while his daughter pinned
him with a look that was too old for her years. He sipped some water and tried
to formulate an answer. “Don’t be stupid,” he managed. “I’m engaged to Rosie.
She’s just…I’m…it’s…oh, hell.”
To his alarm, AliceLynn’s eyes filled with tears. “Don’t
call me stupid,” she whispered. “I’m going to the ladies’.” She slid out of the
booth and stomped away.
Antony sat, holding the half-eaten slice of pizza that had
damn near killed him just now, wondering not for the first time what in the
hell he’d said to upset her so much. A sudden, unwelcome vision of Crystal’s
face floated around in his brain. He ground his teeth and tried not to curse
her for having the nerve to get in the car and fucking die on the interstate,
leaving him to navigate the female teenage waters alone. What a colossal mess
this was. And of course, he had no one but himself to blame.
He stretched his long legs out under the table and tried to
relax only to feel a strong, familiar slap on his shoulder. “Oh, hey Daddy,” he
said when Anton Love took the seat AliceLynn had vacated. “What’s up?”
“Your mama wanted some of Pat’s barbecue for supper,” he
said, dropping a bag full of eco-friendly, bio-degradable and, Antony knew,
expensive takeaway boxes onto the table. ‘Pat’ was the longtime chef in the
Love Pub kitchen whose barbecue and beer dinners drew visitors from as far away
as Cincinnati. “On a date?” His father indicated the large pizza.
“No. It’s AliceLynn.”
Anton Love raised a dark eyebrow. “So that therapy crap is
working?”
“I don’t know about all that,” Antony said, unwilling to
admit that maybe it was, if for no other reason than something about his one
full session today had compelled him to come home and be a father for a change.
After a few minutes when it became clear that his daughter had skipped out on
him, he slumped down into the booth and put his hands on the table. “Like I
said, since it would appear that she’s bailed on me because I called her
‘stupid…’”
Anton chuckled and got up slowly, making Antony realize that
his father was not wearing his sixty-some years very well lately. “Son, don’t
ever call a girl anything she might even slightly consider an insult. It’s not
the same as it is with your knucklehead brothers. Thought I raised you better
than that.”
“Great. Thanks for the tip. Now I don’t have a way home
since I assume she took her car and went over to that damn boy’s house.”
“Jason?” Anton asked, sending a spike of something
resembling jealousy through Antony’s head.
“I guess,” he muttered, waving down the waitress so he could
get a box, pay the check and get the hell out of here. Anton headed to the
door, leaving Antony to fume at the girl’s nerve, just bolting on him.
Yeah. She got you with that one, dad. Best just go on
home.
Once he’d paid, tipped and snagged his leftovers he
shouldered his way out the door. His father stood at the door of the brewery
van. “Get in, you big dumbass. I’ll run ya home.”
Chapter Seven
Margot looked across the vast expanse of her desk, trying to
decide what to say to the young woman who sat sobbing her eyes out and
clutching a handful of tissues, or to the man sitting next to her with his arms
crossed over his massive chest, face cloudy with a combination of fury and
resignation. After cancelling the last two of his scheduled appointments,
Antony had appeared today at her door behind his daughter. The following forty
minutes or so had been torture for everyone in the room.
In all her years of helping people, listening, giving subtle
suggestions to teens, married couples and others, she had never felt so utterly
useless in the face of what would and should have been a straightforward case.
The room was suffused by the sound of AliceLynn’s sobs and barely
understandable mumblings about
him with a look that was too old for her years. He sipped some water and tried
to formulate an answer. “Don’t be stupid,” he managed. “I’m engaged to Rosie.
She’s just…I’m…it’s…oh, hell.”
To his alarm, AliceLynn’s eyes filled with tears. “Don’t
call me stupid,” she whispered. “I’m going to the ladies’.” She slid out of the
booth and stomped away.
Antony sat, holding the half-eaten slice of pizza that had
damn near killed him just now, wondering not for the first time what in the
hell he’d said to upset her so much. A sudden, unwelcome vision of Crystal’s
face floated around in his brain. He ground his teeth and tried not to curse
her for having the nerve to get in the car and fucking die on the interstate,
leaving him to navigate the female teenage waters alone. What a colossal mess
this was. And of course, he had no one but himself to blame.
He stretched his long legs out under the table and tried to
relax only to feel a strong, familiar slap on his shoulder. “Oh, hey Daddy,” he
said when Anton Love took the seat AliceLynn had vacated. “What’s up?”
“Your mama wanted some of Pat’s barbecue for supper,” he
said, dropping a bag full of eco-friendly, bio-degradable and, Antony knew,
expensive takeaway boxes onto the table. ‘Pat’ was the longtime chef in the
Love Pub kitchen whose barbecue and beer dinners drew visitors from as far away
as Cincinnati. “On a date?” His father indicated the large pizza.
“No. It’s AliceLynn.”
Anton Love raised a dark eyebrow. “So that therapy crap is
working?”
“I don’t know about all that,” Antony said, unwilling to
admit that maybe it was, if for no other reason than something about his one
full session today had compelled him to come home and be a father for a change.
After a few minutes when it became clear that his daughter had skipped out on
him, he slumped down into the booth and put his hands on the table. “Like I
said, since it would appear that she’s bailed on me because I called her
‘stupid…’”
Anton chuckled and got up slowly, making Antony realize that
his father was not wearing his sixty-some years very well lately. “Son, don’t
ever call a girl anything she might even slightly consider an insult. It’s not
the same as it is with your knucklehead brothers. Thought I raised you better
than that.”
“Great. Thanks for the tip. Now I don’t have a way home
since I assume she took her car and went over to that damn boy’s house.”
“Jason?” Anton asked, sending a spike of something
resembling jealousy through Antony’s head.
“I guess,” he muttered, waving down the waitress so he could
get a box, pay the check and get the hell out of here. Anton headed to the
door, leaving Antony to fume at the girl’s nerve, just bolting on him.
Yeah. She got you with that one, dad. Best just go on
home.
Once he’d paid, tipped and snagged his leftovers he
shouldered his way out the door. His father stood at the door of the brewery
van. “Get in, you big dumbass. I’ll run ya home.”
Chapter Seven
Margot looked across the vast expanse of her desk, trying to
decide what to say to the young woman who sat sobbing her eyes out and
clutching a handful of tissues, or to the man sitting next to her with his arms
crossed over his massive chest, face cloudy with a combination of fury and
resignation. After cancelling the last two of his scheduled appointments,
Antony had appeared today at her door behind his daughter. The following forty
minutes or so had been torture for everyone in the room.
In all her years of helping people, listening, giving subtle
suggestions to teens, married couples and others, she had never felt so utterly
useless in the face of what would and should have been a straightforward case.
The room was suffused by the sound of AliceLynn’s sobs and barely
understandable mumblings about
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