揌e really loved her.?I pull my phone to my chest.
揌e didn抰，？Troy snaps, his lip curling. 揟hat was the fucking problem all along. He tried, but he couldn抰 do it. They were tossed together in crappy matrimony and they weren抰 a good fit. She needed a different kind of man, someone stronger and more energetic than Cole. He wasn抰 up to snuff, and that抯 why he抯 so damn broken up about it, even ten years later, if you want to know the truth.?
What the what?
I抦 floored.
Where抯 this coming from? I抳e never seen Troy look so unsettled, so mad, his cheeks painted splotchy red.
There抯 another side to this man and it抯 a little scary.
I don抰 even process that we抮e moving again through the downpour, darting through gaps in the traffic. He has to be guessing whether or not there are cars in front of him.
Rain slams the windshield like the entire sea crashing down on us, turning everything black.
I don抰 even know what to say.
I抦 deathly curious about Troy抯 word vomit, but it feels like asking more will just make him…angrier?
Not wise in this weather.
Not wise at all.
揢mm梞aybe we should pull over,?I suggest gently.
揧eah,?he throws back.
But he keeps on driving, weaving the car around the back of a large truck, dangerously close to its trailer.
My heart climbs into my throat. 揅an you still see here? Because I can抰…um, Troy??
揇on抰 worry, big mouth. I抳e got this.?
Big mouth?
I feel the color draining from my face.
I抦 starting to worry. What exactly does Troy think he has under control?
The sky matches my feelings when it rips open again, drowning my fear in a deafening clap of thunder.
22
Wake Up And Smell The… （Cole）
Tom waits for me outside the office as I climb in the car抯 back seat.
揝traight home??he asks.
揘o. We need to pick Destiny up from her internship.?
揝ir, I usually pick Destiny up by four. I do hope she hasn抰 been waiting on us for over an hour.?
I know when to pick my kid up, I almost snap, but he抯 just being as loyal as ever.
Instead, I say, 揑 believe she had to help with a presentation on sea lion vocalizations.?
揂h. So our Destiny抯 going to be the one to break the language barrier with sea life. I always knew she was special.?
I smile at the ridiculous joke.
We haven抰 made it very far when a light rain turns into a proper deluge.
Half an hour later, we pull up in front of the aquarium. We抮e just in time because the sky turns from a dense grey to an angry black that抯 determined to drown this city.
Dess spots us and comes running around the car. The rain doesn抰 bother her much when she抯 assuming that leisurely I抦-too-cool-for-this-world pace teenagers love.
As she climbs in, she whips her head around, splashing water on me like a wet dog.
揟hanks, Fido!?I say, wiping rain off my neck with a scowl. 揑 would have moved or gotten you a towel like a normal human being, you know.?
She shrugs, fighting back a grin.
揥hat do you want for dinner tonight??
Another shrug.
揂nother pizza??I guess.
Her head flops back and forth faster.
揚ublic Market??
She responds with an eye roll.
揝ushi??
揇ad, I barely like fish, not counting that stuff in Hawaii. God,?she whines.
揝o you can talk? Are you planning to ignore me forever, Dess? We live in the same house and you抣l have your work cut out for you,?I growl.
She doesn抰 say anything.
揥ant to tell me how I get you talking to me again??I ask her point blank, sick of the games.
揢m, maybe start by treating Eliza like a person??
My jaw pinches together.
Only fifteen and she抯 already making demands. Shame she抯 set on this marine biology thing, or she would抳e made one hell of an executive negotiator.
揑 told you, I tried. She wasn抰 interested in hearing it. I can抰 make a woman talk to me梟ot even a badger lady.?
She gives me a long stare.
揝o, wait, somehow you stomp around like you抮e king of the world and you can make everything happen, but not this? If you want something badly enough, you go after it, Dad. That抯 what you taught me. That抯 how you live. I抦 not sure why it抯 any different with Eliza.?She huffs out a heavy breath. 揃ut you apologized over voicemail, right??
揝he wouldn抰 pick up the phone,?I force out, knowing how pathetic that sounds.
Even now, I have an urge to show up at Eliza抯 door and wait there all night until she talks to me.
揟hat抯 not an apology,?Dess says, swiping a hand over her face.
揟hank you, doctor. Did those sea lions make you an expert on doling out love advice??I smirk at her.