Chapter 23
twenty-three
Diamond
“Hi, Dad!”
Kicking off my shoes, I stroll into the kitchen. A pot of stew simmers, and I take a seat at the kitchen island, waiting for my dad to appear.
When he finally does, he’s clearly surprised to see me.
“My son! I wasn’t expecting you.” He opens his arms, and I stand for the hug.
“I still live here,” I murmur into his shoulder before pulling away.
Dad quirks an eyebrow. “Do you?” He moves to the stove and stirs his stew. “Are you staying for dinner?”
“If you’ll have me, I’d love to.”
Dad reaches for bowls in the cupboard and shoots another glance my way. “Spill it. Although I already suspect what you’re about to tell me.”
He still keeps his cheerful tone, and that helps as I try to gather the right words.
“Are you okay here by yourself?”
Dad laughs softly as he sets two bowls of stew on the kitchen island. “Of course I am. I’m healthy, and I’m not an octogenarian with bad knees, Diamond.”
After setting a cutting board with fresh bread and a knife between us, he sits and slices the bread.
“No, I guess you’re not. But I feel guilty about leaving. Who will you watch your cooking shows with you if I’m not here?”
“You don’t think I have friends or…more than friends?” My dad wiggles his eyebrows, but my jaw falls open.
“What!? Are you seeing someone?”
He shakes his head as he dips a slice of bread into the stew. “No. But there’s always a potential, right? But we’re talking about you, not me.”
“Rhett asked me to move in with him.” Dad nods like I just told him we’re expecting snow tonight, and I roll my eyes at how dense I am. “I was worried you’d be alone, and I guess I wanted to make sure you’re okay if I move out.”
He chews his mouthful, then bumps our shoulders together.
“If we need each other, we’ll be there for one another, right? Like, if I break a leg, you’d come help me?”
“Of course I would. That’s not even a question.”
“And if you felt you needed me, you know you’re welcome here anytime?”
“Yes, of course, Dad.”
“I’m your father. I love you, but you also have a life to live, Diamond. I want you to find your person, and I think Rhett might be the one. You’ve never been so happy. I’d never take that away from you. I want you to live and thrive.”
We eat in silence for a minute, and I study my dad.
He’s still his laid-back self, loving his food and just happy to be existing.
He’s right, though. I’m an adult, and he’s healthy enough to be on his own.
He’s not even sixty, but in my head, I slotted him into a needy-parent space when clearly it should’ve been me in the needy-child box.
I knew he wouldn’t be mad at me for leaving, but I needed to be sure he wouldn’t be lonely or sad. I could never let my dad be sad. Not after everything he held my hand through.
“Thanks, Dad. I guess…I’ll miss this.”
“You can always come for supper. We’re in the same town.” He slices another piece of bread. “Yes, I’ll miss you, but I’m so happy for you, son. I like Rhett, and it’s time for you to start your own life. Like, a real life and family.”
How I even considered this to be a hard conversation, I’ll never know.
I launch into telling him about the house and talking about Rhett so much, it should be nauseating, but my dad hangs on every word.
He smiles and laughs and asks questions about everything from Tater to how much light the kitchen gets.
It’s these moments of just us like this that I’ll miss after I move, but I know I’ll be here often enough to make up for it.
“Rhett said he wants to have a housewarming party in the fall. You’ll come right?”
“Of course I will!” He leans back in his chair, and his eyes shine with unshed tears. “I’m really fucking happy you resent the memo to that man, and that he finally clued in to what a prize you are.”
“Me too, Dad. You want me to stay tonight? Maybe watch a new episode of Kitchen Disasters?”
Dad shakes his head with a smile. “No. Another time, son. Go home to Rhett. He needs you more than I do right now. He’s probably pacing the floor, worried that you changed your mind.”
“He might be.” I laugh and help Dad clean up the kitchen. He walks me to the door, and we hug for a long time while I fight back more tears.
“Thank you for everything, Dad. I love you.”
“I love you too, son. Always. There’s no need to thank me, but I appreciate it.”
My dad watches from the doorway, waving as I pull out. I thought I’d feel heavier leaving the home I’ve shared with my dad for so many years, but it’s like I’m light as a feather. I replaced the guilt of moving out with the hope I’d boxed away years ago.
The future is bright, and I’m in love with an incredible man who loves me back.
It’s time to live again.
“Jesus, Diamond, it’s August. Do we need to have thirty fucking throw blankets in the living room?”
Rhett’s scowl is deep as he throws one of my favourite blankets onto another chair with an angry huff.
“It’s not thirty. It’s twelve, and you don’t have to cover yourself in them.”
