Page 76 of The Run Home
When the ceremony ended, a horde of people flooded the field and it took ten minutes to find Kinsley through the crowd. She was with Tatum, of course, and I tried not to grind my molars about him being around. Photos were taken, and by the time we were all sweaty and ready to collapse, we headed back to Mom’s house for a family graduation party. Mom went back with Warrick and Em. Kinsley rode with her mom. It wasn’t until we got in my truck that I realized Shae was shaking and her face was pale underneath the sunburn she was sporting already.
“Fuck,” I grumbled, grabbing a water bottle and handing it to her, along with getting the air-conditioning vents pointed in her direction. I shouldn’t have let her stand out there in the hot sun for so long. “I’m so sorry. I should have gotten you into the shade and found a chair.”
“It’s okay,” she said faintly, taking sips of the water and leaning her head back against the headrest.
I drove home as quickly as I could with all the traffic leaving the school. I ran inside to grab crackers while she stayed in the cooled-off truck. Everyone else got back and headed for the backyard. I waved Mom away when she looked quizzically through my windshield. I motioned we’d be there shortly.
“You go ahead, Boon. I just need a few more minutes.” Shae’s hands weren’t trembling quite as badly, but there was no way I was leaving her when she looked ready to pass out fifteen minutes ago. “This is your family’s party. Go be part of it. I’ll be along shortly.”
I leaned over the armrest and cupped her cheek. “No chance, baby. We’re going in there together when you’re ready. You’re part of this family now, so stop with this ‘your family’ business. My family is your family. Got it?”
Her smile was genuine this time, not forced. She nodded and shoved another cracker in her mouth. When I was satisfied she wasn’t on the verge of heatstroke or passing out, I helped her out of the truck and we went around the back of the house to join the party. She was a trooper, mingling and chatting when I knew her back was killing her and the heat was only rising as the late afternoon ebbed on.
“Let’s get you inside for a little rest, huh?” I finally whispered in her ear, steering her away from Em and Tully. She came willingly which told me I was spot-on with my rescue mission. I got her set up in the living room, feet up on an ottoman and a glass of cold iced tea in her hands.
She looked up at me with the kind of smile that made me feel like I was ten feet tall. “Thank you for taking care of me. I know you’re juggling a lot.”
I leaned down and kissed her. “I’m fine. You just need to rest and finish growing that baby, okay?”
Shae pressured me to go back outside and enjoy the party, so eventually I did. Kinsley was in her element, soaking up the praise and attention from her family, as she should. Then Tatum and a few of his baseball friends came over and the decibel in the backyard ratcheted up exponentially. They were still high on their district win and graduating, testosterone pumping through their veins. The sun finally started to dip behind the pine trees ringing the property and the temperature began to drop.
The rowdy boys began teaching Warrick and Colson some sort of dance which made them all laugh their asses off as they attempted it. The rest of the adults naturally moved to the picnic tables closer to the house, leaving the loud ones to live it up.Cassie ended up sitting next to me, both of us watching our daughter a few feet away.
“She looks so happy. I doubted my decision a lot, but she acclimated well here.”
I nodded. “She did. And it certainly gave us time to make some things right, so thank you for that.”
Cassie’s pretty face tipped into a humor-filled smirk. “I see you managed to knock up another cleat chaser. A black sheep never changes his ways, huh?”
The glare was instantaneous. “What?”
“Shae being pregnant,” Cassie explained. “Is history repeating itself eighteen years later?”
I jumped to my feet, rocking the entire picnic table and grabbing people’s attention around us. “What the hell are you talking about, Cassie? This is nothing like what happened with us.”
“Dad?” I felt Kinsley come up to my side, but I couldn’t spare her a look. I was too focused on Cassie and her bullshit comment.
“Shae is nothing like that. She doesn’t even watch baseball! I’ve known her since birth. Sure, the baby was unexpected, but he’s a blessing. And so is Shae.”
Kinsley stepped between us, one hand on my arm and the other on her mom’s shoulder. “Mom, this isn’t the same thing. They love each other and she’s my science teacher. Seriously, she’s a good influence in my life.”
Cassie held up both hands. “Whoa. Okay, sorry. My bad. I clearly made a wrong assumption.” She stood, offering me her hand in some kind of apology handshake. “I apologize for assuming my life’s story is repeating itself. Clearly I don’t know the whole story.”
Kinsley’s eyebrows were raised as she looked back at me, clearly hoping I’d take the apology for what it was and smooththings over. I was still holding on to the pissed-off feeling, but for Kinsley’s sake, I’d accept the apology.
I slid my hand into hers for a quick shake before letting go. “Apology accepted. Sorry for jumping down your throat.”
The conversation around us continued, but I had no interest in sitting next to Cassie and making uncomfortable small talk after that. I turned to my daughter instead.
“Hey, Tink. I got you a graduation gift. How about I go get it?”
Kinsley’s face lit up. “Yes, please!”
I headed up the three stairs and across the back deck and into the house. “Shae? Want to give the gift to Kinsley with me?” She didn’t answer and she wasn’t in the chair I’d left her in. I ran through the house but didn’t see her. I grabbed the jewelry box off my nightstand and headed back outside. I didn’t see Shae in the backyard either.
“Hey, Dad? We’re going to head out to the grad bonfire.” Tatum’s arm was already around Kinsley’s waist. Tatum’s friends had already migrated out of the backyard toward their cars out front.
I hustled over and gave her the present, while listing off my rules for the evening. No drugs, no drinking, and no driving if you broke any of those rules. “I expect you to get my daughter home safely, Tatum.”
