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Caught at another red light, he whipped around in his seat to face his oldtoo blinded by love or lust or whatever the hell happened to you withafter someone who didn’t want you? Who never wanted me? Are you so bitter that you want to see me make the same stupid, bullheaded e “Claire told h the fallout of holding on to soain”
His father sighed, looking every bit like the exhausted cancer patient he was “At one tiot caught up in building Absolute Security, took her for granted I felt her slipping away little by little It started with her reading the paper at dinner instead of askingin your roo at night” Pausing, he glanced out the“I could have stopped it froly e So did she, with the help of Jack Daniel’s And then by the time she walked away from us, it was too late to save even your relationship with her”
A heavy silence fell Jake tried to process his old -buried scars
His father closed his eyes and slowly shook his head When he opened his eyes, tears glistened,their blue depths sparkle “What happened between your mother and I, well, I’m sorry for it But you can’t let the mistakes she and I made dictate how you live your life”
“I’aze to the road and he crossed the intersection
“So I’ll ask you again—do you love her?”
Clenching his jaw, Jake glared at the road, refusing to acknowledge his dad’s question She didn’t want him Fine He’d be damned if he tried to force hihtly pointed out, he didn’t belong He pulled into the old ine
“So that’s it? You’ll just walk aith your tail tucked between your legs?”
An angry heat sizzled though his body “That’s not what I’”
“Da open the door and got out “If you love her, you fight for her And if you aren’t h to do that, then I sure did a piss-poor job of raising you” He slammed the door and stomped to the house
Claire sank back into her pillows, her bedroo out the midday sun The pair of pain relievers she’d sould soon dull the ache of her quickly healing bruised ribs so she could drift off into another unsatisfying nap
Surrounded by a box of tissues, her silver cordless phone, the remote control, her cellphone and an empty carton of chocolate-brownie-chunk ice creaes fro on the small television next to her dresser It was the fifth episode she’d watched of an all-day leher had rendered the shohite noise
Swiping at the dark stain dotting her yellow tank top, she decided it ht’s ice cream snack Or had it been the hot chocolate fro the saa pants for three days What did itto work
Rubbing salt into her wounds, she grabbed the week-and-a-half-old local paper froe showed flahters sprayed it ater The headline above it read, Arson Destroys Restaurant in Historic Building
In a flash of anger, she cruloomy room