"Ugh!" I groan, completely unsatisfied with how that conversation went. Not only did I not tell her I want my son to live with me, I couldn't even work out something in my favor. She always brings up "consistency" and "routines" like I'm trying to drag him out of bed at midnight to eat pancakes every night. All I want is to see my son more than she's allowing me. I don't understand how she can't see how much it's hurting me. She should be thankful I want to fill my role like I do. I'm sure there are people in her situation who would love for their grandchildren's parents to give a shit.
I'm torn away from my train of thought by Trey's chuckle. I face him, and there's a smile on his face.
I've never wanted to punch a smile so bad in my life, but if there were a more inappropriate time to laugh than right now, I'd hate to see it.
He can see I'm not amused by his laughter, but he doesn't hide it. He shakes his head and reaches into the entryway closet for his things. "You just yelled at my mother," he says. "Wow."
I glare at him while he attaches his holster to his police uniform. "I'm glad my situation amuses you," I say flatly. I walk past him and out the front door. When I reach his car, I climb inside and slam the door. As soon as I'm alone in the darkness, I break into tears.
I allow myself to cry as hard as I can until I see Trey making his way out of the house several minutes later. I immediately stop the tears and wipe my eyes. When he's in the car with the door shut, I stare out the window and hope it's obvious that I'm not in the mood for conversation.
I think he understands that he pissed me off, because he doesn't speak for the entire drive back to my house. And even though there isn't any traffic on the way home, twenty minutes is a long drive when it's this quiet.
When he pulls up to my apartment, he gets out of the car and follows me inside the building. I'm still pissed when I reach my door, but my attempt to escape inside my apartment without telling him good-bye is thwarted when he grabs my arm and forces me to turn around.
"I'm sorry," he says. "I wasn't laughing at your situation, Auburn." I shake my head and can feel the tension settling in my jaw. "I just . . . I don't know. No one ever yells at my mother and I thought it was funny." He takes a step closer to me and lifts a hand to the door frame. "In fact," he says, "I actually thought it was kind of sexy. I've never seen you angry before."
My eyes meet his in a flash. "Are you serious right now, Trey?" I swear to God, if there was any chance of my ever finding him attractive, he just completely ruined it with that comment.
He closes his eyes and takes a step back. He holds up his hands in surrender. "I didn't mean anything by it," he says. "It was a compliment. But you obviously aren't in the mood for compliments, so maybe we can try this again another time."
I welcome his departure with a quick wave as I turn around and close the door behind me. A few seconds pass before I hear Trey call my name through the door. "Auburn," he says quietly. "Open the door."
I roll my eyes but turn around and open the door. He's standing in the doorway with his arms folded across his chest. His expression has changed to one of regret. He rests his head against the frame of the door, and it reminds me of the night Owen stood in this exact same position. I liked it a lot more when Owen was standing here.
"I'll talk to my mother," Trey says. Those words make me pause and actually give him my full attention. "You're right, Auburn. You should be spending more time with AJ, and she's just making it hard on you."
"You'll talk to her? Really?"
He takes a step closer until he's standing in the doorway. "I didn't mean to upset you earlier," he says. "I was trying to make you feel better, but I guess I went about it the wrong way. Don't be mad, okay? I don't know if I can take you being mad at me."
I swallow his apology and shake my head. "I'm not mad at you, Trey. I just . . ." I inhale and exhale slowly. "Your mother just frustrates the living piss out of me sometimes."
He smiles agreeably. "I know what you mean," he says. He lifts himself away from the door frame and glances down the hallway. "I need to get to work. We'll talk later, okay?"
I nod and give him a genuine smile. The fact that he's willing to talk to Lydia for me is worth a smile or two. He backs up several steps before turning around and walking away. I close my apartment door after he disappears around the corner of the hallway. When I turn around, my heart jumps into my throat when I see Emory standing a few feet in front of me.
Holding a cat.
A very familiar-looking cat.
I point at Owen-Cat. "What . . ." I drop my arm, completely confused. "How?"
She looks down at the cat and shrugs. "Owen stopped by about an hour ago," she says. "He left this and a note."
I shake my head. "He left his cat?"
She turns around and walks toward the living room. "And a note. He said you'd know where to find it."
I walk to my room and immediately drop to my knees and climb inside the tent. There's a folded piece of paper on one of the pillows. I pick it up and lie down, and then I open it.
Auburn,
I know it's a lot to ask of you to keep Owen, but I didn't have anyone else. My father is allergic to cats, which may be why I got Owen in the first place. Harrison won't be back in town until Tuesday, but if you need to, you can drop her off there.
I know I've said it enough already, but I really am sorry. You deserve someone who can give you what you need, and right now that someone isn't me. If I had known you would show up at my door one day, I'd have done everything differently.
Everything.
Please don't allow anyone to make you feel less than what you are.
Take care.
PS: I know that one of these days, you'll have to let someone in to use your restroom. Just do me a favor and remove those cute little seashell soaps. The thought of someone else loving those soaps as much as I do is too much.
