Page 201 of Mountain Daddy

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With her still holding the base, I grip the neck of the other bottle to steady it, then use my other hand to twist the top off.

The hiss of the beer is muted by the hiss of the first steak landing on the hot grill.

Joe’s not watching.

He’s reaching for the second steak with his grill tongs.

And Kendra isn’t breaking eye contact.

I let go, slipping the bottle cap into my pocket alongside the first, then hold my hand out.

But the bottle Kendra extends toward me is the newly opened one.

And my fingers miss it by a mile as I watch her lift the other one to her mouth.

She swallows.

And so do I.

Lips still pressed against the smooth glass, Kendra smiles.

I don’t know if she’s fucking with me, flirting with me, or putting a curse on me.

But I find I don’t care.

I’ll take anything over seeing her cry.

I want her happy.

That was the whole point of me calling things off.

I didn’t break my own heart for me. I did it for her.

Because I want her happy.

Jessie’s voice echoes in my thoughts, telling me I deserve to be happy too.

But as I take a sip of what was supposed to be Kendra’s beer, I feel a shimmer of peace settle over me.

Kendra’s happiness will be enough for both of us.

Chapter 124

Kendra

Dinner has been surprisingly okay.

I can still feel the tension dragging my attention across the table, but Luther has been pretty much himself. And we’ve both done a good job encouraging Dad to fill the silence by prompting him to tell stories.

I put a piece of steak in my mouth and chew.

Another few meals like this and I might be able to pretend my history with Luther never happened.

Might be able to put those memories into a corner of my mind and pretend it was all a daydream.

“How’s Ashley?” Dad asks, shoving his empty plate toward the center of the table.

Luther grunts as he swallows a brussels sprout. “Got a raise.”

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