Page 22 of A Home for Harmony

“That might be burnt bacon,” she said, squinting her eyes at him. “That doesn’t smell good and you made a comment on how I smell, so I’m going to assume it was pleasant.”

“It was,” he said. “It is. Jesus. I can’t believe I’m sitting here having this conversation.”

“Why is that?”

“Because you’re closer in age to my daughter than to me.”

“Which is a good thing for you,” she said, winking. “Twenty-two is still fairly young to have a child for most people.”

“It is,” he said. “It was.”

“Want to tell me about it?” she asked. “And don’t be so surprised that we’re having this conversation. You’re older than me, not dead. Enjoy life a little. I’ve told you about me.”

It wouldn’t hurt to talk some.

“Are you single?” he asked. “You haven’t said that.”

“I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t,” she said. “I haven’t been in a relationship in over a year and even then it was brief. It’s been that long since I’ve had myself a slice of bacon.”

He rolled his eyes over her grin and eyebrow wiggle.

“Just putting that out there?” he asked.

“Yes. I don’t want you to think I’m loose or anything. I’m not. I’ve gotten that sign hung on me enough in my life based on my looks and personality. I’m not a dumb blonde or an airhead. I happen to be a really nice friendly person who most mistake as something other and it’s frustrating.”

“Could be because you put yourself out there so much.”

“Are we going to argue about my career choices?” she asked. “Because you can see I don’t put myself out there that much.”

“True,” he said. “And it’s wrong of me, but having a teenage daughter, I can say I don’t always approve of what she is drawn to or watches in those things.”

Maybe if Scarlet watched some more of Harmony’s videos he might not care.

No, that was wrong.

He would have still because he didn’t know her as a person.

Now that he did, he realized he might have hung a sign on her too and was ashamed to think that.

“Are you going to tell me about your ex and what happened in that relationship or is that too personal to share?”

“It’s not a secret,” he said. “We were in our last year of college and Trinda got pregnant. We married. I went into the academy before Scarlet was born. I was gone a lot, and missed plenty in my daughter’s life and my marriage. My wife wasn’t understanding of it and maybe I couldn’t blame her.”

“She signed up for it marrying you,” she said.

His head went back and forth. “I don’t know.”

“Do you think if she didn’t get pregnant you wouldn’t have gotten married?”

He shrugged.

He’d never say that because Scarlet was the best thing that had happened in his life.

“There is no use speculating about things you can’t change.”

“True,” she said. “So that’s why you’re divorced. You weren’t around much?”

“That and I’m not fun in my ex’s eyes. My daughter says the same, yet she and I have a good time together.”