Harlan Grove doesn’t get tourists. Not ones that stay, at any rate. After all, a bowling alley, one small grocery store, a garage, and a field used by the local teens for parties on a weekend doesn’t exactly scream, “Vacation hotspot!”
Okay, so the Grove has a few more things – High School, a couple local stores and a bar or two, but still. It’s not relaxation central and the only reason tourists stop by Patty’s is to ask directions to wherever it is they’re trying to get to.
I push my way inside as Patty rings up their order and takes their money.
“Have a nice trip!” she calls after them, waving her chubby hand. She turns to me, tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, and beams. “Kia!” Her smile becomes a frown.
“Um, hi.” I shrug sheepishly. “I’m sorry I disappeared this weekend.” She raises her eyebrows. “Real sorry?” I try.
“Mmhmm.” She links her fingers on the counter in front of her and sighs. “One problem fixed, and another started, right, sugar?”
“I know better than to ask you how you know,” I mutter.
“Luce came over here like her little butt was on fire when she realized you and Reese had both skipped town,” Patty explains anyway. “I told her to keep her panties straight, ‘cause you and he were probably livin’ it up on the beach somewhere away from our meddlin’.” She gives me an exaggerated wink, and I smirk a little.
“Close.”
“But I don’t know the reason you skipped town, so why don’t you sit down on this here seat and tell me everythin’.”
I tell her exactly what I told Luce last night, and she nods along. “And I know you knew why he left,” I accuse her. “Otherwise you wouldn’t have said what you did before – about findin’ out the reason why. Did everyone know?”
Patty shakes her head vehemently. “No, honey, not many people did know. The guy your momma cheated with wasn’t from this town.” She clicks her tongue. “That’s why I told you to find out before you made your impulsive teenage decisions about Reese. It weren’t your daddy’s fault, and now you know that. Question is, what are you gonna do about it?”
“I wish I knew.”
“If you ask me, and I’m assumin’ ya are since you’re here…” She chuckles. “I think you should go speak with your daddy. Your momma had her chance for six years, honey. She’s told you her side of the story, no matter how misconstrued it was, and now your daddy deserves the same chance.”
I open my mouth to respond, but the bell over the door rings. I glance over to see Pheobe and one of her friends, Janine, enter the store. Pheobe gives me a pitiful look, which I return, and stalks through the store.
Patty leans toward me, tapping her finger against my knee, and lowers her voice. “If she hadn’t have stopped him contactin’ you at every possible turn, you would have given him the chance, wouldn’t you?” I nod, and she sits back, a small, knowing smile playing on her rosy pink lips. “Well, what makes it so different now?”
CHAPTER 12
The Eagle Inn is a bar and bed and breakfast dating back to the early eighteenth century. Although it’s more modern now, it still retains most of its former characteristics. Not to mention its charm - if the building was a guy, it would charm the panties off the Ice Queen.
But I don’t see the charm. I don’t see the restored wooden panels on the front of the building or the rotted, paint-chipped sign hanging by the door. I don’t see anything that makes it charming, not today.
It’s been a day since I spoke with Patty. I let her words churn over and over in my mind before they finally sunk in. She was right – I would have given Dad the chance six years ago, and really, his silence wasn’t his fault. That’s why I called him this morning.
I push open the door to the bar and restaurant area. Most of the business the Eagle gets is people on road trips or passing through, and it’s obvious it’s the case today. There’s barely a pint in sight.
Clara, the bubbly, blonde, barmaid-waitress catches my eye, and points me in the direction of the corner with a wary smile. I wave in thanks and locate Dad’s table with my eyes, silently making my way over to him.
I take a good look at him as I sit down. He really hasn’t changed much – so he has a few lines around his eyes, but that’s it. He’s the same guy I loved so much as a young girl.
“I didn’t know if you were actually coming,” he says softly.
“I said I was,” I reply, shrugging one of my shoulders. “I guess I need to hear everythin’ from you. The truth. Not a story compiled of all Mom’s guilt trips and pity tactics.”
Dad rubs his hand across his face, breathing deeply. “What do you wanna know, Kia?”
“Everything,” I whisper. “Because no one ever told me a damn thing until Friday.”
I drop my eyes to the table and hear him shift in his seat. The noise in the Eagle is only a low hum, but thankfully it’s far enough out of the Grove that our meeting won’t be tonight’s gossip at the dinner table.
At least not everyone’s gossip.
“I don’t know if you remember, but your momma was always at home. She never worked; she didn’t have to. I made sure of that, or at least I tried to. Then the company I worked for started laying people off. I told her we had plenty saved to get us by if they laid me off too, but she had to go and get herself a little job just to keep us afloat.
“I guess that’s the moment it began. I should have tried to make her go sooner, before you were approaching high school age, but there was never any need for it. She moaned about it for a week until she realized I was serious. There was a real possibility I’d lose my job and we’d be left without a reliable income unless she got a job. So she did, at Denny’s bar. She was beautiful and easy to talk to. She was the perfect barmaid, and soon she was pulling pints like a pro.
“Turns out I didn’t lose the job. I was one of the few they kept on, but your momma was settled in at Denny’s. She enjoyed it there; I think she forgot about the freedom having a job provided you. She had a little extra cash and she got to meet new people. Of course, it quickly changed. Lookin’ back, the telltale signs were there. She began working more hours, longer shifts, and she was coming back drunk almost every night.”
My brain puts together some hazy memories. Memories I guess I’d blocked out of her. Drunk and angry. My parents arguing when they thought I was asleep. The faint scent of alcohol that began to cling to Momma whenever she’d been to work.