Page 15

As I sit back in the chair and pop a couple of fries into my mouth, Kelsey’s eyes drift to the burger on the plate in front of her. I can practically hear her stomach growling from here. She unwraps her burger daintily and takes a bite, refusing to meet my eyes. We just sit there eating in silence, not looking at one another for a couple of minutes. It’s ridiculous.

Finished with my burger, I ball up the wrapper and drop it into the bag. I pop a couple of fries into my mouth and wash them down with soda.

“So, are we really just going to sit here not talking to each other?” I ask.

“What is there to say?”

“Well, you can start by telling me why you’re so upset that?—”

“That you’re fucking my best friend?”

“It’s a little more than that, Kelsey.”

“Oh, what, are you in love with her?”

I wash down the words on the tip of my tongue with another drink. She’s not quite ready to discuss the complex emotionsinvolved with all this. I want us to clear the first hurdle before we get into that conversation.

“What I’m saying is that we’re … dating. I mean, we’ve seen a lot of each other the last couple of weeks, and?—”

“Yeah, I can tell by what I walked in on.”

I roll my eyes and do my best to temper my frustration with her. “Kelsey, I like Morgan. She’s a great girl and?—”

“And she’s half your age. Literally.”

“She’s an adult. As you are,” I tell her. “It’s time you start acting like it.”

She recoils like I slapped her. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that you’re not a little girl anymore,” I tell her. “Locking yourself in your room and pouting like a child is a little immature, don’t you think? If you have a problem with me seeing Morgan, talk to me like an adult. It’s time you grow up.”

“Fine,” she says. “I have a problem with you seeing Morgan.”

“All right, why?”

“Because she’s my best friend,” she hisses. “Or, at least, she was.”

“Kelsey, I’ve been alone a long time. Mostly because my focus has always been on you. And I don’t regret that. I’ve wanted to give you all the love and affection of two parents since you’ve only had me,” I tell her. “But you’re grown up now and you don’t need me as much. And I’m still alone. With you doing your own thing now, I think it’s all right for me to start living my life and look for happiness. To look for something more. I think I deserve it.”

“But why Morgan?”

I sigh. “I … I don’t know. We just connected. It’s not something I was planning or seeking, but she and I started to talk, and we just found a connection between us.”

Tears spill from her eyes, and she turns away for a moment. She wipes her hand over her face and sniffs loudly. Slowly, she turns back to me.

“I think I deserve to be happy, Kelsey. And to have some companionship,” I tell her softly. “I’m sorry you’re upset it’s Morgan, but she makes me happy. She fills a piece of my heart I never thought would be filled again.”

Kesley lowers her gaze for a moment, seeming to be considering my words. A strange expression crosses her features as if she’s thinking about what I said for the very first time. It’s then that some of the anger fades from her eyes, and an expression of sadness crosses her face. She slowly raises her head. “I didn’t realize you were lonely, Dad.”

I shrug. “I wasn’t. Not really. I mean, I’ve got my team, and more importantly, I’ve got you. But I know it won’t be long before I don’t have you anymore.”

“You’ll always have me,” she says softly. “But I do think you deserve to be happy. I want you to be in love and know that joy again.”

“I’m sorry it’s with your friend.”

“You love her, don’t you?”

“I do.”