Page 90 of Resting Beach Face
“What did you pack in there? Barbells?”
“Books,” she said.
I rolled my eyes, but my sister was a total bookworm, so I knew better than to talk her out of lugging half her library along with her. We headed down the hall.
“Just don’t engage if he tries to talk to us,” I said. “Just go out the door.”
She cast an anxious glance at me. “Is this going to make everything worse?”
“Can it even get much worse?” I asked, echoing her words from this morning.
“I don’t know.”
I nudged her with my shoulder. “We’ll talk to Mom. We’ll figure out a way to make things better. But right now, we just need to leave and let everyone cool down a little. Get some space so you’re not feeling so trapped. Okay?”
“Yeah.” She swallowed hard. “I know this is my fault. I’m the one who lied about where I was going last night. Dad was mad at me, not you, and?—”
“Kat.” I shook my head. “Dad is always mad. At you or me or Mom. Doesn’t really matter what we do or don’t do. He’s angry at the world. He’s bitter and miserable, and you can’t take the blame for that, okay?”
She sniffed and dashed away a tear that leaked from the corner of her eye. “Yeah, you’re right.”
“Then let’s go.”
I led the way into the living room. Dad did a double take when he saw us. “Just where the fuck do you think you’re going?”
“Just keep walking,” I muttered to Kat.
We continued toward the door.
“Hey! Stop. I’m talking to you. You fucking bastards?—”
I slammed the door on his tirade, silencing his toxic words and leaving them behind.
At least for a few days.
“So, what now?” Kat asked. “Where are we going?”
“Back to the B&B. Declan said we can stay for a while.”
“What about Mom?” she asked hesitantly.
“I’ll let her know what’s happening. We’ll talk to her soon, okay?”
“Okay.”
We threw our bags into the back of the truck and I climbed behind the steering wheel. I took a minute to look at our house.
Then I flipped it the bird and peeled out.
Katelyn burst into surprised laughter, and I relaxed for the first time since we’d arrived.
Finally, we could both breathe easy—if only for a few days.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Declan
“It’s looking pretty good,don’t you think?”
