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I had to go to the bathroom

To this day, I wish I would’ve held it.

As it was, I did wait out my bladder for as long as I could, but eventually, I couldn’t stand it anymore. Being that the clock read the time as a quarter after ten at night, I hoped maybe Barry had already gone to bed.

I snuck from my room and made a mad dash to the bathroom. Afterward, I fully planned to slip silently right back to my room without anyone being the wiser.

But he appeared almost as soon as I opened the restroom door.

I gasped and jumped back.

“Sorry about that,” he said, flashing me a genial grin as if I hadn’t been avoiding him as much as I had my mother all week. “But I rented another movie. Want to watch it with me?” He held up the Blu-ray case, showing me the title of some romance I knew I never would’ve watched with my real father, no matter how close we’d been. Way too steamy.

I shook my head. “No, thanks.”

Barry frowned. “Grace, what’s wrong?”

What was wrong? What was wrong? What house had he been living in for the past few weeks? My mother and I had started World War Five and I had solidly placed him on her side. He was the enemy. I didn’t mingle with the enemy. That’s what was wrong.

But I shook my head. “Nothing.”

He didn’t buy it. He gave me a concerned look and stepped toward me, grasping my arm. “Is it Todd?” he asked.

Again, I shook my head. “No.”

Barry wrinkled his brow. “Are you sure? You two spent a lot more time together this week. He hasn’t…tried something…has he?”

I wanted to roll my eyes. Why was he asking about Todd of all people? Why didn’t he care that I hadn’t talked to my mother since last Friday? Why didn’t he want to powwow and try to concoct some kind of plan to get Mom and me back together?

I didn’t want to confess Todd was no longer interested; I’d lose my biggest reason to leave the house these days. So, I lied, saying, “We’re fine. Everything’s fine.”

I guess my lying abilities hadn’t improved any because Barry kept watching me with this strange, probing stare.

Ad-libbing, I said, “He had to hang out with one of his friends tonight because the friend had been getting jealous of all the time he’d been spending with me.”

There, maybe a partial lie was at least a little more believable.

It must’ve been.

Barry answered with, “Oh. Then what’s wrong, honey?”

Honey? Cursing the fact I was facing him—because it took everything inside me not to wince over the endearment—I shook my head. “Nothing.”

I grew increasingly freaked out. He knew good and well what was wrong with me. I was fighting with my mother. Duh.

I just wanted to go to my room and get away from him. But he stood, blocking my path. I couldn’t think of anything to say to convince him I was fine. Feeling more and more nervous by the moment, my mind went completely blank.

Then, to my own horror, tears filled my eyes.

“Oh, Gracie,” he whispered and reached out, wrapping his fingers around my arm and pulling me close to him for a hug. I started to tremble, standing stiffly in his embrace, too afraid to push away from him as everything inside me screamed for me to do.

“Baby, don’t cry.” His voice soothing, he stroked my hair.

I had no idea what to think. Was he just being fatherly? Did he have any clue he was scaring me to death? I squeezed my eyes closed, not sure how to react, forcing myself not to overreact.

Until he kissed me.

It wasn’t one of those fatherly pecks on the cheek either.