PPS: You only have to feed Owen once a day. She's pretty easy to keep alive. Thanks in advance for taking care of her, no matter how long or short you decide to do it for. I know she'll be in good hands, because I've seen you as a mother, and you're pretty damn good at it.
--Owen
I'm shocked at the tears that are falling down my cheeks. I close the letter and immediately walk out of my room. When I reach Emory in the living room, I scoop Owen-Cat up into my arms and I take her to my bedroom. I close the door behind me and I crawl onto the bed with her. She goes with the flow and lies down beside me, like this is exactly where she's supposed to be.
I'll gladly take care of her for however long Owen needs me to. Because having her connects me to him. And for whatever reason, I feel like I need that link to Owen, because it makes my chest hurt a little less when I think about him.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Owen
I look at my father, standing guiltily in the doorway to the holding room. I'm seated at a table very similar to the one I was seated at a few weeks ago when I was arrested. Only now I'm paying the price for that arrest.
I look down at my wrists and push the cuffs down half an inch to relieve some of the pressure. "What good is your law degree if you can't even get me out of this?"
I know that was a low blow, but I'm pissed. Frustrated. In a state of shock over the fact that I was just sentenced to ninety days in jail, despite this being my first offense. I know it had everything to do with the fact that Judge Corley presided over the case. Seems to be my luck, lately. My fate would be in the hand of one of my father's surface friends.
My father closes the door to the holding room, locking us both in. It's our last visit before I'm taken to my cell, and honestly, I'd rather he not even be here right now.
He takes three slow steps into the room and then comes to a stop as he hovers over me. "Why the hell did you refuse rehab?" he growls.
I close my eyes, disappointed in his focus. "I don't need rehab."
"All you had to do was a short stint in rehab, and this whole thing would have been removed from your
record."
He's angry. He's yelling. His plan was for me to accept rehab, but I know for a fact that this was his way of making himself feel better about the fact that I've been arrested. If I were to spend my time in rehab rather than jail, it would be easier for him to swallow. Maybe I chose jail time just to spite him.
"I can talk with Judge Corley. I'll tell him you made the wrong decision and see if he'll reconsider it."
I shake my head. "Just go, Dad."
His expression is unwavering. He doesn't retreat from the room.
"Go!" I say, louder this time. "Leave! I don't want you to visit. I don't want you to call me. I don't want to speak to you while I'm in there, because I hope to God you're going to take your own advice."
He still doesn't move, so I take a step toward him, then around him. I beat on the door. "Let me out!" I say to the bailiff.
My father puts his hand on my shoulder, and I shrug it off. "Don't, Dad. Just . . . I can't right now."
The door opens, and I'm escorted down a hallway, away from my father. Once my cuffs are removed and the bars clank closed behind me, I take a seat on the cot. I rest my head in my hands and think back to the weekend I ended up here. The weekend I should have done everything differently.
If I had just found it in me to see that what I'm doing isn't protecting anyone. It's not helping anyone.
I'm enabling, and I've been doing it for years. And now I'm paying the ultimate price, because it's costing me you, Auburn.
THREE WEEKS EARLIER
I glance down at my phone and cringe when I see my father's number. If he's calling me this late, it can only mean one thing.
"I should go," I say as I silence the phone and slide it back into my pocket. I push the cup toward her and I see her expression fall with her nod, but she quickly turns around to hide it.
"Well, thanks for the job," she says. "And for walking me home."
I lean forward on the bar and drop my head into the palms of my hands. I rub them over my face, when really I want to punch myself. Things were going so well between us just now and the second I get a phone call from my father, I shut down and make it look like the exact opposite of what it is.
She thinks I'm leaving because whoever just called me was a girl. That's the furthest thing from the truth, and even though I hate that I just disappointed her, I love that she's jealous right now. People don't get jealous unless there are underlying feelings at play.
She pretends to busy herself by washing my coffee cup and she fails to notice I'm walking up behind her.
"It wasn't a girl," I say to her. The close proximity of my voice startles her and she spins around, looking up at me wide-eyed. She fails to respond, so I take a step closer and say it again to make sure she understands and that she believes me. "I don't want you to think I'm leaving because another girl just called me."
I can see the relief in her eyes and a small smile attempt to form on her mouth, but she faces the sink again in hopes that I don't notice. "It's not my business who calls you, Owen."
I grin, even though she can't see me. Of course it isn't her business, but she wants it to be her business as much as I do. I close the gap between us by placing both of my palms on the counter on either side of her. I rest my chin on her shoulder, and I want to bury myself against her neck and inhale her, but I grip the counter and remain where I am. It becomes even harder to control my impulses when I feel her lean into me.
There are so many things I want right now. I want to wrap my arms around her. I want to kiss her. I want to pick her up and carry her to my bed. I want her to spend the night with me. I want to confess to her all the things I've been keeping bottled up since she showed up on my doorstep.
I want them all so badly that I'm willing to do the last thing I want to do, which is slow down so that I don't scare her off.
"I want to see you again."
When she says "Okay," it takes everything I have not to pick her up and spin her around. I somehow remain calm and collected, even as she walks me to her door and we tell each other good-bye.
And when she finally closes the door for the last time, I want to knock on it again. I want to make her open it for a fourth time so that I can press my lips to hers and get a feel for what our future is hopefully about to consist of.
