Page 27 of Never Say Never

I force myself to bite my tongue. I know nothing happened between Daisy and Dr. Dick, but the thought of her with another guy still makes me want to punch a wall. Thankfully, my mominterrupts the conversation when she announces that dinner is ready.

We take our seats at the table in the dining room off the veranda outside, Daisy to my left, her parents and my sister across from us and my mom and dad at either end. We sit next to the sliding glass doors, a trellis of bougainvillea, my mother’s favorite flower, just beyond the glass. There are two salads and platters of chicken, potatoes, and green beans in the middle of the table. It’s enough food to feed three more families. My mom is a great cook, and she’s always happiest when she is feeding the people she loves.

“How’s the trip planning, Daisy? Do you have everything booked?” my mom asks as she scoops some beans onto her plate.

“I have some of my stays booked so far, but I’m still figuring out the route I want to take and the places I want to visit. Three months seems like a long time, but there’s so much I want to see.”

I don’t like thinking about Daisy being so far away for so long. There are too many variables. She could get hurt. She could meet someone, fall in love and never come back to Reed Point.

“That’s fantastic,” my mom says, pouring herself a glass of wine. “You are going to have such a wonderful time.”

“It’s so important to see the world,” my dad adds. “I wish Tucker had the same adventurous spirit as you. My work has given me the opportunity to travel a lot, but Tucker hasn’t ever shown an interest. Probably one of the reasons he settled on teaching.”

I grip my fork with enough force to snap it in two. “I didn’t settle on anything. It was my choice to go into teaching.”

He sighs like I’m being a petulant child. “And make a quarter of what you would have made if you worked for me.”

“And be miserable,” I snap back, immediately embarrassed at my outburst. My aunt tries to move us past the tension thathas settled heavily over the table, complimenting my mom on the chicken and then turning to make small talk with Addy. I feel Daisy’s hand slide discreetly over my thigh, a gentle show of support and a reminder not to engage with my dad’s bullshit.

“Mrs. Whittaker was in last week,” Daisy says interrupting the tension in the room, smiling at her mom. She has always been a natural at making conversation, and putting people at ease, and I know that’s what she’s trying to do now. “She said to tell you hello, Mom.”

“Oh, that was nice of her. How is she doing?”

“She looks great for 85. Her kids are throwing her a birthday party this weekend. They’ve invited 50 people.”

“Isn’t that sweet of them.”

“Did I see her at the game on Friday?” Daisy’s mom takes a spoonful of potatoes before passing them to me.

Daisy nods. “She hasn’t missed an RPU game in years. I think she’s your number one fan, Tucker.”

If I didn’t know my father as well as I do, I might have missed the tick in his jaw. It’s his tell that he’s annoyed, and his next comment confirms it. “I will never understand why people seem to find college football so entertaining.”

“Oh, honey. You may not be into football, but I would say that most of the country is,” my mom tells him gently, doing her part to make her guests feel comfortable.

My father apparently doesn’t give a shit who’s uncomfortable, though, because he doesn’t let it go. “Grown men throwing a ball around a field doesn’t seem that exciting to me.”

“Excuse me,” I grit my teeth, pushing my chair back. I’m seeing red, my pulse thumping under my skin. Realizing that I need to get away from my dad before I say something I regret, I leave the table and head into the kitchen.

I’m so tired of his bullshit. I show up every Sunday for my mom, but sometimes I don’t know how much longer I can do this.

I should have known tonight was going to be a disaster. Over the years, I have learned that my dad hates to see me succeed in a job he feels is beneath a Collins. I think he’s been waiting for me to fail at it, or to hate it and be forced to admit to him that I made a mistake. Fat fucking chance.

Anger is radiating off me when Daisy finds me at the kitchen counter, pouring myself a glass of whiskey. “Make it two,” she says, and I grab a second glass from the cabinet and pour her a shot.

I slide the glass along the island counter to her and we both knock back the amber liquor.

“Your dad can be a real asshole sometimes.”

“I’m aware,” I say, slamming the shot glass down on the counter.

“I told him as much when I got up from the table.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” I say, feeling terrible that I somehow dragged her into this bullshit.

“Of course I did. You would have done it for me.” I nod, knowing without a doubt that she’s right. “I have your back, Tuck. Always will.”

I raise my eyes to meet Daisy’s and find her looking back at me with the same sincerity and care that she has shown me all my life. I want to explain to her what she means to me, but I’m afraid that if I try, I will screw it up. Instead, I reach for her hand and pull her out of the kitchen and down the hall to my father’s office where I lock the door behind us.

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