Page 45 of Off the Hook

Just leaving work. Can I stop by for a minute?

He replied with,You can stay all night if you like,and a happy face emoji.

But I wasn’t sure how happy he would be to see me when I asked about the dirt I’d dredged up from his past.

CHAPTER 22

COULTER

My mood had done a one-eighty after the text from Faith. The weirdness of the phone call earlier seemed insignificant. She was making an effort and coming to make things right.Phew.Meanwhile, I daydreamed about whisking her away. Maybe Cape Sable, or Flamingo, for an overnight on the boat. Somewhere far away from work– and her partner who still had it in for me.

I fanned the coals on the grill until they flamed high, wishing now that I hadn’t invited people over for burgers. I’d much rather be alone with Faith. When I saw her Charger turn into the driveway, I lit up in a big grin and waved, feeling like a goofy teenager excited to see his crush. I wiped my hands on my shorts, ready to scoop her up into a kiss.

“I’m so glad you came! Kai and Reef are coming over with our buddy Rowan for burgers and corn hole.” I nodded at the boards I’d set up in the yard. “Can you stay?”

“No, I can’t,” she said coldly, no smile in sight.

I leaned in to give her a kiss, but she ducked to the side and dodged it.

“What’s going on?” I stepped back, watching her face grow even more serious. “Is something wrong?”

Faith’s eyes darted toward the chairs on the dock. “Can we sit down to talk?”

My stomach did a nervous flip, but I tried to play it cool. “Sure, let’s go inside. These coals are making me sweat.” I swung the door open and stepped aside to let her into the house.

Faith went to a stool at the breakfast bar, looking up with her big blue eyes as took a deep breath. "A witness came forward with some information I need to ask you about… a domestic dispute that took place several years ago.”

“Oh, that.” My stomach tightened. "That was a misunderstanding," I said, trying to keep my voice calm as I grabbed a soda from the fridge. “You want one?”

She shook her head. “No thanks.” She waited until I'd taken a gulp of soda before she continued. “Most misunderstandings don’t end with spending the night in jail. Can you explain what happened, please? Because I won’t be the only one asking."

I sighed, dreading having to recount that horrible night. "Kylie and I had an argument. It got loud, and a concerned neighbor called the cops. But there was never any violence. The charges were dropped because there was nothing to them."

“No violence? What about the reports of banging and crashing sounds, and glass breaking? Tell meexactlywhat happened, Coulter. From the beginning.”

I squirmed, having never really shared the details of that night with anyone. “Kylie was drunk, and she wasn’t a pleasant drunk. It started at the Whistle Stop. We were both pretty toasted when Kylie got jealous, thinking I was flirting with another girl.” I shook my head and sighed, wishing I didn’t have to remember it. It didn’t feel kind to Kylie to tell the story. But I took a deep breath and continued.

“Kylie had been in an argument with her mom that day, asking questions about her biological dad that her mom didn’t want to answer. She was riled up and ranting, when some random girl tripped over a stool next to us and I grabbed her arm to keep her from falling. Kylie was about five drinks in at that point so she wasn’t thinking straight. She thought I was copping a feel, and the girl was smiling and thanking me, so Kylie flew off the handle. I stopped her from trying to kick the girl’s ass, and took her back to my place in a cab.”

“So what made the neighbors call the cops? And you to get hauled off to jail?”

“Kylie started in on me as soon as we got through the door. Thank God my roommates were out playing a gig. I tried talking her down but that only made her madder. She was drunk, and irrational, and started throwing anything not nailed down. Honestly I was glad when the cops showed, because at least then she stopped breaking shit. But then…she burst into tears. She was sobbing uncontrollably, blubbering. When the cop tried to get a statement, she couldn’t even form words. I told them she was just drunk and mad at me, but that everything was fine. I still thought everythingwasfine at that point. Then the cop said her cheek looked red, like she’d been slapped. He asked her if I’d hit her. She was still wailing, but she said no. Funny thing is thatshe’d slapped meright before they came. But I didn’t want them hauling her off to jail, so of course I didn’t tell them. I thought they’d be on their way after she said I didn’t hit her, but he told me he had to take me in.” I heaved out a sigh, somewhat relieved to have told that story and gotten it off my chest after all these years.

Faith stared at me through narrowed eyes. “But you were never charged… was that Waylan’s doing?”

“Kylie was his niece. He’d have beat my ass himself and left me to rot in jail if he thought I’d laid a hand on her.” I chuckled and took another gulp of soda. “Kylie showed up early the next morning and demanded they let me out. I could hear her from the holding cell, yelling that she’d already told them that I didn’t hit her. That’s why they dropped the charges.”

“But they didn’t drop the charges,” she said, still eyeing me suspiciously. “There were no charges filed. That’s different. And highly unusual.”

I shrugged. “You know more about that than I do. All I know is that they let me go and I did my best to forget it ever happened.”

Faith’s eyes softened a bit, but she still looked skeptical. "Why didn’t Kylie ever talk about it?"

"Because it was embarrassing," I admitted, feeling the weight of the past pressing down on me. "She didn’t want anyone to know. It was a low point for her, for both of us really. We both dialed back our drinking after that."

“I believe you, but others might not,” she said wearily. “And to them, it shows that you can be violent.”

“I don’t have a violent bone in my body. You know that, right?”

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