Page 58 of One Last Chance

“We’re just—damn it, Lizzie, will you look at what you’re doing? You almost took out that garbage can. I wasn’t keeping this a secret because I was being a dick. Kash and I… We’re just careful. We meet in the woods and have dates in his truck and stuff.”

Lizzie made a face and stopped the car. “Gross. What are you, fourteen? Sneaking out to go neck in the woods with the older boy who drives, oooohhh. Ew.” She shot a glance at me then shook her head again. The poor thing would probably have whiplash by the time she got home. “Honey, I fought hard for you back there and I’ll do it again if you need me to, but just between you and me? I think Kash is right. This whole thing the two of you have going on is going to be common knowledge eventually. Secrets like this keep about as well as cottage cheese in a greenhouse.”

“It doesn’t have to keep forever,” I protested. “Just until we can save up to get an apartment or something. I mean, he’ll have to convince his PO, and I’ll have to make sure that mom’s taken care of, but it’s not like I’ll be far away no matter where I move to in this town, so I can always check on her. It’s just not a good idea for everyone to find out about me and Kash while I’m still living with my parent.”

She nodded a little more emphatically than she needed to. I walked over to her and plopped into the passenger seat. Much as it would do me good to walk home right now, it’d also do me good to not have to walk home right now.

“Mm-hm, mm-hm,” Lizzie tsked. And what happens if your dad hears it from one of his drinking buddies, or the cashier at the grocery store, or the gas station clerk? I assume you guys stop for gas occasionally.”

I dropped my head back against the seat and sighed hard. “He’d lose his shit.”

“Yep. It would embarrass him. How well does your dad respond to embarrassment, Daisy? And secrets? Especially secrets that involve you.Embarrassingsecrets that involve you!”

I groaned into my hands. I wasn’t embarrassed by Kash and it hurt, deep in the pit of my heart and all the way back up to the top, it hurt. But she wasn’t wrong. If my dad found out from one of his colleagues or drinking buddies or the guy at the gas station, embarrassment would flood him like an active tsunami.

“That’s what I thought. So, scenario number two. You tell him, straight up. Just you, no Kash. You sit your father down and have an honest, adult conversation with him. Maybe take him out to lunch and tell him while you’re out in public. Then, even if you fight about it, he’ll feel like he’s on your side and that you respect him and junk. And he can’t overreact because… well, because he’s in public and he gives a damn what people will think about him yelling at you like a loose drunk. By the time you two get home, at least he would have had the chance to cool down.”

I gazed out the window without really seeing anything. “I do respect him and junk,” I said. “Mostly because he scares the hell out of me.”

“Like I said…that’s why the lunch. Take him out in public where he’ll be pressured to behave himself and not go all berserker. At least think about it, huh? I’ll even pay for the damn lunch.”

I promised her I’d think about it. By the time we got to my street, I was pretty sure I would do it. As she pulled around the circle to park in front of my trailer, I waspositivethat I would do it.

“I’ll take him to Bernie’s,” I said. “He likes their barbecue sauce.”

Lizzie grinned and winked at me and pulled forty dollars out of her purse. “That’s my girl! Here. Like I said, lunch is on me.”

“Put that away, I got it,” I said with a laugh. “Save it for drinks this weekend. I have a feeling I’m going to need them.”

“You got it,” she said and a grinned at me like a proud mother hen.

I straightened my shoulders and walked up to my house, feeling invincible and untouchable.

It was easy.

All I had to do was take my dad out to lunch. He wouldn’t turn down a free meal, would he? Heck, maybe I could get mom out of the house too. It would be good for all of us.

I had a pep in my step as I made my way to the front door. Good reactions flooded my mind, though deep down, I’m pretty sure I knew the odds weren’t on my father accepting Kash and me easily. Still, until the day came, the least a girl could do was dream.

I stuck my key into the lock and hadn’t even gotten the door half open before my heart sank to the bottom of my stomach. My mom’s scream shattered my focus and all the confidence that went along with it. I burst through the door just as the back of my dad’s hand connected with her cheek. I slammed the door hard enough to make the entire damn house shake like the earth beneath it had been struck by Thor.

Pure, white rage took over my voice. “What thefuck?!”

Time froze. Mom stared at the floor, breathing hard. Dad turned around slowly and stared at me. My brain screamed at me to run, but my feet were stuck in place. Rage and terror churned through me until I shook, hands clenched into fists.

“David.” My mother’s voice sounded distant, eerily calm. So calm that I had to look at her. The look on her face didn’t match the tone of her voice. Not one little bit. “Get out,” she barked, her eyes still trained on my father.

I tensed, waiting for my father to explode on her again. Instead, he deflated. Shoulders hunched, he slithered past me, avoiding my eyes. With a flick of his hand, he snatched his keys off the counter. Windows rattled as he slammed the door behind him. The house was dead silent until his car crunched away over the gravel road, then mom let out a breath which bordered on a sob.

“Mom?”

She rubbed her cheek and started tidying up the room.

“Mom, what happened? Has he hit you before? Talk to me!”

She stopped to brush the hair out of her face and shot me an irritated look. “I’m fine. No, he doesn’t make a habit of it. He’s stressed out about money. I told him to go to the staffing agency and he lost his temper. He’ll be fine. He just needs to go for a drive and clear his head and he’ll see that I’m right. Then he’ll stop for a drink and everything will go back to normal.”

I ground my teeth. “You say that like you’ve been through this before.”

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