Page 27 of The Doctor

“I swear I stepped out for ten minutes while they were supposed to be taking a break.” He shook his head and looked like he wanted to lean against a wall before thinking better of it. “I came back and this was the result. I actually don’t know how they got through all the paint so fast.”

I turned to him. “All the paint?”

“I brought down extra. Since they played boys versus girls first, I suggested they play older versus younger. And to keep things fair I said they could choose two different colors of paint. I came back not even fifteen minutes later and they managed to do all this damage.”

I looked at the parents around me. Three of them worked for Salinger Security. But still we needed to do something. “You will let us have the bill. Right?”

Nick shook his head with a smile. “Are you kidding me? I just wangled free labor out of all your kids. Our groundsman will be happy for the help. And they will clean up this mess” He checked the entryway, presumably to check that the kids were not listening. “Besides, they’re kids. All of them are good. Mostly. I have no doubt Skylar and Grace instigated this. But they all acted out in a place that felt safe. I would rather that, than any of them get into trouble somewhere else. Besides, right now they’re all scared shitless of us. We could get them to do just about anything.”

I agreed with Nick. And for once he wasn’t being over dramatic. What the kids did warranted punishment and they deserved to feel the guilt I had seen written across all their faces.

As we all made our way back outside, I spotted Dom immediately. Everyone nabbed their children before walking off. I wasn’t about to make Dom feel like he had no one. I knew Bex wouldn’t let that happen as well. Neither would Nick, really. Dom would soon learn that with family, anger did not equate to loneliness. He would know Nick still had his back.

I walked up to Dom, with Bex a few paces behind me. I stood next to him but he never looked up. He continued to stare at the ground as he pushed the dirt around with the toe of his shoe. I wasn’t sure what was going through his mind, but it couldn’t be good.

I turned to Bex. “Give us a minute?”

She nodded and headed in the direction of the main house instead of toward the golf cart.

“Sit with me.” I sat down crossed my legs in the same spot one of the kids sat earlier. “What’s going through your head?”

“I didn’t start it.” Dom was defensive and that attitude of his reared its ugly head.

I was quick to shut it down. “We all know who started it. But Skylar and Grace are the youngest among you, you were allperfectly capable of standing up to them.” Or maybe he wasn’t. “Did you think if you went against them, they wouldn’t be friends with you?”

“I don’t need friends.” Dom looked at me. “I mean, I do, but it's not like they had to twist my arm. It's just…”

He trailed off but I couldn’t allow him to close up on me. “Just what, Dom?

“It felt good.” He looked at me and I could see tears brimming in his eyes. “It's been a long time since I played for… I don’t know how to explain it.”

“You’re going to have to try, kid, because I need to understand.”

“When my dad died, I tried to take care of my mom. And then Bill came and he wasn’t like my dad. I don't know what it was, but I didn’t like the idea of him taking care of my mom. And then Landon came along, and Vicky. And I was getting good grades and I had basketball and football and I didn’t want to disappoint my mom or make her life harder. So, everything I did was to make her happy.”

“And today you didn’t have that pressure.”

“It was like I wasn’t something for someone. I didn’t have siblings to worry about or parents to impress or a threat hanging over me. I was just a teenager with other teenagers. I know it doesn’t make sense—”

“It makes perfect sense.” I smiled at him. “That’s all Bex and I have wanted since you arrived. To take the load off of some things so you have the freedom to be a kid. Keep your grades up, play the sports you want to play and make friends. We’ll handle the rest.”

He nodded and stared at the ground again, furiously wiping at his cheeks. “I also thought…”

“Dom, you need to let it all out. We always need to know where we stand with each other.”

“Once we were in the thick of it, I knew what I was doing was wrong.” He looked up at me again. “I could see the damage we were causing. But I figured…”

“You figured what.”

“I figured that if you and the Salinger family didn’t want me, I would rather make it easy for you now and get it over with rather than get more involved and have Landy and Vic hurt down the line.”

I heard what he was trying not to say. Perhaps he was aware of it and deliberately worded things the way he did. My money was on the fact he didn’t realize how scared he was of getting hurt. In that moment, I became the father I needed to be.

“Dom, you are not going anywhere.” I put my arm around his shoulder. “We love you. That is all. You got into trouble today with a bunch of friends. Maybe you’ve been so busy with what you think everyone needs you to be that you didn’t realize it's normal. I cannot tell you how many times I got into trouble with Mase, Bex, and Jake. I got grounded along with the Salingers at least once or twice a semester.”

Dom narrowed his eyes and tilted his head. “I haven’t been grounded since my dad died.”

Fuck.The kid has been trying to be a saint for his mother, and then keep it all together for his siblings.

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