Page 142 of Fierce-Dane

Thankfully she’d always been confident enough in her life to do her own thing.

“What do you think Mom wants?” Kellen asked when he came out of his room.

“No clue,” she said. Her brother was four years younger than her. If he had his way, her brother would always be with his friends.

But there were rules in their house and they followed them.

“Guess we’ll find out,” Kellen said. “Maybe it’s a family vacation.”

“Could be,” she said. Her parents often called these little family meetings to talk about a trip or a party. Family coming to visit.

“Can’t you say more than two words?” Kellen asked, bumping into her going down the stairs.

She sighed. She heard that a lot too.

She talked plenty in her mind. But she listened more. She observed.

She found that you learned more that way.

“I’ll say more than two when I’ve got something to say,” she said. “Just like that sentence was more.”

“Brat,” Kellen said.

Considering most younger brothers were pains in her eyes, she had to say they got along well.

They got to the living room, her father sitting in his recliner still in his suit and tie from work.

Her mother walked in and sat in the other recliner next to her father’s. Her parents always sat like that, like a couple.

She and Kellen sat on the couch.

“Your father and I are getting divorced,” her mother said calmly as if she was announcing there would be rice with dinner.

Regan just stared at the words her mother said. Kellen started to laugh. “Yeah, right,” he said. “What is going on?”

“Your mother is correct,” her father said. “We’ve been talking about it for months and it’s time to separate. I’ll be moving out this weekend. I’ve got an apartment for now. We just wanted to tell you two together.”

Her eyes shifted back and forth and she almost wondered if there was a camera hidden somewhere.

Kellen turned and looked at her. “Say something.”

“This is really happening?” she asked.

“Yes,” her mother said, nodding her head.

“Why?” she asked.

“Why what?” her father asked.

“Why are you divorcing when I don’t even know the last time you two fought?” she said.

“Never,” Kellen said. “That’s when you have fought. I’ve never seen you fight. How can you be getting a divorce if you don’t even fight? Last month you were laughing and giggling in the kitchen when I walked in and it was gross. I told you it was gross when you kissed Mom.”

Regan was thinking the same thing.

This wasn’t just coming out of left field; it was a whole different ballpark in another state.

“Kellen is right,” she said. “What happened? Don’t you think we should know?”

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