Page 28 of Driving Me Mad (Sanity 1)

Brittany and I walk a little ahead of my dad and Amy. I lean down to whisper, “Order something small if you need to, but not a salad.” She nods and I hold open the door for everyone. She was able to eat dinner easily earlier. It’s been a good day for us both. If she doesn’t have room for much else, something small will be fine. Dad would draw conclusions about her if she orders a small salad, though. He’s always been kind of critical in a ridiculous kind of way. I can hear him now. A small salad? What? She doesn’t eat? Who orders a small salad for a meal?

We’re seated quickly because the place isn’t that busy. Once our drinks are ordered, Amy surprises me by asking Brittany about herself.

“So, you’re in college?”

Brittany gulps and glances at me. “Yeah, I’m in my last semester.”

“What are you planning to do once you graduate?”

“Find a job with a company to work in community relations, which is sort of a more focused form of public relations.”

“Oh, that’s nice.” The waitress stops by and takes our food orders. “Are you from here?”

“No. I’m actually from a small town near Wilmington.”

Dad cuts his gaze to me with narrowed eyes. It’s not like she could lie, but now I’d bet my life that Dad is wondering if I met Brittany before I moved here. May even be wondering if I cheated on Faith with her, or had some form of relationship with her while I was married.

“How did y’all meet?” he asks. “How long have y’all been dating?”

Brittany looks to me to answer, which is perfect. “We met in Wilmington and have been friends for a while. We started dating shortly after I moved here.” Dad opens his mouth, but considering Brittany has been squeezing her wrist under the table, it’s time for my own questions. “How was the flight?” I reach over to hold her hand, resting our hands on my leg.

Dad shrugs. “It was a flight.”

“I hope we’re not intruding too much, Trace,” Amy begins. “I tried to tell him he needed to give you a heads-up.”

“It’s okay. It was going to be a laid-back weekend for us.”

The waitress comes with our food as Brittany peeks at her phone. She gives me a worried look and I glance down to see the screen. It’s her mom. Brittany always answers. I slide out of the booth.

“Sorry, y’all. I need to take this.”

Before she can slip away, I whisper in her ear, “Don’t run off. You have to come back.”

She laughs and answers the phone as she walks away.

Dad doesn’t even wait until the waitress leaves to say, “I guess she wasn’t taught that leaving the table to be on the phone is rude.” He seems extra critical. I don’t understand it.

“It’s her mom. She always answers.”

“It’s sweet that she’s close to her mother,” Amy says with a smile.

“Yes, it is,” I agree. “Y’all can go ahead and eat. Sometimes, she can get off quickly; other times, it can be a few minutes.”

“We can wait.” Dad folds his arms over his chest. “Were you seeing her while you were married?”

“Clark!” Amy chides him.

“No. I told you when I started seeing her. Can you tone down the third degree? That’s the least you can do for showing up out of the blue.”

“Sorry,” Brittany breathes as she walks back to the table. Her cheeks and nose are red from the cold, and I can’t help but kiss her temple when I stand to let her in. She’s beautiful.

“It’s fine,” I reassure her.

Brittany notices that all the food is untouched. “Oh, y’all didn’t have to wait on me.”

“That’s the way we do things,” Dad tells her.

We begin to eat and I ask, “How is everything and everyone back home?” Thankfully, this gets both Amy and Dad talking. They live in an extremely small town. We get updates on my family and pretty much everyone else in the town. They talk as we eat, as we pay the bill, and for some of the ride home. All I’m thinking about at this point is bed.

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