Page 57 of Told You So
His eyes shift from my eyes to my mouth and back again. “Why would you want me to be a jerk, Bethany?” The confusion in his eyes hurts my heart.
“I don’t know,” I tell him honestly. “Maybe I was scared to let you in again.”
He sets the bin down, never taking his eyes off of me. “And how do you feel about that now?”
“It’s not as scary as I remember,” I admit.
“Good.”
Mrs. Turner and Jesse laugh in the kitchen, and Nick takes a step closer. “I was wondering something,” he says. “Jesse mentioned he wanted to take an equine class but your parents won’t let him.”
“Oh, the equine therapy? Yeah, they’ve sort of been putting it off.” I fudge the truth a little. My dad said no, but my mom is thinking about it.
“I know I’m not a therapist”—he laughs at the thought—“but let me take you guys to the ranch Saturday. He’ll love it out there.”
I know Jesse will love it—he’d be ecstatic—but that’s a bit more intrusion in Sam’s life than I’m sure I’m comfortable with.
“Don’t overthink it,” he urges. “Just say yes.”
In that moment, I know my heart is in the most danger it’s ever been in. I suddenly can’t say no to him. “Okay. Sure. What about shopping for Sam’s décor?”
“Darn, I guess we’ll just have to reschedule.”
Twenty-Eight
Nick
After Bethany and Jesse take off, I decide it’s time to talk to my dad. It’s Thursday afternoon, and I know he’s working, so I head to his office. I turn into the Turner and Tillman Design and Development parking lot and pull up next to my dad’s Tundra. The distance between us has happened so gradually and quickly at the same time, I’m not sure I noticed it until recently. First, blowing off my final project, then missing dinners and our breakfast...it’s like he doesn’t want me to be an architect anymore, or maybehedoesn’t want to be an architect. I’m not sure if he’s planning on selling the company, or if maybe he’s rethinking life decisions and doesn’t want me to walk down the same path, but it’s time to find out.
I step out of the Explorer and head toward the entrance. The fact of the matter is, I need my dad right now. I have no idea what the hell I’m going to do once I graduate, now that my plan to work with him is all but dust in the wind.
As soon as I step inside, I see a few familiar faces, and the sound of ringing phones and muffled conversations fill my ears. It’s more nostalgic than I’d expected. I used to walk here after school on the days I didn’t have baseball practice. Sometimes Reilly would come with me and we’d hang out while I waited for my dad to finish up. My dad’s enthusiasm and passion for his work seemed almost superhuman and inspiring. Now, he feels more like a stranger.
“Hey, Nick!” Thomas, my dad’s right-hand man, waves me over to him as he packs up his briefcase.
“Hey, Tom.” I shake his hand. “It’s been awhile.”
“Yeah, it has. You look great, kid. You been eating your Wheaties?”
Laughing, I nod and hope I haven’t been eating too many of them. “Something like that.”
With a pat on my back, Tom nods to my dad’s office. “He’s just finishing up a meeting.”
“Hey, thanks.”
“Catch you later, Nick.”
I wave a goodbye, and Tom heads for the door.As I continue toward my dad’s office, I admire his firm. I take in the large, square building, single story with exposed beams in vaulted ceilings. Drafting tables are spread about, milling bodies scattered around.It’s rejuvenating, in a way, and awe-inspiring. The older I get, the more I appreciate the work my dad has put into this place, a new, modern building, nothing like the old historical brick and stone structures in town he remodels for a living.
I smile politely at the employees I’ve never seen before, introducing myself as Hutch’s son, Nick. Some of the staff are busy, others are closing up for the day, and for the first, time I get a sense of how large the company’s grown and it makes sense how busy he’s been. I had no idea. This was his vision. Now it’s his company and responsibility. He built it and made it all happen and I feel hopeful that I might still be a part of that.
My dad’s secretary isn’t at her desk when I get there, so I bypass it. With a quick knock, I open the door to his office, and my heart stops beating. “What the fuck?”
A red-headed woman scrambles to smooth out her clothes, and my dad straightens, but not quick enough. I saw her mouth on his and her fingers wrapped around his tie—his goddamn hand was on her ass.
My stomach curdles, and I clench my hands to fists.
“N—Nick...” My dad fumbles out my name and pushes the woman away from him, nearly knocking her over.
