Page 149 of Smooth Sailing

Without hesitation, Hugger gave Diana’s father the fullness of it.

“My ma did the best she could do, but we didn’t have it great. So with all she is and all she gives, Diana is the best thing that’s ever happened to me in my life.”

Armitage stared at him for several long beats before he confessed, “I did wrong by her.”

“You mean not telling her about her mother?”

“No, something else.”

Hugger made an educated guess. “You mean not handlin’ it like you should when she got hurt.”

“That,” Armitage forced out in a strangled voice.

“Man, if you don’t know your daughter’s got a heart of gold by now, start paying attention. I don’t know what went down because I asked her not to tell me before I met you seein’ as I didn’t want to hate your guts before that happened. What I know is, she’s here now. She misses you. So fix it. And advice, you’re not gonna do that if you act like she’s a guest in her father’s house.”

“Of course,” Armitage murmured, his attention acute on Hugger, sizing him up with this new information, before he jerked up his chin to indicate Di was returning.

The second sticky part happened twenty minutes later, when a huge-ass order of Indian food showed. Apparently, it was all Di’s favorites and from Di’s favorite Indian joint.

She nearly lost it again, having this demonstration her dad remembered something that mattered to her, but she held it together.

They ate it around the kitchen island, like family, not in the dining room, even though Hugger saw the table was set.

Di relaxed and caught up with her dad.

There was a lot they talked about that made Hugger feel out of place.

They were both highly educated and well-traveled, with Armitage sharing he continued to tour the world the years Di wasn’t in his life, hitting Sweden, Poland, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea and Japan.

Di told him all about her internship in London and her “museum vacations” to Washington DC, New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles, and her “beach vacations” to St. Thomas and Aruba.

Hugger didn’t have a lot to offer, and fortunately, they were so into catching up, that was neither noticed nor expected.

Though Di, being Di, made sure he wasn’t left out, touching him, smiling at him, leaning in to bump him with her shoulder to indicate she hadn’t forgotten he was there and making sure his plate was piled high.

They ate a gut-busting amount of food, and Armitage still unearthed a caramel apple pie he’d bought that made Di sniffle, telling Hugger that was another favorite, but again she held it together.

She said she was going to host her dad for their next dinner, and Armitage jumped right on that.

They set it for the next Wednesday.

The mood came over her the minute they hit the car.

And now he had to do something about it.

He just had no clue what.

He walked down the hall to her bedroom just in time to see her standing on her side of the bed, her phone to her ear, obviously in the middle of leaving her mother a message.

“…acting like a child. Stop pouting. I had dinner with Dad tonight, and you and I have something important to talk about. Call me.”

She stabbed her screen then looked at Hugger.

“I’m such an idiot,” she decreed.

Shit, he was glad she was talking.

Even so, he didn’t like what she was saying.

---