Page 43 of Exile and Embrace

Ava waves a dismissive hand. “There’s no need to worry about that. I found some other things to look at while we’re taking a break from Dad’s childhood. Did you know that he had arrest records? I didn’t know that. They were sealed. I can’t get much information out of them. Too much is redacted.”

My shoulders slump, wondering what else Jeremiah Redford did that’s going to break his daughter’s heart.

Though I heard some things about him back in Virginia, I didn’t think much about it. Whatever he was up to was happening in Tennessee. It didn’t touch my life back then.

Maybe I should have paid more attention so I could make Ava’s search for the truth easier now.

She wouldn’t have those dark bags under her eyes and a half-eaten sandwich on the table beside her.

Part of me wants to sit down and help her.

Although, the little I learned about her father after I went to prison is enough to make even a sane person snap.

I know one thing for certain.

Though I may want to make this search easier for her, I’m not going to be the one to tell her the worst of the things that her father has done.

Keeping those secrets from her may make her hate me, but I would rather have her hate me than drag her down into the dark spiral her father went down.

I lean forward and take one of the arrest reports from her. “Aves, this barely has anything on it. Why don’t you take a break, finish that sandwich, and then we can talk about making that lasagna for dinner?”

Her hand taps the table, reaching across the surface until she finds her sandwich. Even as she takes a large bite, her attention remains on the arrest records.

Brooklyn looks at the gold watch on her wrist. “Actually, he’s right. It’s getting late in the afternoon, and I have to work on a mural for the local rec center.”

She grabs her purse from the couch and winks at me.

Without Brooklyn here to help her, Ava might take a breather.

I nod my thanks as she heads for the door.

I should have known better, though.

If anything, Brooklyn leaving only fuels her on. She shuffles the papers before opening a notebook. Ava pulls a pen from behind her ear and writes down a couple notes.

The moment she drops the pen, I snatch the notebook from her and toss it onto the other armchair.

She looks up at me with narrowed eyes. “What the hell did you do that for?”

I stand up and nod to the kitchen. “Come on. Dinner is going to take nearly an hour to make, and that’s before it goes into the oven.”

“I’m busy. I can help you in a few minutes, but I need to finish this.”

“That’s what you’ve said every night for the last week no matter what time I come home at.” I take her hand and pull her to her feet. “Break time, Ava. You’re going to burn yourself out if you keep going at the rate you’re going.”

She snatches her hand from mine. “I need to do this, Finn. I don’t expect you to understand.”

I roll my eyes and gather up the rest of her things, piling them onto the armchair with her notebook and the arrest record I was looking at. “I understand that you are willing to make yourself sick over this. Tonight and tomorrow, you’re taking the day off. I am too.”

That stops her in her tracks. A tirade is on the tip of her tongue, but the anger seems to deflate as her eyes widen. “You’re going to take a day off?”

“If it can keep you from researching yourself to death, then yes. That’s what I’m going to do. We’re going hiking in the morning.”

Ava looks at the pile of paperwork. “I have things I need to do, Finn.”

“And we have a fake engagement to uphold.” Throwing the deal back in her face might be the only thing that gets her to listen to me. “If we want to look like a couple, we’re going to have to spend some time together.”

“We could spend time together while you help me figure out the missing information from my father’s arrest records. I’m sure that we can find news articles on the internet about them.”

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