Page 115 of Keepsake

But his absence was felt by all of us. I felt every single one of the seven days and thirteen hours we had been apart.

Refusing to let my mind go through that path again, I took a fortifying breath and made myself concentrate on Dash.

“I like how you just assume you’ll get in.” I crossed my arms in front of my chest, mocking him. “But I don’t care where you go, Dash. I just want you to… want something for yourself. Whatever it is.”

“Even if I want to skip it and work for tío?” he challenged.

I gulped, ignoring the way my heart skipped with the word tío.

“If that’s what you want.” I shrugged. What I wanted was for Dash towantsomething. Literally anything that wasn’t running away and raising his siblings. He needed to think about the future without triggering his fight or flight instincts.

He shook his head, reclining on the chair. The office was his new place to study, away from the kids. He first said it wasn’t necessary, but I could tell he liked the privilege.

Vienna and Lachlan were with Dr. Maya. I was supposed to use the time off to catch up on a couple of things, but I couldn’t say no when he asked me to read his essay for English class.

“Tío wakes up way too early.”

“College is a great time for you to figure things out.”

“That’s what rich kids do. The rest of us are thinking it will help with our life’s prospect, but we end up swimming in debt for years to come.”

“Look how smart you are,” I offered. “You just forgot one detail.”

“What?”

“You’re the rich kid now.”

My words had the desired effect. He groaned, making the most disgusted expression I’d ever seen on his face. I had to laugh and poke him further. “Living in a penthouse, studying at Lone Pine. That’s you Dashiell Geraldo Murphy.”

“Thanks,” he said. “Now I hate myself.”

I leaned over the table, catching his eyes. “You’re smart. Go wherever you want to go.”

“Why is this is such a big deal to you?” He rolled his shoulders back. “I have time to think it over.”

“Well, depending on where you want to go, you need to start choosing the right extra-curricular activities …” I caught my tongue because he looked petrified at the idea of preparing a curriculum. “I want you to want something for you, Dash, just you and not the kids. I want you to act your age.” I skipped the part where when he antagonized Vienna, looked exactly his age. “If I need to drag you to college parties, so be it.”

“You’re great at parenting.” He grinned. “College parties, huh?”

“I’ll be there to watch. Don’t be too excited.”

“Never.”

We fell into a comfortable silence, and he looked down at the essay in front of me. “Good?”

“Excellent,” I said.

And I wasn’t just trying to motivate him. He was a good writer, a natural even if he hadn’t noticed yet. I glanced down at my watch and stood up. “I’m getting the kids. Come with me and we can get dinner, too.”

He jumped into action. Nothing made a teenager boy move quicker than a promise of takeaway.

We got into the elevator and went straight to the garage, ignoring my second parking spot that Alvaro never used.

That was the sign I missed. Things moved between us, but his truck remained parked across the street. Day in and day out, he never really lived here. Not when he made sure only to pack a duffel at the time.

He was a guest, always a guest, and it was on me to think he’d ever be anything but.

“Can we get food from Antonio’s?”

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