Page 58 of Told You So
She glares at him. “Hey—”
“What the fuck are you doing?” I shout.
“Watch your mouth,” he orders, but I don’t give a shit what he’s saying.
“You’re screwing your secretary?”
“I’m a partner in the firm,” she corrects and tugs down the hem of her shirt again for good measure.
“I don’t care who the hell you are.” I glare at my father. “Isthiswhy you’ve been blowing me off? You didn’t want me to find out?” The guilt slackening his features tells me all I need to know. “I can’t believe this.” I turn for the door.
“Your mother already knows, Nicholas,” he calls after me, as if that makes any difference to me whatsoever, and I stalk through the building. Everyone and everything aroundme is a blur, and I head straight for my car.My blood is boiling. My heart is hurting. And I have no idea what I’m going to do next.
“Nick!” I can hear my dad behind me, but I don’t stop for him. I fuckinghatehim. “Nick, stop for a minute.”
“No,” I bite out. Each step against the asphalt is punishing and not nearly quick enough.
“You don’t understand—”
I whirl around to face him. “Are you kidding me right now? You’re fucking around on your wife—onmymother.Youarestill married, right? Or, is that bullshit too, just like all your late nights, working on big projects, while Mom’s at home, waiting for you.” I’m disgusted even looking at him. “I can’t believe you.You, of all people.” There’s an anger inside of me I’ve never felt before and it burns in my muscles, a searing pain so raw I want to haul off and punch him in his slack-jaw face.
“Nick, things haven’t been right with me and your mother for a long time.”
“Then get a goddamn divorce!”
His eyes light up, like I’ve given him permission to be a decent person. “You’re right, Nick. We should’ve gotten a divorce a while ago.”
“No shit.” I turn and hurry to the Explorer.
“You need to hear the whole story before you do something rash. Nick—we did this for you, don’t you see that?”
I laugh and fling open my car door. “Seriously? I’m not a ten-year-old kid. Don’t put any of this on me.”
“I’m not trying to, Nick. I’m just telling you the truth. None of this is easy.”
“Yeah, it looked real hard on you a few moments ago.” I climb into my car, barely slamming the driver’s side door shut, before I throw the Explorer into reverse and get the fuck out of here.
I see the woman rush over to my dad in the rearview mirror, her red hair bouncing.
Yeah, life’s been really fucking hard for him.
Twenty-Nine
Bethany
After the last customer leaves the salon, I lock the door and hurry through the night-end, cleaning routine. I toss a load of towels in the washing machine and sterilize all the beds. Anna Marie already set up the spray tanning booth for tomorrow, so all that’s left is a quick register closeout and I’m home free. For the first time in a very long time, I’m actually eager to get home for a reason other than Jesse.
Since talking with Mrs. Turner earlier, all I can think about is the possibility that I might have a learning disability. For some people, it might not be something to get excited about, but for me, it means there’s hope it can get a little easier. It means that I’m not crazy and perhaps I have been studying the best I can. Maybe my dad won’t be so disappointed in me, or maybe it will only solidify how broken he thinks I am.
I’ve thought about it fleetingly over the years—that something could be wrong with me, that is—but so many people struggle with school and on their exams, I never thought about it much more than that. Everything Mrs. Turner said, though, makes so much sense, and now I want to know more. A cup of tea, pajamas, and my laptop sounds like the perfect night to end a really good day.
My phone rings as I shut all the lights off and step out the door. I pray it’s not my parents with some sort of emergency, so I’m pleasantly surprised to see that it’s Anna Marie.
Juggling my purse, my phone, and my clanking keychain, I answer. “Hey, I’m just closing up.” I pause with the key in the lock. “Did you need me to do something before I leave?”
“Hi. No, but you should come down to Lick’s.”
“Uh—I kind of need to get home to do some homework,” I say, fidgeting with the door.
