“Will do.”
He disappeared out of the house and it took everything within me to not rush into Colt’s arms. He stood in the window, his hands casually in his pockets as he watched the older man drive away.
Slowly he turned around.
Immediately, I knew something was wrong. I didn’t like the look on his face. My heart dropped. “What is it? Is everything all right?” my thoughts instantly racing toward my father.
“Yeah,” Colt said, his voice lackluster.
“Is Dad all right?”
“Yeah,” he said again, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Oh, all right.”
Things suddenly felt awkward between us, and I couldn’t place my finger on why. I stared into Colt’s face, noting his somber expression. I approached him, going in for a hug when he grabbed my arms, and pulled them back down to my sides.
“Colt?” I said.
“Sorry. Just tired. It’s been a long day.”
“Oh. Well, do you want to talk about it? What’s been going on?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing? How can you have had a long day if it’s nothing?”
“I just don’t want to talk about it, Natalie, is that all right?”
Taken aback by the coldness and frustration in his voice, I crossed my arms over my chest. When he didn’t say anything else, I cleared my throat. “Well. I’m going to take a shower.”
“Okay,” he said, flopping down on the couch.
I pursed my lips together. I’d been hoping he would want to come with me, but that clearly wasn’t the case. “I’ll be back in a second then,” I said.
“Take your time,” he mumbled, although I pretended not to hear him.
I did take my time in the shower though, hoping it would give Colt some time to get over his foul mood. When I got out of the shower, I combed and blow-dried my hair, and applied my favorite sweet-smelling body lotion. Tossing on a gown that hit me just before the knees, I returned to the living room, where Colt sat on the couch, staring idly at the TV.
“Are you still tired?” I asked, sitting beside him.
He simply nodded without looking at me.
Just as I was about to rest my head on his shoulder, he moved to reach for the remote. I paused, and sat back upright, getting the impression he had done so on purpose to avoid my touch.
“Okay. Colt—seriously, what’s wrong with you?” I said.
“Nothing, Natalie. Just go to bed.”
“Excuse me?”
“Isn’t that what you were about to do?” Seeing the look on my face, he sighed. “Look—I’m sorry. Today—there was another attempted attack on your father.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.
“Nothing happened though,” Colt continued. “We were able to intervene before it got anywhere near as close as last time.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me that to begin with? I knew something was bothering you. I deserve to know this stuff.” I said. He stood from the couch and began pacing the room.