Hard Edge - Tess Oliver Page 0,69

thought about the quiet sidewalks in Mayfair, where the only true impediment to a walk or bike ride was the occasional rogue squirrel. It was certainly much less stressful back home, and a small, private law school would probably be heaven compared to my school in New York. Still, as much as I missed Mayfair, I couldn’t go back and risk breaking my heart all over again.

Chapter 32

Caden

“How’d it go?” Dad asked as he looked up from his newspaper.

“Actually, not bad. I think it might work out.” My stepdad had had a triple bypass and he needed someone to keep an eye on things at the lumber yard.

“I’m sure Walt is relieved to have someone to help. And you were always a fast learner. You just never applied yourself.”

I grabbed a banana from the fruit bowl. “Dad, don’t drop into one of your old rerun lectures. I’m not a kid anymore.”

“Right. Old habits, I guess.” Dad was working hard to get back into the routine of his normal life, but he was doing everything with far less enthusiasm, almost as if someone had turned a switch and put him into slow motion. Sally was the opposite. She moved around the house at a frenzied pace as if someone had pushed the button the opposite way. I half expected her to sound like Alvin the Chipmunk when she spoke. Which was rare. She was no longer styling her hair but instead let it go wild and wavy. Her usual style of clothing had changed too. She was much less prim and neat. A few years back she never would have been caught dead in sweatpants, but now she seemed to live in them. I had changed too. I found myself, more and more, wanting to find something solid to hang onto. A steady income, a permanent place to live, and someone to share it all with. I knew exactly who I wanted that someone to be, but somehow, Kenna always managed to remain just out of my reach.

I pulled up a chair at the table. “Tanner needs an answer on his job offer. It’s good money and lots of traveling.”

“Yep. Good money is great, but I have to admit, it’s sure nice having you around again, Caden. Of course, you need to make your own decision. Like you reminded me, you’re not a kid anymore. Although, you’ll always be a kid to me. That never changes.”

I smiled. “I noticed. And I don’t mind, cuz you’re still my dad and that never changes either.”

“What did you decide? Are you going to take Tanner up on his offer?”

I rested back against the chair. “Nah. It’s a cool job, but I can’t sit on the sidelines. Not when I’ve already been on the other side, on the track, blowing around those curves at two hundred miles per hour. It’ll just eat me up inside to stand still and watch others ride. Does that sound crazy?”

“Not at all.” He folded up the paper and placed it down on the table. “So you’ll be around here for awhile?”

“Yeah. Is that all right?”

“Of course. Caden, you know you always have a home here in Mayfair.” He chuckled. “Two homes, to be exact. I know you never liked the situation your mom and I put you in as a kid, but you had two families and two homes where you belonged. No matter what your perception might have been. You were equally loved in this house and in the one down the street.”

“I know, Dad.”

He crossed his arms and rested back, with a head tilt. “Speaking of sidelines, how long are you going to stand on them and watch the girl you love get away?”

“What do you mean?”

“I know I’ve been in sort of a fog lately, but I know what’s been going on and I know that when Kenna left here, you were brokenhearted. Just like you were when you left her at eighteen to go off to the army. How long are you going to deny yourself the love of your life?”

I stared at him, not sure what to say.

“Stunned you with that, didn’t I?”

“Pretty much. She’s never been meant for me, Dad. We both know it.”

“Bullshit.” He leaned forward and put his arms on the table. “You know, you and Grady never fought or competed like other siblings. You always had each other’s backs. And then there was Kenna, the pretty, smart and charming glue between you. I know, as teens, you both