Page 77

“Don’t use the same soap to wash your balls that you use for the rest of your body.”
“Ha. Funny. But I need womanly wisdom, not your take on men’s bathing habits.”
“Is this about Charley?” she asks excitedly. “Okay, give it to me. I’m ready. I’m already going to be on her side, but let’s hear it.”
I chuckle. “Yeah, yeah, women stick together and all that. Listen…”
I proceed to tell Briar the whole story, and she asks questions here and there, and by the time I get through, I’ve pretty much told her all of Charley’s life story. At least as much as I know.
“So?”
Briar sighs into the speaker. “It sounds like she’s scared, Cade. I bet there’s a lot of shame built up around her dad. From what you said about her not telling you about him and not wanting you to see her house, I bet it was a shock to the system for you to be there, right at that vulnerable moment.”
“But I had to go, didn’t I? How could I have stayed in the car? As it is, he actually had a minor heart attack. That’s not insignificant.”
“She apologized, so she realized she didn’t handle the situation well. I bet you just really freaked her out in that moment. I’m sure everything is fine. I’m sure the next time you see her, everything is going to be perfect. I mean, you know how it is, Cade. When you lose someone, sometimes you reactdifferently about things. She’s used to being on her own. She never would’ve had to explain things to anyone before. Hell, she never would’ve had anyone to explain things to before. She’s probably struggling with the idea of letting you in. I feel bad for her.”
“Me too. It doesn’t sound like she’s had it the easiest.”
“But you know, those are the best partners. They don’t take love for granted.”
Her words hit me, my chest warming. “I think you’re right.”
“I mean, obviously. I can’t wait to meet her. Are you making it home for Thanksgiving?”
“I’ll be there.”
“I will be, but Reid will be on the road.”
“Lex?”
“He’ll be there, too.”
“Can’t wait to see you guys.”
“Me either. My advice is to give Charley a little space. I bet things are fine. She’s just processing.”
“Will do, sis. See you soon.”
“Bye-ee.”
I take a deep breath, relaxing a little. Briar confirmed everything I thought, so I’m not going to worry about it.
A little thing like this isn’t going to break me and Charley, that’s for sure.
22
Charley
“Do they know how long he’s going to be in for?” Kenna asks.
The cat is out of the bag. My skin crawls while everyone looks at me. It’s as if I’m standing here naked, all the while cursing myself for feeling this way. They can’t see inside my house. Or have seen my father. Or can actually see my bare skin. “They’re running more tests. They need to make sure he’s well enough to be home. Plus, getting him settled with some medication.”
What I don’t tell them is that my dad hasn’t seen a doctor in years and that they’re very worried about his weight. There was talk of total-body shut down. Of the heart working so much harder than normal to do basic things. There was a lot of talk about another, bigger heart attack. Even a stroke.
He’s tried to check himself out of the hospital multiple times, and if he could walk on his own, he’d probably already be gone.
Cade puts his arm around me, and I snuggle into him. He rubs his free hand up and down from shoulder to elbow, and I realize I’ve been hugging myself.