Page 189 of Mountain Daddy
She’s… not mine anymore.
“Thank you.” Her soft words glide past me.
She doesn’t mean it.
She’s not thankful to me. For me.
I nod anyway. “You’re welcome.”
Kendra breaks eye contact, picking up the lemon wedge and squeezing it.
Then she jumps.
“Shit,” she hisses, dropping the lemon and holding the back of her hand up to her face.
“What’d you do?” Joe turns to her.
“Nothing.” She has one eye closed as she reaches for the napkin dispenser in the center of the table. “Just a bit of lemon juice in my eye.”
Joe makes a face. “There’s a restroom in the back. Need help washing it out?”
I’m already placing my hands on the table, ready to stand.
Kendra shakes her head as she pushes back her chair. “No, you guys eat.”
She doesn’t look at me, just gets up and walks away, food untouched.
My stomach twists.
The reasonable part of my brain knows that this particular incident wasn’t my fault.
But the part of my brain that hates me for letting her go is shouting at me for being such a fuckup.
I gave her that lemon.
Hand selected the wedges that looked the most perfect.
The lemon juice in her eyes is just as much my fault as the sadness blanketing her shoulders.
Chapter 114
Kendra
I domy best to dab at my eye with a wet paper towel, trying to get the stinging to subside while leaving my mascara intact.
But there’s nothing to be done about the redness.
Luckily, I had a nice little cry while washing my hands, so at least both my eyes are red, evening out the deranged look.
I sniff.
Why?
Why couldn’t I have just left my sunglasses on?
Why did I have to take them off and meet Luther’s gaze head-on?
A toilet flushes, and someone steps out of a stall just as the main door opens and two more women walk into the restroom.
