Page 21 of Crushing On Dad's Best Friend
Katherine
I’m wokenup by a sudden flash of light sweeping across the room. I groan, still half-asleep, and grope around the floor for my phone. Liam isn’t next to me and all that’s on the floor is my pile of clothes and his button-down. When I find my phone I unlock it, relieved that I don’t have any texts or missed calls. It’s only a little past midnight, which by the standards of a wedding is still prettyearly.
I sit up and stretch, reveling in the feeling of warm contentedness running through me. I get up and throw Liam’s shirt on, wrapping it around me and buttoning it up. I smile as I pad through the house, heading toward where I think the bathroomis.
“Liam?”
I duck my head around the corner but he’s not there. I go back to the living room, a little flare of anxiety running through my veins. I grab my phone and sit on the corner of the couch and call his number. When I don’t hear his phone ring or vibrate from anywhere in the room, I know something’s veryoff.
I quickly pull his shirt off and get dressed, grab my things and head for the door. Liam’s car isn’t here, which makes the back of my neck flush with nervous energy. I request an Uber and when I get inside, the driver is chatty and slow. Really, really slow. Like, worse than a tortoise. He’sglacial.
“Sir, I’m sorry, is there any way you could go a littlefaster?”
I should be careful what I wish for next time. He hits the gas and pretty much floors it, pinning me to my seat. I grab to see if my seatbelt is on, which it is. I never forget my seatbelt. It’s only another minute until we get to the last turn before the house, and I peer through the windshield to see Liam’s car up ahead ofus.
The cab finally pulls up at the front of the house. I get out, again feeling a wave of deja-vu.
Me and cabs this weekend. I’ve had good luck with them, but I still feel like that same damsel in distress I was on Friday. Liam pulls over at the side of the road and gets out of his car, throwing me a sternlook.
“What the hell’s going on?” I ask as I approachhim.
“Do not follow me, Katherine,” he says, putting his handout.
But I’m insistent on following him. There are a few people still milling around on the lawn, trying to keep the party going. When Liam and I get inside I’m shocked to see my dad and Brian in the corner near thestaircase.
Dad’s face is red. He’s pissed off. The only time I’ve seen him like this was when my sister “borrowed” our parents’ car to go to Warped Tour in 2015. Not only is his face red, but he also has his finger in Brian’s face. He’s whisper-shouting. I can’t make out what he’ssaying.
“Hey, take it easy!” Brian yells, trying to step around dad. Dad grabs his collar and Brian hits him hard in the chest with two hands, causing dad to stumblebackwards.
“Hey, hey!” I yell, rushing toward them, but my shouts fall on deaf ears. I grab Dad’s arm and try to pull him away from Brian, and he backs off, but he doesn’t look any lessmad.
“Did he do something to you?” Dad yells, his voicebooming.
“What?” I feel my face twist into a scowl. “No. What are you takingabout?”
“One of the kids drove past the cabin and Liam’s car was there. You’ve been gone all night,” Dad says, directing his words at me. Then he looks over at Brian, “andyou’vebeen gone all night. You’re a twenty-six-year-old man, and she’s just a kid. She’s barely out of highschool.”
“Dad, no,” I yell as he lunges to grab Brian by the collar again. He looks like he’s about to wind up to hit him and I wince, anticipating the force ofimpact.
“Hey!” Liam shouts, charging at Dad. He’s able to pull Dad off Brian, sending Brian to his knees, coughing and choking. Liam spins Dad around and tries to calm him, putting both hands on his shoulders and giving them a shake. “You put your fucking hands on my kid? Hell no. I don’t give a shit how long we’ve been friends, you don’t touch mykid.”
“He did something to Katherine,” Dadyells.
Oh shit oh shit ohshit.
“Why the hell are you sayingthat?”
“He took your car and brought her to yourcabin.”
“My car? So someone saw my car, and you assume it had to beBrian?”
“Who the hell else could it have been?” he shouts into Liam’s face. “The only other person it could havebeen…”
“Listen,” Liam says, putting his hands on his hips. He shakes his head, pinches the bridge of his nose and plows a hand through his hair, letting out a deep breath. “Brian didn’t do anything. I was at the cabin, I saw that some of the kids drove past, and I came here to try to explain everything toyou.”
By now, a small crowd has gathered around us. I’ve always liked attention. I like it when people listen to what I have to say. But this is not the kind of attention I want. Hell no. I swallow thickly, fretting silently over what todo.
I can’t just stand by and let thishappen.
“Dad, it’s my fault,” I blurt out, taking a small step forward. My fingers twist around the strap of my purse. “I was with Liam. Brian had absolutely nothing to do with this. And I take full responsibility. I initiated it, it was allme.”
Dad looks down, curling his hands into fists at hissides.
Shit.
And I thought he looked madbefore…
