Listening to him yell would be less uncomfortable than this. I know the shitty greeting card sap he’s spouting is probably true, but it’s a bitter pill to swallow.
“Every time I go to the house, it looks a little less like our home. Mom’s painting isn’t in its old spot.” My words sound better suited for an eight year old than for a grown man. “Little by little, she’s disappearing all over again.”
“Your mother isn’t in those things.” Dad’s icy blue eyes, exactly like mine, stare right into my own. “Of course Annette will make her mark there. She’s living there now.” He sighs. “I didn’t do either of us any favors by throwing myself into work and letting the house turn into a museum. It was long due for a change. Maybe you should try coming home every once in a while, and you’ll see.”
I’m the first to look away. “Yeah, whatever.”
“You’ll always be welcome, you and Claire both, though I’d advise staying away from her for a while.”
“I didn’t do it,” I whisper, not expecting a response.
Dad grimaces and runs a hand through his hair. “I know.” He holds a hand up to stop me when I open my mouth. “You’re not off the hook. I still hold you partially to blame for it happening. Claire told us the details as she knows them, and I know you well enough to guess at some of what’s missing. If you’d come to me earlier, we might have been able to fix this.”
“So why do you suddenly believe me?” Don’t get me wrong, I’m fucking thrilled someone does, but I’m suspicious about the sudden change of heart.
He gives me a funny little half-smile. “I should say that as your father I’ll always believe you, but honestly? I heard what you said when she left.”
Shit. “That was... uh—”
“Stop! I’m not sure I want to hear about it. It’s been hard enough pretending not to notice the way you two have been dancing around each other here at the office. All I need to know is that your motivations have nothing to do with me and her mother, and that you didn’t intend to hurt her.”
I shrug. “The way to Hell is paved with good intentions. But no. The way I feel about Claire is about her, not some fucked up revenge plot. Not that she believes me.”
“You’re a Riordan. You’ll figure it out.”
“So’s she, as of Sunday,” I point out.
Dad looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “Do you just have to make everything as awkward as possible?”
For the first time since the wedding, I laugh. My mood actually feels a bit lighter. Not happy exactly, but not so alone. “So Claire’s not coming back, then?”
“Officially? She’s taking a leave of absence. Unofficially? I’m not sure she’ll be back. It’s too bad. Barring all the messes involving you, she seemed to be doing good work.”
“She was. I know I’m on thin ice myself, but I want you to know she was handling a very difficult assignment with more professionalism than I probably would have in her place.” It’s true, for all the shit I gave her, Claire’s ability to put aside her issues with Cooper and still do her job was one of the things that first impressed me about her.
Well, second if I count our first night together. That was really fucking impressive too.
Dad doesn’t need to hear that.
“I know. I’ve been following everything to do with the Cooper case very closely.” He raises an eyebrow at me and I wonder exactly what he means by everything. “If she doesn’t continue on with us, I’ll pull some strings to make sure it turns out alright for her.”
That’s one less worry on my mind. “So I still have a job?”
“Yes, yes.” He waves me away. “Get back to work.”
Declan
“Honey, I’m home!” I barge right into Dad’s house. If they want me to knock they should take away my key.
There’s something really bizarre about feeling like a stranger in the house I grew up in. I lived here for twenty years, but coming back to it now feels completely different. Signs of that jump out at me right away. In the center of the wall in the foyer is a picture of Annette and Dad out in the orchard that they had done for their engagement.
He’s looking at her and smiling like they’ve just shared a joke I’ll never be a part of. I remember that smile, and it’s been a while since I’ve seen it. Off to the side is a picture of Claire and her mom together. It looks like it was taken on the same day. There’s one of me and Dad too, but it’s ancient. From my graduation I think.