And she didn’t.
I didn’t think there could be anything worse than her not wanting me like I wanted her. But there was. It was her wanting me and losing her to a circumstance that wasn’t my fault and I couldn’t change.
I was crushed. Completely crushed.
She stood there in the grass, still barefoot, giving me an expression that looked a lot like pity.
“It’s okay,” I said. “Thank you for being honest with me.”
We heard the garage door opening around the corner, but we didn’t move from our sad little standoff. A car rumbled to life, and Neil started to back his Mercedes down the driveway, rolling into our line of sight.
Amber’s voice cut through the night. “Fuck you, Neil!”
My head jerked to look at Emma, and her eyes went wide.
A large projectile flew from the direction of the carport and crashed into the grille of the sedan. Neil slammed on the brakes just as Amber darted into view to pick up the thing she threw and vanished back into the garage.
Emma and I bolted around to the grass next to the driveway. Amber stood just inside the carport, barefoot, mascara streaming down her face. “Fuck you, you piece of shit!”
Neil threw the car in park and started to get out. He stood behind his door, using it like a shield. “What the hell are you doing?!”
“Oh, so now I have your attention!”
“I told you, I was at work!”
“Liar!”
“I’m a surgeon, Amber. I don’t have a nine-to-five, I stay until it’s done, I can’t answer the phone in the middle of an appendectomy—”
Amber drew her arm back and threw the large glass thing again, only this time it bounced off the car’s hood, hit the concrete, and broke in half.
Neil stared at it in shock. His jaw flexed. Then he started stalking toward her.
“Oh my God,” Emma breathed. “He’s gonna hit her. Justin, he’s going to hit her!”
I was already in motion, but I wasn’t fast enough. Neil got to Amber first. He grabbed her by the shoulders, yanked her toward him—and hugged her.
I stopped in my tracks.
I watched as he wrapped her in his arms and shushed her gently. Then he whispered something in her ear and caressed the back of her hair, and Amber collapsed into the embrace and started to sob.
Emma and I just stood there, hearts racing.
After a few moments Neil looked over and saw us. He whispered something to the woman in his arms, and she nodded into his chest.
“Emma?” Neil called. “I’m going to get your mom some dinner. Can you get her into the bathtub while I order some food?”
Emma’s eyes were still wide, but she nodded. Then she padded over in her bare feet, stepping carefully around the glass, took her mother by the shoulders, and led her into the house.
As soon as the door to the garage closed, Neil let out a long breath and closed his eyes. Then he turned to survey the damage. His hood and grille were dented, but he stared the longest at the shattered hunk of glass in the driveway.
“That was my Charles Montgomery Award for Medical Excellence,” he said, tiredly.
I didn’t answer.
He stood there in silence for a long beat. Then he talked to me but looked at the award. “You know, there was a time when I would have gotten in my car, driven to the nearest five-star hotel, and picked up the first woman who would have me just to teach Amber a lesson. But I’m trying. I’m really trying to be the best version of myself.”
He stayed for another moment. Then he turned and walked slowly back into the house.
I was alone, standing in the driveway, whiplashed by the last five minutes. The part with Neil and Amber and the part with Emma too.
I began cleaning up the mess. The driveway was full of glass, and Emma’s sandals were scattered on the lawn. Her phone was still in the grass. It started to light up right as I reached for it. It was Maddy.
“Hey,” I said, answering. Then I told her everything that had just happened with Neil and Amber. A minute later the lights of the pontoon turned on in the distance across the lake.
I closed the door to Neil’s car, picked up what was left of the award and set it inside the garage on the deep freezer. Then I swept up the shattered glass and collected Emma’s shoes and set them by the garage door to the house. I was done in time to help Maddy dock the boat.
She arrived cursing.
“I fucking knew it,” she said, sliding up the dock. “Not even a month and that woman’s already losing her shit.”
I grabbed the front of the boat and pulled it in. She tossed me a rope and I tied her up and she jumped off, swearing like a sailor while she secured the back. When she was done, she turned to me. “How bad is Emma?” she asked, fixing her windblown hair. “Is she a mess?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “She went in with Amber before we could talk.”
Maddy scowled up at the house. “I hate that fucking train wreck. She does this every time.”
I slipped my hands into my pockets and stared out past her into the pitch black of the lake.
