“Then I’ll walk. Either way, I’m getting the hell out of here.”
“You’re gonna walk to town in those shoes. You’ve always been the dumb kind of blonde. Why don’t you use your head for a change, missy?”
“Why don’t you shut the fuck up?”
A chill cut through the house. “What did you just say to me?”
She quickly grabbed her coat and keys. “I said I’m going out.”
He slammed the silverware drawer. “Stupid girl, everything’s closed!”
“Well, I’d rather spend the night out in the cold than around you.”
He lunged after her but she ran to the door. “Go then! And do me a favor and don’t come back! Go find someone else to support your lazy ass, you ungrateful bitch! You’re just like your mother! Useless!”
She bolted out the front door, nearly slipping on the snow-dusted walk as she covered her ears. No matter how old she was, his words could always hurt her.
He charged onto the porch steps, shouting cruel accusations as she rushed into her car and locked the doors. Sucking back a sob, she dropped the keys, her hands shaking as she grappled for them.
“You’re dead to me!”
Erin stabbed the keys into the ignition and sped out of the icy driveway. Her car slipped onto the snow-covered road. Stripping the gears, she shifted into drive and gunned it toward town, a sob choking out of her chest as she sped away.
All she had was the clothes on her back and the items in her purse. No place to call home and nowhere left to go, but she was too tipsy and fed up to waste time on regrets.
CHAPTER 3
Erin’s car slid around the corner as powdery white snow coated the blacktop. Soon the plows would start making their rounds, but, for now, only idiots like her were out on the road. Idiots and drunks, as O’Malley’s parking lot was packed.
The outside of the bar resembled a truck pull, with multiple four-wheel-drive, heavy terrain vehicles lined up, many suited with their own plow that would see them home tonight. Her vehicle was the only regular-sized car in the lot aside from a silver Audi she spotted in the back.
She looked for Finn’s truck, hoping he was already there, but everything was disguised by the dusting of snow. Navigating her way to the entrance in heels wasn’t easy, but she made it there in one piece. When she reached the door, she gripped the handle and hesitated.
Did she really want to do this?
She pulled the door open a crack and rowdy voices clashed with the silent night. Something upbeat played from the jukebox and she snapped the door shut.
Those weren’t her people in there. She didn’t have people. Those people shared a unanimous dislike for her. She wasn’t stupid enough to believe everyone in Jasper Falls had a heart as forgiving as Finnegan McCullough. She and Finn shared a past. To the others…she was just a bitch.
She glanced back at her car. Where could she go?
Already regretting her words to her father, she worried she might have irreparably screwed up her life tonight—all because of one stupid slap. That was nothing. She’d taken much worse over the years. When would she learn to simply keep her mouth shut?
Her lashes fluttered, a rush of tears threatening to spoil her makeup. Indecision frayed her insides like a rope battered from a lifelong tug-of-war. She was sick of thinking, sick of feeling, sick of fucking hurting.
Gritting her teeth, she yanked the door wide. No more tears.
She stepped inside and the song on the jukebox ended, giving her entrance an excruciating opening to lure everyone’s eyes and halt any conversation for a beat. They were all McCulloughs, Clooneys, and Mosconis. Where was Finn?
Her stare scanned the stools along the bar and the faces surrounding the tables, but she didn’t see him. Not that it mattered. He’d be there with his wife and siblings. As much as Finn extended an invitation to join them, Erin knew she wouldn’t be welcomed.
He wasn’t sitting in a booth nor did she see him at the pool tables in the back. Another song kicked on and anyone staring her way lost interest. Several watched her and cupped their hands around their mouths to whisper something to a friend.
Her stomach roiled. Her inner demons hissed that they were all talking about her, not a single person having something nice to say.
She should go. The instinct to flee weighed heavily in her gut. But where else could she go? She wanted a drink and a moment to think. Refusing to be a coward, she forced one foot in front of the other and crossed to the bar on shaky legs.
Sue and Ryan were bartending. Both saw her, but neither rushed over to fill her order. Erin reached in her purse for some cash and saw her dad’s prescription and cursed.