Page 24 of My Mistake To Make

I Don’t Like Cara. Okay?

Doug

I leave Cara atthe cabins and drive away with a stupid smile on my face. She’s cute as hell.

Against my better judgment, I found myself looking at her while she slept in my truck, waiting a few minutes before waking her. She has a softness about her that I’ve never known before. I made the mistake of taking that for weakness at first, but nah, she’s feisty too.

The way she looked at the house as we walked around it made my heart beat faster. She had no plans for the place, had no real idea what she wanted, and was happy to listen to all the plans I’d always had. She had this wistful look in her eyes the whole time, too, one I didn’t understand until we got outside and sat on the steps.

I can’t believe she’s Charlotte Reynolds’s daughter. I heard the rumors. Every time anyone asked why the old house was sitting empty over the years, the story would be spun out as an explanation. When the only daughter of the town matriarch runs off to live in a foreign country to marry a man she just met, the whispers, of course, hinted at a teen pregnancy, but nothing was ever confirmed.

After Charlotte left, Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds left the town and the old house, and the old man died not long after that. Nobody ever said Roberta was waiting to leave it to her daughter, or her granddaughter, there was no real talk of the baby at all, but now she’s here. She’s Cara.

I think about the mischievous glint in her eyes when I dropped her off. She made me feel playful in a way I haven’t felt since I was at college. She made me forget all about the crap with Jessie and my desperation to get custody of Bo. I was just a guy in his truck with a girl he likes.

Driving back to my mom’s house, I feel like a lovesick teenager. I can’t stop my mind from wondering how I could actually make it happen—could I ask her out?

I park up next to Mama’s car, seeing Zoe and Bree’s cars parked up too. I love my family, but a house full of women, my kid, and even a female dog gets heavy sometimes. I take a deep breath and get out of the car, breathing a sigh of relief when Merv opens the door and hands me a beer.

‘Thank god you’re here,’ he says, and I laugh.

‘What are they bustin’ your ass over?’

‘When I’m going to marry your mom. Your kid is a ringleader, my man. She wants to be a bridesmaid.’

I laugh. Bo has been obsessed with weddings ever since she was asked to be a part of my cousin’s wedding last year. She got to wear her Converse under her dress and thought she was the coolest; I mean, she was, but seriously, she just wants a wedding so she can do it again.

‘Well, when are you going to marry my mom?’ I tease, and he glares at me.

‘You ask your mama. She keeps saying no.’

I laugh and follow him through the house.

My mom starting to date Merv was a little weird at first. My dad died when I was sixteen, and for a while, I thought it was my responsibility to be the man of the house and take care of my mom and my sisters. Mom started seeing Merv just before I left for college and just after Jessie and I broke up, and I was a brat about it. My sisters and my tiny little mama quickly put me in my place. They made it very clear that I might be the biggest of the four of us, but I was still the baby, and I needed to remember that.

Merv’s a good guy. He went slow, never pushing my mom for more than she wanted or was ready to give, and he took good care of my whole family when I wasn’t around. Now, we have some semblance of a father/son relationship, and I appreciate that. He’s great with Bowie too. His daughter lives in Ohio, so he doesn’t get to see his grandkids all that often. His arms are wide open to Bo, and she loves her Grandpa Merv.

‘Hey, guys,’ I say as I enter the dining room, where the women in my life are laughing together over one of Bo’s board games as Harley jumps up, wagging her tail, and I instinctively protect myself. This dog is determined to make sure I don’t have any more kids, I swear. I got her as a puppy when Bowie was around eight months old, as I wanted her to have a dog to grow up withjust like me, Bree, and Zo did, and she’s the perfect dog for Bo. I just wish she didn’t use my balls for target practice.

‘Daddy.’ Bowie beams and rushes toward me. I pick her up. My mom keeps telling me she’s too big for me to keep picking her up, but until my back is breaking when I lift her, she’s not too big.

‘Hey, sweetie. You have fun with Auntie Zo today?’

‘Yeah, we had ice cream.’

‘Bowie,’ Zoe hisses, ‘You ain’t supposed to tell him.’

My girl giggles and covers her mouth, and I remember how little she really is. She inherited my height, and she’s tall for her age, so it’s easy to think of her as older than she is, but she’s not even five yet—she’s still my baby.

‘How was the Reynolds’ house?’ Bree asks, with a sparkle in her eyes that suggests she thinks she knows something.

‘The Reynolds’ house? Why would you be up there?’ Mama asks as I lower Bowie to the floor and lean in to kiss her cheek.

‘New owner. She wants to fix up the place, and Zo set up a meeting.’

‘New owner? Really, I never thought I’d see the day they sold that house.’

‘Well, they didn’t. The new owner is Charlotte’s daughter. Roberta left her the house.’

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