Page 65 of Keeping the Single Dad
Brodie’s face dropped. “Why not?”
Because I have to protect you. Because this conversation is exactly the kind I didn’t want to have.
“This is for the best. If I have girlfriends, and they don’t stick around, everybody gets upset.”
Brodie straightened in the chair. “But Lana wants to stick around. She told me. One night, she whispered it to me. I don’t think she thought I heard it, but I did.”
?“What did she say?”
“She told me her Mum read to her when she was little. That she missed her mum so much, but nobody ever talked about her like we talk about Mum. She said she’s lonely all the time even though she’s got lots of friends. She said she always wants to be around to make us happy.
“Robin only stole my card because he thought I’d stolen his. I didn’t even know that was why. That’s how we became friends, again. He didn’t mean to upset me. I bet Lana didn’t mean to upset you, either. If I hadn’t asked Robin why he stole my card, we still wouldn’t be friends.”
My throat felt tight. The noise of the ice cream parlor filled my ears. That was the part that made no sense. She must have known how this would upset me. Why had she done it? Lana had never been interested in the celebrity side of things. Did she need the money? She could have asked me, and I would have helped her.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to see an unknown number. I swiped the call away. This wasn’t the time. A message popped up.
This is Mel. Lana’s sister. Is Lana with you?
I texted Mel back.I haven’t seen her since yesterday.
She’s missing. She got kicked off the team. She’s not answering her phone. I’m worried. Let me know if you see her.
I glanced down the row of tiny houses. Neatly trimmed hedges and flower pots bursting with color lined a tiny patch of garden. I pulled out my phone and checked the address that Mel had texted me. At the height of his career, Logan Sinclair had been the captain of the Scottish team. He’d been so rich, he’d lived in a castle up by Loch Shiel. Trouble had always followed Logan, but how had he ended up here?
I knocked on the door. A siren screamed in the distance and shredded my nerves. Brodie jumped, pressing himself close to me. Mel swung the door open.
I peered past her into the narrow hallway. “Have you heard from her yet?”
Mel folded her arms. Dark shadows haunted her eyes and her normally sleek red hair was pulled into a messy ponytail. “She texted to say she needed some space and not to worry, but now she’s not answering her phone. She’s not at her place or the club. They sacked her this morning. How can I not worry?”
The club meant everything to her. This would devastate her. Any trace of anger evaporated. The worry that rippled in my gut left no room for anything else. The article meant nothing. I just needed to know that Lana was okay.
Mel hugged herself. A tremor touched her stiff lips. “Maybe her phone ran out of battery…”Mel’s voice cracked and her hand fluttered to fiddle with the collar of her blouse. “She's fine. I'm sure she's fine. She has to be.”
She shook her head and her shining eyes came to rest on mine. “This is all my fault. I take it you've seen the article?”
"How is any of it your fault?”?
She chewed her lip and stepped aside. “You’d better come in.”
?
Chapter 40
Alexander
Ithadbeentenyears since I’d seen my old captain. We’d lost touch when he’d left Scotland. Logan’s hair, which had once been thick and lustrous, had all but vanished apart from sparse fuzzy patches above his ears. Deep lines etched his haggard, red face. Eyes that I remembered as brightly lit and full of laughter were now bloodshot and glassy. Logan Sinclair was a shadow of his former self. Heaviness centered in the pit of my chest.
Logan stopped short with dismay when I entered the compact but neat kitchen. He tightened the rope around his threadbare dressing gown and weaved his head from side to side like a snake trying to focus. His confused gaze fell on his daughter. “You didn’t tell me we’d have visitors?”
I held out my hand. “Alex. Do you remember? Alexander McAllister? We played together.”
Logan frowned, and then he let out a bark of laughter. “Alex McAllister. Big Mac!” He opened his arms wide and pulled me into his embrace. His sour citrus scent enveloped me. He pounded his fist against my back.
“Of course I remember. I watched you play the other day. How did you miss that save?” Logan’s eyes fell on Brodie. “And who’s this wee chap?”
“This is my son, Brodie.”
