Page 112 of Missing Pieces (Men of Manhattan 3)

"He wanted you to go out and live your life. He didn't even want you to stay here when he was living. He wanted more for you. You know that. He was trying to give you everything he never got."

She was right. My dad would be horrified that I had been spending every night lying by his grave, shutting myself off. I had to stop this. I had to have faith for once. Just like he had enough faith to give love one last shot. "Will you take it?"

"What, the bar?" She seemed shocked.

I sat up and brushed the dirt off my back. "Yes. Will you take it?"

"I can't do that. I can watch it while you're gone, though."

"He'd want you to have it. If he wanted me to go out in the world, he'd want you to have the bar."

"Hails, I can't. You just said it was all you had left of him."

"And you showed me that wasn't true. Just promise you'll keep the name. Don't make it unrecognizable or anything."

"I won't change a thing. And if you decide to come back, it'll be waiting for you."

I shook my head. "It's yours. Take care of it for him." I nodded to myself, convincing myself I was doing the right thing as I stood up. "I have to go."

"Hailey." She slowly got to her feet too. "Stay in touch, okay? I'm going to want to meet that beautiful baby." She gave me a hug. "Your father would be so proud of you."

I hope so.

Chapter 62

Tyler

Sunday

I knocked on the door even though I had a key. My mom had moved after my dad died. She said it was too painful to live in the house they shared together. So even though this was technically my home now, it had never really felt like it. I had only ever spent summers during college here.

It only took a few seconds before my mom opened the door with a huge smile on her face. She threw her arms around me before I could even say hello. "I'm so glad you got here safely. I always worry about you when you drive long distances." She kissed my cheek but kept me in her embrace. "How are you? Are you hungry? I have leftovers from dinner if you're hungry..."

"I'm okay, Mom. It's just really good to see you."

She slowly released me from her hug.

"You don't look good." She put her hands on my shoulders.

I laughed. "Thanks."

She waved my comment away. "You know what I mean. Have you been eating okay? I guess you've been mostly eating at restaurants and such. You need a home cooked meal. Come in, come in."

I dropped my backpack in the hall and followed her into the kitchen. Even if I had just eaten a Thanksgiving feast, if my mom believed I was hungry, I'd have to eat. So I might as well have some food. Besides, a home cooked meal actually sounded perfect.

I tried to ignore the fact that she was staring at me while I ate. It was clear that she could tell something was bothering me. But I didn't feel like talking about it. Just thinking about Hailey put a lump in my throat.

"Is this about Penny getting married?"

I choked on my food. "Is what about Penny getting married?"

"This." She waved her arm in front of me.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Mom."

"You've been in love with that girl ever since you met her. And if I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, that girl is not the one for you. You know I love her to death. She's a sweetheart. But you need someone with a little more oomph if you know what I mean. To deal with all this." She waved her arm in front of me again.

I laughed. "Am I so hard to deal with?"

---