Page 118 of My Mistake To Make

‘Andy?’ Mama calls and the man smiles widely, opening his arms to her.

‘Hiya, Lynnie.’ Oh, fuck, that accent. I inhale deeply as my mom hugs the man I’m sure wants to kick my ass… he’s a hell of a lot smaller than me, but if he tries, I’m sure as fuck going to let him.

‘Oh, my god. It’s so good to see you.’

She releases him from her hug but holds onto his arms.

‘Thirty years, and you haven’t changed.’ He has a genuine smile, but he looks tired. That might be how he always looks, but I can’t help thinking that me dropping a bomb on his family is the cause.

‘Oh, flatterer.’ She laughs, then turns to me. Here we go. ‘This is my boy. You remember little Doug, right.’

He turns to me and smiles, holding out a hand, and I swallow hard as I take it.

‘I do. He certainly grew up a bit.’ He laughs lightly, and I feel awkward as fuck.

My mom turns to me, smiling. ‘Doug, this is Andy. Cara’s,’ her smile falls. Oh, now she remembers, ‘Um, Cara’s Dad.’

‘Hi, um…’

‘It’s okay, son.’ He smiles. ‘It’s not just you that she’s upset with. We’ll get her back somehow.’

I offer a small nod and try not to crumple with relief that the man I hope will be in my life for a long time doesn’t seem to hate me.

‘Where are you staying?’ Mama asks him as a change of subject.

‘Well, I was hoping to stay with my daughter, but apparently, she’s not home and not answering my calls or messages right now.’

‘She’s gone out of town,’ I admit, feeling like shit that I made her run.

‘Ah, well then. I’m hoping there’ll be a room somewhere I can rent. Does the bar still have cabins?’

‘It does, but it’s summer, so you might be out of luck.’ Mama holds out her arm to him. ‘My daughter owns the bar now. Let’s go see what she can do. Doug, you get the groceries home and put away, would you?’

And taking my escape from this fucked up situation, I do exactly that.

When I walk intothe bar the next day, ready to help Zoe take in the beer delivery, I’m surprised to see Andy sitting at the bar talking with my sister.

‘Oh, hey,’ Zoe smiles as I head over, ‘have you met Andy? He’s staying upstairs.’

‘Yeah, hey.’ I nod to him. It’s gotten no less awkward since yesterday. ‘How you doin’?’

‘Oh yeah, good, thanks to a good night of sleep. Jetlag is a nightmare.’

I remember Cara being so tired when she first arrived and offer a small smile of acknowledgment.

‘Want me to get a start on that delivery?’ I say to Zoe, and she grins. I fuckin’ know that grin. She’s up to something.

‘Sure, you can. I was just saying to Andy, though, how he shouldn’t go on a long drive if he’s still feeling jetlagged. What do you think?’

I meet her eyes, and the small lift of her eyebrow tells me I need to be a part of this conversation.

‘Right. It’s not a good idea.’

‘I’m sure I’ll be fine.’

‘Charleston is a few hours from here, Andy,’

Charleston… why would he be heading up there? I glance at Zoe, and she widens her eyes, nodding toward him slightly.

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