Page 155 of Sins of the Father

His eyes fill with panic, chest rises and falls, and he pants, “What’s wrong?”

“You can’t do this.”

A wrinkle forms between his eyebrows. “What?”

“You know what. Hurt yourself.”

“Harper, I’m not—”

“You are! I’m not stupid. No more weight can fit on this bar. It’s too much, you know it’s too much, and you need to stop now.”

His eyes blaze with frustration, and he sternly says, “Harper, go back to bed.”

“No.”

“Harper—”

“If you do this, I’m leaving.”

His eyes widen, and hurt replaces his expression.

My insides shake. “I mean it. I won’t watch you destroy yourself.”

He takes a deep breath and rises out of the machine. His hurt changes to anger, and his sweaty face deepens with red. “So, if I work out and happen to injure myself, you’re going to just up and leave? Is that how you operate? Stick with me while things are good and bail when they get bad?”

I cross my arms. “Don’t make this into something it’s not, Steven.”

“I’m in my gym, working out. You come in here and interrupt me then tell me you’re going to leave me. What exactly am I creating here?”

“Getting injured during a workout versus intentionally hurting yourself are two different things.”

“Mind your own business, Harper,” he snarls then grabs his water and chugs down a third of it. He moves to a freestanding barbell and fills it with weights.

His words and tone cut me. He’s never spoken to me like this before. I quietly say, “I won’t tell you again. If you don’t stop, I’ll need to leave.”

He keeps filling the bar.

“Why do you believe this is helping you?” I cry out.

“Would you rather I punch a hole in the wall?” he growls.

I freeze.

He squeezes his eyes shut and says, “This is how I deal with things. It’s the weights or the wall. What do you prefer?” When he opens his lids, the layers of self-hatred, pain, and rage are so potent, it tugs at my heart.

I step forward. “Sit.” I point to the bench next to him.

He stares at the ceiling.

“Sit,” I insist again.

He huffs and obeys.

I grab his T-shirt and peel it off him.

“What are you doing, Harper?”

“Take it out on me.”

---