“You’ll be okay?”
“Of course. He’s just upset. This is his son, his only son. I think every man wants a boy who takes after him, and...Baxter definitely doesn’t.”
“Different doesn’t make him any less worthy.”
She forced a smile. “It’s a shock, that’s all.”
He nodded. It’d been a shock to him, too. “Good night.”
As Noah closed the door quietly behind him, he felt sick inside, terrified that he’d made Baxter’s life worse. What would the Norths do? How would they respond?
He was so busy cursing himself for trying to help in what was probably the wrong way that he wandered over to his parents’ house instead of going to his car. He wasn’t planning to tell anyone else about Baxter, even his folks, but he thought it might comfort him to visit his mom and dad, to feel a hint of the security they’d provided when he was a kid. This had to be one of the worst weekends of his life. He’d hoped Addy would call today, but he had to battle that disappointment along with all the rest.
He was just edging past his mother’s Lexus when he noticed that his father’s Range Rover had been damaged. When did that happen? He and his father had taken the Range Rover to go golfing just...what? Three weeks ago?
“Hello?” he said as he strode into the kitchen through the garage.
“In here!” his mother called.
He found his parents in the office/library situated off the living room, where they each had a desk. They were wearing reading glasses so when they glanced up, they both peered at him over their lenses.
“How’d we get lucky enough to receive another visit from you so soon?” his mother teased. “I thought you might be too wrapped up in the new woman in your life to bother with us.”
Noah didn’t respond to that comment. He was wrapped up in Adelaide. Too wrapped up to feel at ease about it. “What happened to the Rover, Dad?”
His father rested his elbows on the arms of his chair. “What do you mean?”
“It’s been in a crash.”
“Oh, that.” He waved a hand. “Just a little fender bender.”
“You never mentioned it.”
“Dylan over at Amos Auto Body will fix it up once I have a minute to get it in.”
His mother spoke at the same time, her voice full of exasperation. “He hit a tree. Can you believe it?”
Noah lounged on a love seat by a coffee table laden with magazines. “When?”
“Last week.” His father closed his laptop. “How’s Baxter?”
“Doing better.” Noah didn’t want to go into any more detail than that, didn’t want to tell them he’d been next door.
“Glad to hear it. And—” his mother cleared her throat “—Adelaide?”
His father spoke before he could reply. “I’m not sure she’s the right kind of girl for you, Noah.”
“The right kind of girl?” he echoed.
“What do you see in her, anyway?”
Noah couldn’t help being offended. “Besides the fact that she’s beautiful? And smart? And sweet?”
“You told me you weren’t going to say anything,” his mother murmured, chiding his father. “You said it would blow itself out.”
His dad’s expression turned contrite. “I know. I should have taken my own advice.”
“But now it’s too late for that...so, what don’t you like about her?” Noah asked.
His mother’s eyes darted between them. She could’ve answered this question; she obviously agreed with his father. But she waited for Brent to take the lead.
“In high school, she used to come on to Cody all the time,” he said. “She was so forward, wouldn’t leave him alone.”
Noah felt his jaw drop open. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m completely serious. Shania will tell you. Ask her.”
“If Shania felt threatened by Addy, I would’ve heard about it long before now,” Noah said.
His mother frowned. “Not necessarily. She’s a good Christian, doesn’t like to gossip.”
But if anyone was forward, it was her. How many times had she approached him since Cody’s death? “There would’ve been a major fight, at the very least,” he insisted. “Anyway, I was with Cody far more than she was. I think I’d know if Addy was coming on to him.”
“I’m telling you how it was,” his father said.
“Do you have any idea how shy Addy was in high school?”
His mother removed her glasses. “Apparently, she wasn’t as shy as you thought.”
“Yes, she was.” She’d also had a huge crush on him. She’d admitted as much. To the best of his memory, she’d never even mentioned Cody. “She’s slept with three men in her whole life. She married the second one. I’m number three.”
His father shook his head as he chuckled. “She’s slept with a lot more than that, son. From what I’ve heard, she even slept with your brother.”
Noah felt as if he’d been punched in the face. “When?”
“At the graduation party.”
“That’s a lie!”
“Ask Shania,” his father said with a shrug.
“She wasn’t even there. She went to Europe right after she got her diploma.”
“You weren’t at the party, either,” he pointed out, but Noah scarcely heard him. He was heading outside, to his car.
* * *
Kevin waited in the empty lot behind the liquor store for Shania to join him. She’d texted him earlier, when he was leaving church with his family, saying she needed to speak to him. He’d sent her this location and “six o’clock” so she wouldn’t show up at his house, then left “to run an errand” while his wife was making dinner.
It was the first time Shania had contacted him in years. She had to be upset about something.
Kevin had a feeling he knew what it was.
When she pulled in, she didn’t waste time on hello. She got out of some boxy little Nissan, slammed the door and led with, “Can you believe that bitch Adelaide is going out with Noah?”
“I’ve heard.” And he’d been wondering how to defuse Shania’s reaction. He’d been strategic in sharing information with her fifteen years ago, but there were pitfalls to any game plan. Right now, his future hung in a very delicate balance. No one was talking. He needed to keep it that way, couldn’t let anyone tip the scales for fear they’d fall in the wrong direction.