“Okay. Be safe, Miss Olivia.”
“Bye, Harper.” Then Olivia softly whispered, “Bye, Duke.”
My daughter ended the call and handed my phone back to me. Even if she looked better than she had when I picked her up, I could still see the dried tear tracks on her cheeks.
“Hey, you want to watch a movie tonight?” I asked.
Harper’s brows scrunched together. “Don’t you have to work?”
I shrugged. “It’s gonna rain. There’s no point in being open if no one’s going to come in. Especially if it’s gonna take me away from my favorite girl. Besides, I think we could both use something to cheer us up.”
For too long, I’d been prioritizing Frank’s over my relationship with Harper. I was too worried about paying bills and saving money after Sarah left. Every dollar was counted, every penny was pinched. While being able to buy groceries without worrying about overdrawing my account was great, it wasn’t everything.
Having Olivia around showed me how much I was missing by hiding myself away at the bar. These were some of the best years of my life, and yet I was just letting them slip by.
Harper’s lips twitched. “Can I pick the movie?”
For the first time all day, the knot in my stomach loosened a fraction. “Sure, sugar. You can pick the movie.”
DUKE
TWO MONTHS LATER
Lukas staredat the help-wanted sign hanging above the cash register. “I’m so proud of you, man. I never thought I’d see the day.”
I snorted, grabbed the cleaner, and sprayed down the bartop. “What? That I’d ask for help?”
“Yeah. I thought you were allergic to it or something.” He leaned forward. “What if I applied? Would you hire me? I know the owner.”
“Fuck no.” I shook my head. “You’d drink my entire stock before we opened, and I’d catch you passed out behind the bar or some shit.”
“Ye of little faith. I haven’t done it yet?—”
I raised my brow. “You literally did it the night I got the keys to this place. I found you curled up on one of the tables out there.”
Lukas pointed at me. “Don’t pretend like you weren’t outside of the freezer, shirtless.”
Okay, maybe I had been, but that’s beside the point.
“But I am proud of you. I know the past few months haven’t been easy, so I’m glad to see you prioritizing yourself.”
If there was one thing Lukas and I did well, it was avoiding talking outright about his sister. He tried on two different occasions—both of which I quickly shut down—which left him toeing a line he knew he shouldn’t cross.
Even though I desperately wanted to talk to someone about her, I couldn’t let myself go there. There wasn’t much of a point to asking Lukas how she was, because I knew my girl well enough that she wouldn’t tell her brother the truth anyway.
So, I was left to wonder.
I hadn’t heard from her in nearly two months. The last text I had from her was when she landed and messaged Harper as she promised. Sometimes I found myself staring at our conversation thread. Late at night, when I was too exhausted to pretend I wasn’t in any pain, I’d just watch the screen, hoping for three bubbles to pop up that never seemed to appear.
“It’s time. Harper’s out of school for the summer, and I made promises I intend to keep,” I said.
Sawyer and Ryan agreed to work the bar this weekend so Harper and I could go camping. It wasn’t a giant cabin on the lake, but my daughter wanted the real-deal experience, complete with a tent, sleeping bags, and a fire pit.
So, that was exactly what we were doing.
Thankfully, there were public restrooms and showers at the campground because I wasn’t entirely sure either of us could handle shitting in the woods.
“No, I get it. Like I said, I’m proud of you. Has anyone filled the position yet?”