Page 56 of Daddy to Go

“So, Ryder Rivington is back in town. He’s filling in for Dr. McNamara while she’s on vacation.”

Melody’s mouth twisted into a smirk. She looked at me and batted her eyelashes.

“Really? That guy was hot! Maybe I’ll get an appointment and we’ll go out on a date. I bet he looks really good without his clothes on. I heard he’s always looking for someone easy because that’s the kind of guy he is. No matter. I’m the kind of girl he’ll come back to Farmington for. Then again, he might not come back just to avoidotherpeople.”

My nostrils flared and it took me a moment to really let what she had just said sink into my brain. Then I had to question myself. Did my little sister really just say that? Did she just hint that she wanted to date the father of my child, while making a dig at me?

Yep. She absolutely did.

28

Abby

It felt like my brain just completely stopped. Melody had done a lot of things to me our entire lives. She has said a lot of hurtful things, and she’s done a lot of hurtful things too, but what she just said was completely beyond the pale. At first, I couldn’t even compute. All I could do was sit there with my mouth wide open. I didn’t evenrecognizethe girl that my sister had become. After a few moments of just staring at her smug face, I finally gathered my thoughts.

“What?” I asked standing up. “What kind of monster are you? That is the father of my child. Have you really become such a pathetic and insignificant person that you would have to stoop so low to make yourself feel better?”

She tried to talk but I put my hand up, tired of her nastiness. “I don’t know where you got this attitude from, but I can promise you that no one finds it attractive. And these guys, all they’re doing is trying to get one thing out of you because they know you’ll give it up. Melody, how could you evenconsidergoing out on a date with Ryder? You know who he is to me, and you know what he did to me and your nephew. Don’t you want what’s best for Mattie? I really feel like you’ve lost your mind.”

Nothing seemed to faze Melody. She didn’t give a crap about the fact that she had just hurt me because all she cared about was herself. And of course, she had to be nasty about it.

“No one wants you anymore, Abby, least of all Ryder. Let him go. I know you’re hung up on him, but please. You’re just history at this point.”

My mouth opened but words wouldn’t come out. Melody continued.

“I might as well date him,” she said with a shrug. “If not me, then who? Plus, didn’t you say he took you on some luxurious vacation last time? Maybe this time he’ll do the same with me. Not to mention that he’s rolling in dough, and maybe he’ll buy me some fancy clothes and jewelry. I have that kind of effect on men, you know. When they’re around me, all they want to do is spoil me because they know I’m worth it.”

I blinked several times staring at her, wondering if she was ever going to shut up. Finally, I collected my thoughts.

“And what exactly makes you think that? Because they tell you how fabulous you are? Have you ever thought that maybe it’s because they’re just trying to get in your pants? I mean, I don’t know why they would go to all the trouble to tell you those things. It’s not like you won’t give it up anyway.”

Melody laughed right in my face.

“Look, just because you fucked-up and are now a single mother doesn’t mean the rest of us are going to make the same mistakes you made. It also doesn’t make the rest of us whores like you. So if you wouldn’t mind, stop projecting your insecurities on me. There are actual women out there who have a modicum of self-respect. You probably should’ve thought about that before you went spreading your legs for just anyone. It’s not like I didn’t try to warn you about him. The difference is, I know what he’s after, and I know what I can get from him.”

I was completely astonished. I had no idea that my sister had this calculating, mercenary streak in her. I had no idea that this kind of malice lurked within. Not only did she have zero self-respect, but she had no respect for me as her sister. She was a hateful little thing, and I wondered how we were even related. My mother never raised us to be like this.

Gripping the back of the chair, I looked down and realized that I was shaking. This time, it was warranted. I was trying desperately to figure out what to say back to my sister. I could be nasty, and I could continue to put her down, but that would do nothing but fuel her fire. Melody was immune to my barbs, and it would probably only cause her to attack even more viciously.

I opened up a bottle of water and took a sip, trying to calm my nerves. Between the conversation with Ryder the night before and now this, I was starting to think I was losing my mind. In fact, it felt like the whole world was losing its mind.

Suddenly, my thoughts stopped in their tracks. Ryder said he sent a letter to the address listed in my medical records, but I only moved into my apartment a year ago. Before that, I was living here with my mom. It’s not a big deal because we live in the same complex, but still. Did the letter come here, and not to my apartment?

My eyes flickered up to Melody, who was lazily scrolling through her phone. That was when the realization hit me. Oh god, no. Please don’t let it be true, but the roiling in my gut told me otherwise.

Could my sister have hidden Ryder’s letter from me?

I thought about it carefully and then decided that I needed to know the answer.

“Melody, have you ever, in the last year, received a letter to this house written by Ryder and addressed to me?”

I watched my sister very carefully to see if she’d lie. After all, it’s a habit of hers, formed when she was a small child. She couldn’t help herself. When she was little she lied about small things, but as she got older her lies grew bigger. It wasn’t until she reached her late teens that she realized lies needed to be believable. But still, anytime she lied, I knew it. As her sister, I could always tell.

Her finger stopped momentarily on the phone but she didn’t look up. She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.

“No. I’m the one who checks the mail every day, but I don’t recall ever seeing anything like that. I’m pretty sure we would have seen it. God knows you were desperately trying to find him, even though it was very obvious he wanted nothing to do with you. That man ghosted your ass, and I find it hilarious.”

I put my hands down on the table very close to her and controlled the tone of my voice.