Before I can decide whether to leave and wait until tomorrow or go ahead and make her open the door so I can kiss her tonight, my phone makes the decision for me. I pull it out of my pocket after it begins ringing and answer my father's phone call.
"Are you okay?" I ask him.
"Owen . . . shit . . . this . . ."
I can tell by his voice that he's been drinking. He mutters something unintelligible and then . . . nothing.
"Dad?"
Silence. When I make it outside of the apartment building, I press my hand against my ear to try to hear him better.
"Dad!" I yell.
I hear rustling and then more muttering. "I know I shouldn't have done it . . . I'm sorry, Owen, I just couldn't . . ."
I close my eyes and try to remain calm, but he isn't making any sense.
"Tell me where you are. I'm on my way."
He mutters a street name that isn't far from his house. I tell him to stay put, and I run the entire way back to my apartment in order to get my car.
I have no idea what I'll find once I reach him. I just hope he hasn't done something stupid that could get him arrested. He's been lucky up to this point, but no one can have as much luck as he's had and continue to get away with it.
When I pull onto the street, I don't see anything. There are a few scattered houses, but it's mostly a barren area close to the subdivision he lives in. When I near the end of the road, I finally see his car. It looks like he's run the car off the road.
I pull over onto the side of the road and get out to check on him. I walk to the front of the car to assess any damage he might have done, but there isn't any. His taillights are on, and it looks like he just couldn't figure out how to get back on the road.
He's passed out in the front seat and the doors are locked.
"Dad!" I beat on the window until he finally wakes up. He fumbles with the buttons on the door and rolls the window halfway down in an attempt to unlock the car.
"Wrong button," I tell him. I reach through the window and unlock the door, pulling it open.
"Scoot over," I say to him. He leans his head against the headrest and looks at me with a face full of disappointment.
"I'm okay," he mumbles. "I just needed to take a nap."
I shove my shoulder into him to scoot him out of the driver's seat. He groans and climbs across the seat, slumping against the passenger door. Sadly, this is becoming routine. In the past year alone, this is the third time I've had to come to his rescue. It used to not be so bad when it was just the pain pills, but now that he's mixing them with alcohol, it's harder for him to hide it from everyone else.
I try to start the car, but it's still in drive. I put it in park and crank it with ease. I put the car in reverse and it pulls onto the road without a problem.
"How'd you get it to do that?" he says. "It wouldn't work when I tried."
"It was in drive, Dad. You can't start cars when they're in drive."
When I pass by my car still pulled over in the ditch, I hold my key fob up and lock it. I'll have to get Harrison to pick me up and follow me back out to the car after I drop my father off at home.
We've driven about a mile when the crying starts. He's huddled up against the passenger window and his whole body begins to shake from his tears. It used to bother me, but I've become immune to it. And I probably hate that I've become immune to his depression more than I even hate his depression.
"I'm so sorry, Owen," he chokes out. "I tried. I tried, I tried, I tried." He's crying so hard that his words are becoming harder to understand, but he keeps going. "Just two more months, that's all I need. I'll get help after that, I promise."
He continues to cry tears of sh
ame, and this is the hardest part for me. I can take the mood swings, the withdrawls, the late-night phone calls. I've been dealing with them for years.
It's watching his tears that eats at me. It's seeing him still heartbroken over that night that makes me accept his excuses. It's hearing the depression in his voice that brings back the horror of that night, and as much as I want to hate him for being so weak, I also praise him for still being alive. I'm not sure I would have even had the will to live if I were him.
His crying comes to an instant halt the second the lights fill the inside of the car. I've been pulled over plenty of times to know that these things are usually routine when a car is out this late at night. But the condition my father is in right now makes me nervous.
"Dad, let me handle this," I say as I pull over to the side of the road. "He'll know you're drunk if you open your mouth to speak."
He nods and watches the cop nervously as he approaches the car. "Where's your insurance?" I ask my father, just as the cop reaches the window. My father fumbles with the glove box as I roll the window down.
The cop immediately looks familiar to me, but I don't place him right away. It isn't until he bends down and looks me straight in the eye that I remember him. Trey, I think is his name. I can't believe I even remember that.
Great. I would get pulled over by the one and only guy I've ever punched.
He doesn't appear to remember me, so that's a good thing. "License and insurance," he says stiffly.
I pull my license from my wallet and my father hands me his insurance card. When I hand both of them to Trey, he eyes my ID first. He smirks almost immediately. "Owen Gentry?" He taps my driver's license against my car and laughs. "Wow. Never thought I'd hear that name again."
I run my thumbs around the steering wheel and shake my head. He definitely remembers, all right. Not good.
Trey lifts his flashlight and shines it inside the car, running it over the backseat and then landing it on my father. My father shields his eyes with his elbow.
"That you, Callahan?"
My father nods but doesn't respond.
Trey laughs again. "Well this is just a real treat."
I assume Trey knows my father because he's a defense attorney, and I'm not so sure that's a good thing for us right now. It's not uncommon for the lawyers who defend criminals to be loathed by the officers who arrest those criminals.