Page 67 of Newly Tied

“Good,” he said, then tipped his head at me. “Make with the lotion. Heaven forbid we get yelled at again by one of the three people we’re both afraid of.”

“I’m not afraid of your sister.”

He stared at me like I had antlers.

“Most of the time,” I amended.

“Yeah.”

“Who are the other—oh, your mother and Kage.”

“Obviously,” he said indulgently. “And by the way, you look really good in just a towel.”

“So do you,” I called after him.

His husky laughter was nice to hear.

“There are a lot of people here,” I remarked, surprised, as he looked for a parking spot down the street from his mother’s house. His usual place, right in front of her home, was not available, and neither was anything else on either side. “I don’t really get why that is.”

He shrugged. “Everybody liked him.”

“Your father?”

Quick nod before he got out of his Lexus, and I followed suit, both of us standing on either side, looking at each other instead of moving.

“So, then, once they heard he was over here, people simply started comin’ by?”

“I suspect so,” he replied grumpily.

“You never talk about him.”

“No,” he said, and left it at that.

“He’s a musician, right?” I prodded, trying to get him to talk.

“Yeah.”

“That’s interestin’.” I sounded lame.

“Why is it?”

“I dunno. It’s not. I’m surprised at all the cars is all. I had it in my head that he was persona non grata, you know? I mean, the way your mother tells it.”

He was waiting.

“I’m a bit shocked that there are people here who would still want to see him after the way he treated her.”

According to Etta Ross, her husband came home one day and told her he couldn’t be married anymore. He went on to say that he couldn’t be a father to Lang and Talia either because he had to go on the road. It all had to do with his dream of being the second coming of Miles Davis. He could not be the successful musician he wanted to be if he was tied down to a wife, kids, and a mortgage.

“Yeah, well, that was only part of the story, and I only heard that version when I was much older. When I was little, to protect our feelings, she made it sound much more important.”

“The reason he left, you mean?”

He nodded.

“Like he left to pursue his dream.”

“Which he did, but that wasn’t the only reason.”