“I’m not, but you always want me to forgive you when you do something wrong.”
“Liri, I’m warning you. I’m having a bad enough night without you starting in on me too.”
“I’m sorry. I just hate to see you looking so sad.”
“I’m not sad. I have the most beautiful, talented, and sexy girlfriend in the world.” He kisses my cheek. “Let me show you off.”
He leads me onto the dance floor where his father and Susie and Dillan and Noelle are slow dancing. Killian has one hand on my lower back and the other holding my hand.
“I never knew you were quite the dancer,” I tease him, but I am impressed.
“When I was younger Mom had a studio, and sometimes she’d make us stand in and partner up with her students.”
“I bet you had all the girls fighting over you.”
“Naw, they all preferred my brother. I was skinny and awkward. He was older and better looking.” He dips me then brings me back up slowly and kisses me.
The rest of the evening is going great until Conrad quiets everyone to make a speech. He grabs the microphone from the small stage where the band was set up. “I want to take a moment to thank you all for joining us here tonight. Fifty for a man like me is a big deal. I never thought I’d live past twenty-five with th
e way I raced.” Everyone laughs. “But here I am surrounded by all you fine people. You’ve all gone through some hard times with me but there was a lot of good too. Diane gave me two boys to be proud of and a great marriage. Cancer nearly took her away from us and in that time, I made a lot of mistakes, but I wound up with Susie here.” He motions her to the stage and Killian is squeezing my hand so hard it’s painful.
“I didn’t deserve her, but she made an honest man of me. We have two beautiful granddaughters who think I’m the greatest man they know. I try to be, but lately I’ve not feeling like myself. And I wanted you to all hear it from me first. I have cancer. It’s my prostate but the doctors are hopeful we’ve caught it while it is in the early stages. Don’t worry, like my ex-wife bravely fought I too will kick cancer’s ass.”
Diane rushes from the room in tears and Dillan and Noelle go after her. Susie is smiling through her tears and Killian is in complete shock. “Hey.” I bring his knuckles to my lips and kiss them. “Are you okay?” I’m on the verge of tears myself, and I don’t even know the man. I can’t imagine how he is feeling right now. This is his dad.
He doesn’t answer me, but he stares into my eyes with so much hurt there it breaks my heart. I look back to the stage. He sees the same thing that I do. His father is handing the microphone off to Susie and maneuvering through the crowd toward us.
“I need some air.”
Before we can get to the door though his dad is stopping us. “You aren’t leaving yet, are you?”
Killian swallows hard and drops my hand. “How could you? How could you tell me like that in front of all these people? We don’t talk, but I deserved to be told in private.” He points his finger at his father’s chest.
“Killian.” I place my hand over his and lower it.
“Son, I get that you are upset, but if you want to be treated like a part of the family then you need to act like you’re a member of it. When was the last time you called me to talk or to ask how I was doing? When was the last time you hung out with your brother or hell even called your mother? You were a selfish kid who thought the world moved around you and you’re still that lost little boy. Grow up and be a man.”
Killian turns away from his father and punches his right fist straight through the glass door, shattering it and slicing up his hand.
I stare at my boyfriend and his father in shock and appalled at both of them.
“He better get that looked at,” Susie says at my side, pushing a clean rag into my hand.
I nod at her and she gives me a teary-eyed smile.
“Killian, let me see your hand.” I go to touch him, and he flinches.
“Don’t be stupid, boy. Let your girlfriend tend to your hand. You’re going to need her to drive your dumb ass to the hospital for stitches.”
Killian pushes the door open, and I step through the glass shards to follow after him. He moves sluggishly to his car and is leaning over it, resting his head on the passenger side door. Blood is dripping from his knuckles and onto the gravel where we parked off to the side away from the bar. Gently, I take his hand and wrap the rag around it that Susie gave me. It starts soaking through immediately. He doesn’t speak, and I stay quiet as I fish his keys from his pocket. I almost expect him to make some wisecrack about me playing pocket pool, but he doesn’t.
“I’ll drive. Where’s the closest emergency room?”
“I’m not going to the hospital.”
“Okay. I’ll take us home then.”
“Just drop me at a bar,” he tells me and gets into the car, slamming the door a little too hard with his other hand.