you’re going to give me?” he asks. “Because that screams to me she’s either dog ugly now and you ran the other way, or you guys fucked like rabbits.” I don’t respond. “So, which one was it?”

Fucking Callahan. I hate that a smile breaks onto my lips. I hate that I want to confide in him so badly. I hate that I still want to keep whatever this is with Ash close to the vest.

“Neither,” I lie.

“Uh-huh.” Spoken like only an annoying little brother can.

“She’s fucking gorgeous is what she is.”

“Ohh.” More sounds from the asshole. “Why so sensitive?” His laughter fills the line.

“Are you trying to be a prick?”

“Only if you’re trying to evade the question.”

“We talked for a bit. Agreed to meet up at a later time to catch up. That’s all.”

“Liar.”