Page 143 of Can't Get Over You
“That hit hard.” Her dad jammed his hands into the pockets of his khakis.
“Well, I’m sorry, but it’s true.” She wouldn’t back down even if it hurt their feelings. “I tried to take up as little space as possible so you wouldn’t mind having me around.”
“Oh, Finlay. No. We loved spending time with you. Who wouldn’t? You’re so full of life and have such great ideas.” Her mom set her flute down. “I swear, that’s not at all how it was. Honey, I admired you. You had a vision, a direction. I never had that. Look at me. I’ve been in the same job for over twenty years.”
“You’ve got to understand,” her dad said. “You were always driven, and you were on a good path. We agreed, as long as you weren’t getting into trouble, that we’d let you do your own thing. Why would we get in your way?”
“Because I wanted your support. I wanted to feel like we were a family. Like I mattered. I mean, I know I was a mistake, but you could’ve at least?—”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Her dad made a T-sign with his hands. “Time-out. You were unexpected, that’s true. You werea big surprise, but we’ve never—not once—thought of you as a mistake.”
“I thought you resented me for taking away the future you’d planned on.” She said it mostly to her mom.
“Well, that’s the thing, Finny. I didn’t have any idea what I wanted to do. And if I wasn’t the fun mom you wanted, it’s because I was tired. I work with extremely demanding people, and I have to be on for them all day and night. Honestly, I thought I could be myself around you. I thought we were comfortable together.”
“But now that we know how you feel, we’re going to make some changes.” Her dad brought her in for a hug. “We love you, sweetheart.”
“Very much.” Her mom joined them, wrapping her arms around both their backs.
“You guys.” Tears blurred her vision, and the kink in her heart she’d always lived with eased. “You don’t have to change your life for me.” She pulled away. “You can show up in other ways.”
“Well, tonight, we’re going to love you up,” her dad said. “And if you’ll look in the damn box Jude gave you, you’ll see we’re all set for a fun night in.”
She pulled open the flaps to find a canister of hot chocolate, chips, pretzels, and five different varieties of cookies. “This is so sweet of him.” An urgent need to connect with him rushed up hard and fast, and she reached for her phone.
Finlay: I love tonight’s gift. Thank you.
She wanted to tell him about the conversation with her parents but didn’t think it would be fair. Either she was with him or she wasn’t. Still, she couldn’t resist saying one more thing.
Finlay: I miss you.
Okay, two more things.
Finlay: I miss us.
“Ready to ply?” Her dad held up a game of Scrabble.
“Yeah, let’s do it.”
Chapter Thirty-One
The court reporteradjusted the height and angle of her stenotype machine, and the security officer read something on his phone.
Jude hoped he never had to stand in that courtroom again.
Behind him, the noise level grew higher, and he turned around, surprised to see every seat filled with familiar faces. “What’s going on?” he mouthed to his dad.
“Support,” his dad mouthed back with a shrug.
“You got this.” Ava gave him a thumbs-up.
Finlay wasn’t there yet, and that had his anxiety spiking. He needed her. Not just so the judge could see they were still in each other’s lives, but for his own peace of mind. She quieted him. With her, he knew he could get through anything.
His attorney tapped his wrist, making him swing back around to find the judge entering.
“All rise,” the bailiff said. “The Ninth Judicial District Court, Teton County, Wyoming, is now in session, the Honorable Judge Adams presiding.”
Fabric swished, and a table leg shrieked on the wood floor as everyone got to their feet. The judge sat down, put on hisreading glasses, and glanced at his notes. “Please be seated.” He looked right at Jude. “We’re here today at the request of Family Services in the matter of the guardianship of Cody Rossi, specifically regarding allegations concerning the fitness of the current guardian, Jude McKenna.”
