Page 12 of Mistle-Ho

I take a step back, realizing I’ve interrupted an evening of marital bliss... Again. “I’ll come back later.”

“It’s fine.” Fynn’s new wife Val ducks under his arm, giving me a smile. “He was pacing around because he found out his mother decided to start another business.”

Warmth and envy hit my gut in almost equal proportions. “If anyone can juggle it, she can.”

Fynn’s mother is just coming out of a cancer battle and she’s never been one to sit idly, so I can imagine she’s gunning to get back to normal. For her, that equals brainstorming and creating new business ventures.

“She needs to give herself time to recover.” Fynn rakes one hand through his hair, explaining its current state. “It’s bad enough she insists on hosting a party to celebrate our marriage and the baby.”

Partymakes it sound like Helena’s organizing a small get-together for friends and family. Like the one Babs and Dan hosted last week. But that’s not Helena’s style. Her style will be in the ballroom of a hotel with a caterer and a florist and gold-foiled invitations.

As Fynn paces away, Val grabs my arm, pulling me into their condo before closing the door. “Your mother would be miserable if she did what you want her to do. And you know that.” She goes to the fridge, taking out a beer and passing it off to me while staying focused on her husband. “And I’m helping her, so it’s not like she’s doing it all on her own.”

Fynn turns to his wife, hands out at his sides. His voice pitches so quickly I can almost hear his blood pressure rise. “You’re pregnant.Youshouldn’t be doing it either.”

Val lets out a long sigh, eyes rolling my way. “You talk to him.” She walks past Fynn, pausing to push up onto her toes so she can press a kiss against her husband’s cheek. “Listen to your friend. He’s a smart guy.”

Fynn grabs her before she can leave, pulling his wife close and burying his face in her dark hair. He murmurs something I can’t hear before releasing her, then watches as she walks down the hall.

That pang of envy hits me again at the easy show of affection and the expression on his face. It’s pure, unfiltered and unrestrained adoration. Offered like a man who’s unafraid of letting someone have that kind of power over his heart and his life.

Once she’s out of sight, my friend turns to me, raking his hand through his hair once more. “She’s going to make me bloody gray before the baby comes.”

I hold out my untouched beer. “Don’t worry too much. It’ll make you look distinguished.”

Fynn takes the bottle and drinks some down as he goes to flop onto the sofa. “Tell me you came here to talk about something besides my mother and wife teaming up to make me lose my mind.”

I take a seat in one of the armchairs I used to spend a decent amount of time occupying before Val came into my neighbor’s life. “I’m not sure hearing about my bullshit will make you feel any better.”

“It most certainly will.” He slides the half empty beer onto the coffee table. “How was dinner with your dad?”

I sigh, shaking my head. “I don’t even know why I try, man. He’s fucking miserable, and he loves it.” I pause before admitting something I’ve been avoiding for years. “I think he wants me to end up just like him.”

Fynn stares at me for a few long seconds before blowing out a breath. “I’m afraid I’d have to agree with you on that one.” He picks his beer back up, taking a sip. “From what you’ve said, he seems to love imagining you out in the world, punishing the female population for what your mother did to him.”

“That’s not what I was doing.” My response is swift and sharp. “I never led a single woman on. I never let any of them think it was more than it was.”

“I know that, and you know that, buthedoesn’t know that.” Fynn pauses, leaning forward, his voice softening. “Did you tell him you’ve been celibate for six months?”

I don’t respond immediately, because technically, I broke that streak a few nights ago. I might not have had sex with Alexis, but I’m not sure I can still claim I’ve been living like a monk. “It’s none of his business.”

Again, my friend studies me, and it takes everything I have not to shift in my seat. For the bulk of our friendship, it was me offering Fynn advice as his world crumbled around him. I’m starting to discover it’s not as fun to be on the other side.

“What do you think he’d say if he knew?”

I let the question marinate for a second, and the answer I come up with surprises me. “I don’t think I care.” I’ve tried to ignore how shitty my dad is for years because I hated the thought of not having a parent in my life.

Like so much else in the past six months, it seems that’s changed as well.

I don’t want to spend my life dealing with more incidents like tonight. I don’t want to tolerate his fucked-up opinions or be forced to wallow alongside him in his misery. I understand what it’s like to have your heart broken. I also understand it changes you. But you can’t let it ruin you forever.

And you can’t let it affect other people.

Which means I have to figure out how to fix what happened between Alexis and me. She didn’t deserve for me to take without giving, and she sure as hell didn’t deserve for me to make everything weird between us.

But my desire to right the wrong I created isn’t just for her benefit. I have some purely selfish reasons to smooth this whole thing over.

Without my dad, her family is the only family I have. And while the thought of leaving my dad behind doesn’t sit as uncomfortably as I thought it would, the thought of losing them makes me sick to my stomach.

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