Ugly(92)

“Yes, I do. But my friend Shayne and her husband have taken it on themselves to drive me to work and pick me up. They don’t want me catching the bus home, for the obvious reason.” I mean Trent, without actually saying his name.

“Are you too frightened to learn to drive?”

“Oh my gosh, no! I’ve wanted to learn how to drive since I was old enough, but Trent said he’d take me anywhere I needed to go, and I didn’t need a license. I asked so many times, but he just kept saying no, so I stopped asking.” I pick my mug of hot chocolate up and sip on it, focusing on it rather than the intensely sympathetic look Dale is giving me. “Please,” I whisper. “I don’t want your sympathy.”

“I’d have to be made of steel if I didn’t respond to what’s happened to you. I may be a man, and I may be old enough to be your father, but I still have a heart. And I’m sure what you’ve told me, is probably only the tip of the iceberg.”

I nod my head, not saying anything because I’m not sure if Trent or my Dad was the worst out of the two. I don’t know, and it’s not something I want to spend time thinking about, either.

“Back to why I brought you here.”

“Okay. Why did you bring me here?”

“Peter and I have decided if you want to get driving lessons, we’ll pay for them. We’ll also lend you the money, without interest, to buy a car. But there are conditions to this.”

I feel my mouth fall open, and my eyebrows knit together. The look on my face must be amusing, because Dale starts laughing. “You want to pay for me to get driving lessons and you want to buy me a car?” I repeat what I think he said, but I’m expecting him to laugh and correct me.

“Yes.”

“Why?” I place my elbows on the table, and lean in forward toward him. “I mean, why?”

“Because you’ve worked for us for almost seven years now, and your reviews are always fantastic. Every supervisor you’ve had has sung your praises, and you’re a valued member of our team.”

“Oh,” I murmur as I look away for a second to comprehend his beautiful and encouraging words. Slowly I bring my hands up to my face and cover them as I sob. I’ve never, in my entire life, had anyone do something for me as nice as what Dale is offering.

“Hey, before you get all weepy, I said it comes with conditions.” He tries to sound all tough, but the crackle in his voice tells me he’s affected by my crying, and understands exactly why I’m sobbing.

I gather myself, using my hair as a shield to fall around my face so I can calm down and stop crying. When I wipe the tears away, I lift my head and look at Dale. His features are beyond sympathetic, I truly see the concern he has. “What are the conditions?” I ask once I’ve been able to gain control of myself.

“First, you need to pay back the money for the car, over time.”

“And the driving lessons,” I interrupt to say.

“No, not the driving the lessons.”

“Why not?”

“Let’s call it your seven-year bonus.”

“My what?” I scrunch my mouth in question.

Dale laughs at me and sits back in his chair. “Your seven-year bonus. Seven years of continuous service entitles an employee to a bonus.”

“I’ve never heard of the seven-year bonus,” I quip. If he and Peter are going to do this for me, I’ll pay back every cent I borrow.

“You haven’t?” He scrubs his hand over his chin and then huffs. “Well, we’ll call it seven years of Christmas bonuses.”

“I’ve received them; you can’t give it to me twice.”

“Geez, Lily. Work with me. I’m trying to give you something, and I’m not quick enough to keep trying to come up with something viable-sounding.”

I laugh and so does Dale. “How about this?” I start saying.

“What?”

“You can pay for the driving lessons, but I have to pay you back. Every cent you and Peter put toward me, I’ll pay it back.”

“For the car, yes.”

“Everything, including the driving lessons.”

“But we want to give you the driving lessons.”

“And I want to stand on my own two feet, and be able to say once everything is paid back, that I was able to get where I am because I had help, but I was still able to pay it all back.”

Dale shakes his head, and groans an uncomfortable ‘damn it’ kind of sound. “Then, you can pay us back for half the lessons. Consider the other half, your birthday present. Which, incidentally I know was only last month and Peter and I missed it.”