Page 66 of Whiskey Lullaby
And then that care vanished. My stomach knotted. I scowled at him. “You’re kidding, right?” His eyes widened in a moment of shock. “I’m not a child. I’m not a teenager. I’m capable of deciding who’s good enough forme.”
“Hannah—”
“And you’re a preacher, Daddy. Apreacher!”
“I may be a preacher, but I’m also a father, and I have every right to be concerned about my littlegirl.”
“I’m an adult,Daddy.”
“The things I’ve heard around town about him.” He shook his head, the wrinkles in his forehead growing more prominent. “I’m all for giving someone chances, but I never expected my doing so to come around onyou.”
“What are you talking about? Coming around onme?”
“People in town are talking about you hanging out with him.” His nostrils flared. “Staying at his house, Hannah.Sleepingat hishouse.”
“It’s no one’sbusiness—”
“Hannah, it’s a small town! That I’m the preacher of, and some people have nothing better to do than watch who comes and goes from people’shouses.”
I pushed up from the table, my cheeks hot, my heart racing. “I don’t need your approval to seesomeone.”
“So you are seeing him?” His jawclenched.
“I didn’t say that, I said I don’t need you to likehim!”
“You’re still in my house, Hannah!” His voice grew stern and I noticed him straighten in his seat alittle.
“I came back to help you!” My voice suddenly seemed to echo around the room. “I came back because she’s dying,” I whispered before turning and storming from the kitchen. I grabbed my purse and keys from the foyertable.
“Where are you going,Hannah.”
I groaned and yanked the door open. I didn’t have to tell him where I was going, and to be honest, I didn’t really know myself. Meg was at work. Noah was still in the fields. I just wanted to be alone. Someplaceserene…
Thirty minutes later I pulled up to Lake Mitchell, parking beneath the oak tree with the tire swing. A nervous excitement coursed through me when my feet hit the wooden pier. A speedboat flew by, and the little dingy tied to the end of the dock rocked on the wake, enticing me to be free and careless. To let everythinggo.
So I did. I hopped into the boat and untied the frayed rope holding it in place. I pulled the cord on the old motor and it spit and sputtered before taking off. The wind whipped through my hair, the damp smell of the bank and spray of lake water flew over my face, and when I got to the middle of the lake, I cut theengine.
The sun glistened over the water. The sound of children splashing echoed from somewhere across the bank. I tilted my head back and closed my eyes, letting the warm sun wash over my skin. Noah was right. This was serenity. Calm and quiet. I could think out there, and I had a lot to thinkabout.
29
Noah
Hannah peeled out of the drive. I looked over at Bo and he shrugged before I lifted the hoe over my head and slammed it against theearth.
“She likes you, youknow?”
I wiped the sweat from my brow with my forearm. “Yeah?”
His ho pounded the dirt. He pretended to be focused on what he was doing, but I caught the way his jaw clenched, how his lips twitched. He didn’t like it. “Don’t hurt her,” hesaid.
“Iwon’t.”
“Betternot.”
The screen door banged closed and I glanced up, squinting against the sun blazing over the roof of thehouse.
“Bo,” John said, stepping off the back porch. “I’m goin’ to Walmart to pick up your momma’s prescription before the pharmacy closes. Can you keep an ear out in case your momma needs something?” He shoved his hands into his jean pockets. “She ain’t been feeling too welltoday.”
