Page 100 of Can't Get Over You
“I remember everything.” He brushed the hair off her shoulder, eyeing the smooth column of her neck and remembering breathing in her soft, sweet scent just hours ago. “I don’t think you get how into you I was.”
“I’m starting to.”
It was their turn to board, so he called out to Cody. “Let’s go, buddy.”
Just as they started up the steps, a man shouted, “Jude McKenna? I thought they ran you out of town.”
Chapter Twenty
The shock runningthrough him was sickeningly familiar.
The replay of his past played in his mind.
Hey, you. Get back here.
Show me your backpack. Go on, open it.
We need you to come with us.
You son of a bitch.
Jude turned to find an old man stalking toward him.
“Jason.” His wife caught hold of his arm. “Don’t do this.”
“Like hell I won’t.” The man shrugged out of her hold and moved closer. Addressing Finlay, the man pointed at Jude. “Do you know who he is? Because I don’t think you’d have a child with him if you did.”
Whatever shit he’d done in the past, Finlay O’Neill would not be paying the price. Jude blocked the man from her and the boy. “Not in front of my family.”
“Well, look at that.” The man seethed. “Now that you have a wife and kid, you care. Funny how that works. Well, let me tell you something, you piece of shit. I’m not rich like some of the people in this town. I saved my entire life for that car. I had it three days before you and your loser friends crashed it. Anddon’t tell me you were too young to know what you were doing. You were eighteen. That’s old enough to know the difference between right and wrong.”
“Jason, you’re upsetting the boy,” his wife said.
His eyes gleamed with anger, and it was clear he wasn’t backing down. “That was an original ’65 Mustang. My dad and I worked on it every weekend for fifteen years. And in one joyride from a bunch of punk-ass kids, it was gone. Totaled.”
“That’s enough.” Jude would not tolerate upsetting Cody.
But before he could shut the man down, Finlay stepped in front of him. “Sir? With all due respect, that night he was on his way to me. To take me to the prom. He had no part in the situation?—”
“You’re going to stand up for this piece of shit?” The man reached for her arm.
Rage set his skin on fire. Before the old man could make contact, Jude stepped in front of her. “Keep your hands off my wife.” His voice was so hard, so cold, the farm went dead quiet around them. But Cody was watching, and he planned on staying in town, so it was time to take a stand. “I’m sorry for what happened to your car. I’d be upset if some stupid kids destroyed a project I worked on with my dad, but I didn’t steal it, and I didn’t drive it, so you’re not going to talk to me like this.”
“You’re a goddamn liar, and the judge kicking you out of town is proof of that.”
“Hey.” The cocoa and doughnut woman stormed up in a beanie lit up with LED Christmas lights. “Unless you want nothing but coal in your stocking,” she said to the man, “it’s time for you to head on out. This is a Christmas tree farm. There are children here, and Santa’s very disappointed in your behavior. Now, I’m going to ask you nicely to leave the premises. You’ll be awfully embarrassed if a bunch of elves have to escort you off the property.”
“I can’t believe you,” his wife snapped, clearly mortified. “Let’s go.”
“He crashed my car,” the man whined as his wife led him away.
After they left, the woman with the twinkling hat waved them aside, out of the line. “Hi, I’m so sorry about that. I’m Molly Bright.” She gestured at the nearest sign that readMerry Bright’s Christmas Tree Farm.
“It’s not your fault.” Finlay shook her hand. “But thank you for stepping in like that. I’m Finlay, and this is Jude, my fiancé, and Cody, our boy. So you own the farm?”
Adrenaline still coursed through him, and he held Cody’s shoulders, pulling him close. He hated that his past ruined a fun family event, but he was glad he’d stood up for himself. It felt good.
“Technically, my aunt does,” the woman said. “But I grew up here. We moved when I was a kid. I’m sure you’ve heard all about it. Never mind.” She rolled her eyes. “Big scandal.”
