Chapter 51
fifty-one
ROWAN
“Addie,” I call out to my sister as I walk up to her where she’s folding shirts on the display shelf where our merchandise is.
She turns to me, her deep brown hair whipping over her shoulder. “Yeah?”
I jerk my head toward the exit of the brewery and say, “Let’s go to lunch.”
She gives me a confused look, which I expected. When I’m at work, I don’t take lunch breaks. I’m constantly busying myself.
“What happened?” is all she says as she lays the neatly folded shirt on the shelf.
“Can’t a brother take his sister to lunch without there being a reason?” I splay my arms out.
“No,” she says flatly. “But, since it’s free food, sure.”
We head to the pizza place a few buildings down. You can smell the fresh bread and cheese the closer you get. They offer a full pan of pizza or individual slices. The individual slice itself is the size of a twelve-inch pan pizza. It was a hot spot to go to when the guys would get very drunk and stagger to the place at two in the morning.
Considering we are not twenty-one anymore, we haven’t done that in a long time. I open the door for Addie, and we are quickly slapped in the face with the smells. It’s a pleasure slap. One I would take to the face every day.
I tell her to pick a spot for us to sit, and I order two slices of pizza. When I get back to the table, pizza in hand, I grab the hot sauce and dab a generous amount over my slice. Heartburn be damned.
“So, what’s up? What’s this special lunch occasion for?” Addie takes a bite of her cheese, tomato, and spinach pizza.
I hold out a finger while I chew and swallow the piece I bit off. The spice hits and is mixed with the sausage, bacon, and tomato. Incredible.
“What I’m about to tell you, I need you to not freak out, okay?” I wipe my mouth with my napkin.
She sips on her drink through her straw and narrows her eyes toward me. “What did you do?”
I take another bite of my pizza, trying to delay what I’m about to tell her.
“Rowan?” she coaxes.
Thank God we’re in a public space.
“I went to see Dad. and Ellie came with me.” I wince.
Addie’s facial expression stays neutral, bored even. She doesn’t react immediately, so I’ll take that as a good thing.
“I went to his house and met his wife, Amy, who is very nice, by the way,” I say quickly.
Now her eyes are back to narrowing, but her lips don’t move or twitch. She leans her forearms on the table like she’s making sure she heard me.
“And we have four stepsiblings.” I give her a tight smile.
She angles her head at me and makes a facial expression that sends chills down my spine. My sister is an angel, but you don’t want to see her angry or passionate about something. It takes a lot to make her mad.
She doesn’t change her posture and keeps her head angled. She sits perfectly still when she says, “Rowan, why would you see him?” Her voice is deathly sweet voice.
Why do I feel like the young sibling who’s gotten in trouble with something?
“When Mom and Aunt Rosey told me he only lived three hours away, I don’t know, something in me needed to see him. I had to take the chance to ask him questions.”
“Did you get what you wanted out of it?”
“ Yes .” I accentuate in a nervous tone.
“And you came back home happy?” Her face is still stoic.
I nod once, unsure where she’s going with this.
She removes her arms from the table and sits back in her seat. She purses her lips, and I can see her shoulders fall. “Okay,” she says quietly.
My brows shoot up in surprise and confusion. “That’s it? That’s all you’re going to say?”
She folds her arms across her chest. “What do you want me to say, Rowan? You said you got what you wanted out of it and that you’re happy.”
“You’re not mad that I went to see him?” I ask cautiously.
She shrugs. “Who am I to say what you can and can’t do?”
My body relaxes, and I feel like I can breathe again. I didn’t notice until now just how fast my heart rate went up.
“Are you going to ask me what I learned about him?”
“No,” Addie replies quickly while picking up her pizza and taking another bite.
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t care,” she says through a mouthful.
“So, you’re not even going to try to have a relationship with our dad?”
“I’ve gone this long without him, and I’m fine.” She has a bored expression on her face.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” My eyebrows tug together, my defensive shields going up.
“What do you mean—what’s that supposed to mean?”
“You’re making it sound like I was never fine with him not being in our lives.”
“Because you weren’t, Rowan. You were a mess. He made you a mess. Why would I want to have a relationship with someone who caused my brother to hate himself?”
“I don’t hate myself,” I mutter.
“Ro, you’re my brother. I love you and would do anything to keep you out of harm's way, just like I know you’d do for me. Of course I’m going to take issue with our dad. But if you got what you needed out of seeing him, then I’m happy for you. Just don’t push me to do something when it comes to him. Please,” she asks softly.
I slowly nod my head. “Okay, I won’t bother you with it. But if you suddenly change your mind and want to ask about him, I’m here.”
“I don’t think that will happen any time soon, but thanks for the offer.” She lifts her pizza in a solute. “The only question I have is, did you make Ellie go with you?”
I take a drink from my cup before saying, “She invited herself. She was the one who drove there and back. Actually, she had to speak for me when we first got there.”
Addie nods. “That sounds about right.”
“She told me that she talked to Charlie.”
Addie raises her brows. “Oh?”
“She told him that she didn’t want to work things out,” I say before taking a drink from my cup.
Addie’s lips tip up in a smile and says, “What does that mean for you two?”
“I’m going to enjoy the rest of the summer with Ellie as much as I can. I did ask her on another date.”
“ What !” Addie shouts, causing other customers to look at us. She ignores them and claps her hands quickly while giving me a toothy smile. The claps and smile stop abruptly when she says, “Don’t screw this one up, Rowan.”
“Trust me. I have the perfect plan for this date.”