He sets his jaw and shakes his head in irritation. “Still don’t need so many out here. It’s like a goddamn slumber party.”
“What crawled up your ass today? It’s just blankets, and you’re ready to have my head on a platter.”
Rhett remains quiet, stabbing the buttons on the remote control like it’s offended him, as he pushes another blanket from the ottoman to the floor with his feet.
“Hey! That’s a special one! Don’t be such an ass!”
Rushing over, I grab the blanket off the floor, hugging it to my chest like I need to protect it…or me. I’m not sure which right now. Rhett has never acted like this since I moved in. I know it’s only been a month, but he can’t be changing his mind already, can he?
“Do you want me to leave?” I ask softly.
That seems to snap him out of his mood, and he drops the remote. He crosses the room, and when his gaze meets mine, I recognize the pain there.
“Tell me, Rhett. I can’t understand if you don’t tell me.”
He gently takes the blanket from my arms and wraps it over my shoulders before pulling me against his chest. “I’m sorry.” His words are quiet as he holds me, and I clutch him back.
“I forgive you, but tell me what’s wrong, Rhett. This isn’t like you.”
“I just…the blanket just pissed me off because… because today is my grandfather’s birthday, and it seemed like something I could just get mad at.
” He sighs and squeezes me tighter. “His favourite colour was yellow. The blanket is yellow and…yeah. I’m just in a bit of a mood, and I’m sorry I snapped at you. I’m just missing him today.”
Rhett doesn’t release his hold, so I stay where I am, wrapped in one of my favourite blankets that remind him of someone special he lost and still misses.
“Want to tell me about him? I know you helped at his restaurant, and he was a father figure, but not much else. Did he like music or tease you about the way you styled your hair as a teenager?”
He snorts a laugh, and I’ll take the small win. As we’ve been unpacking, we fell into old photo albums of his, and his teenage pictures were something else. I’ve never seen a mullet on a man that made me laugh so hard.
Rhett finally releases me and pulls me to the couch next to him, tucking me under his arm and holding me close.
“He loved ABBA. We used to have all their CDs in his ancient disc player. It’s all he would sing in the kitchen.”
“You know all the words to every song, don’t you?”
Another smile graces his face. “I do, and if you tell anyone, I’ll deny it.”
“I bet it slips out sometimes. I’m going to play ABBA at the café next time you have a meeting there and see if you sing along.”
Rhett’s sparkle returns to his eyes, and he kisses my temple.
“Thank you, Dee. Sometimes I stew in things and take them out on people. I just missed him this morning, and it kinda stayed all day.”
“I think it’s normal to miss people we love. Never stuff that down. I bet he’d love this house, and if you ever want to talk more about him, I’ll listen.”
Rhett relaxes back and draws me closer. His hand absently rubs my arm as he tells me the story of how his grandfather bought him his first bike, but didn’t know how to ride one himself.
He was so excited to give it to Rhett when he was ten, but didn’t know what to do with it.
Rhett’s voice is lighter as he laughs, retelling how he’ll never forget his grandfather telling him it can’t be that hard because everyone compares things to riding a bike.
“I think you’re a lot like him and don’t even notice, you know.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, he learned to ride a bike with you and didn’t give up. You did that by riding broncs. You said you didn’t know how and just did it until you were good at it.”
“Yeah, maybe.”
“No, maybe. You cook like it’s second nature and whip up a version of cannoli at a moment’s notice. He taught you all that, and as long as you keep doing it, he’s never gone. Know what I mean?”
“I do.”
“Rhett?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re not hard to love. Even when you take it out on my blankets. Talk to me, okay?”
“I will. But also…do we really need all these blankets out here?”
Laughing, I sit up and straddle his lap, pulling the blanket with me and covering our heads. “Yes. We can hide out like this when all our friends are here for the housewarming party.”
He kisses me then. Not with the passion that seems to always appear with us, but with a tender longing that makes my heart burst.
“You have the best ideas,” he murmurs.
“This is true. I have another one. Want to hear it?”
“Hit me, beautiful.”
“I think we should get one of those huge hammocks with the screen overtop so we can fuck under the stars without mosquitoes.”
He runs his hands up my back, his fingers dusting my spine. “I thought you didn’t like sex outside?”
“That’s still true, but I really want a hammock, and if I get a hammock, it should have a screen, and then it feels like I’m inside, so it’s not really outside at all.”
“You have this all figured out, don’t you?”
“It makes sense to me.”
Rhett laughs his deep, rumbling laugh I adore, and I smile down at him.
“Don’t change, beautiful. Don’t ever change.”