She scoffs a wet, disbelieving laugh.
“Bri.” I tug on her arm until she looks at me. “Ilove your dad.”
Her head shakes as she pulls her gaze away. Jaw working, her expression falls lifeless over the lake. For the first time, I see today through her eyes. This may have been a funeral, but life crackles in every nook and cranny of this place. Roots of family and legacy around every corner. Roots that are as much Mom’s as they are mine.
And Bri carries guilt as though she and her dad somehow play second fiddle to it all.
“I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true. I love Doug.” It’s the most honest thing I can offer without opening the Pandora’s box that is her father.
None of us know where Doug is. We don’t know if he’s alive or dead. If he’s managed to get clean or if he’s still using. He left all of us.
He left his daughter.
But I’ll always love him. For the joy he brought to Mom’s life after we lost Dad. For how effortlessly he made me feel like his own alongside Bri.
They’re only words, though. It doesn’t matter how much Mom and I tell her we love and miss him. Or all the times we’ve told her he’s just sick, he’s not a bad person. Bri shuts down same as she always does.
She rises to her feet. “What I’m getting at is you can have this, Rowan. The house, the woman, the family. Your mom will recover—I can promise you that. And you won’t have to stay in North Carolina forever.” Dodging my eyes, she moves to leave. “That’s all I was trying to say.”
I rush over, grab her wrist before she gets too far. One gentle pull and I fold her into my chest. Her arms hang loose at her sides, but Idon’t let go. One breath…two…three until she finally returns the embrace.
“There’s something else, you know,” I say, shifting back a step.
“What’s that?”
“I love you.”
Her lips twist, biting back another display of emotion, but she doesn’t look away from me this time. On a sigh that carries the weight of the world, she replies, “Yeah, love you too.”
We move in sync as we turn toward the cabin. I wrap an arm around her shoulder and tug her to my side, planting a kiss on the crown of her head.
“You told her how you feel yet?” Bri’s sidelong gaze and crooked grin swing up at me.
“You told Dubs you’re crushing on him yet?”
She gasps, shoving me so hard I nearly fall off the dock. “Oh my god, you’re delusional!”
“I think the lady doth protest too much.”
We make it to the deck in time to catch Dubs mid-shenanigan, bottle of tequila in one hand, Bluetooth speaker in the other. Behind him is Hannah balancing ten shot glasses in her arms. She catches my eye and mouths,“I tried to stop him.”
“Great, you guys are back. Time for a toast,” Dubs announces, clearing space on the table.
There’s a quick exchange over who needs to drive later. Ultimately, we all agree we’re not going anywhere for several hours, leaving plenty of time for everyone to sober up.
Mom turns down Dubs offer, claiming liquor makes her queasy.
“Fair enough,” he concedes. “What about you, doll? We haven’t officially met.”
Lydia returns his charmed smile. “Lydia. I’m Hannah’s mom and no shot for me, thank you. But you kids have fun.”
Dubs lines up the glasses. “I’ll allow it on one condition, Lydia.”
“I’m listening.”
“You save me a dance at that gala on Friday night.” He winks at Hannah’s mom, turns to Bri. “Bridge, honey, don’t be jealous, okay? I swear it doesn’t mean anything.”
“Hey, Chuck?” Bri asks.