“I’m not planning on warning you off of Nicky.” Hal took another sip then crossed his arms, his expression contemplative. “You’re both adults, and God knows you don’t have a mean bone in your body, so I know you’re not gonna say anything to hurt him. I think you could use a guy like him in your life, honestly. You’ve been in New York how many years, and you never once introduced us to a boyfriend or partner? Nicky’s good people, way better than those sharks you hang out with on a regular basis.”
I frowned. “I feel like you’re jumping way ahead. It’s not like I’m looking for some grand romance here, just a guy to hang out with that I like and who likes me back.”
“I know, I know. And I can’t speak for Nicky, but I’m not sure if he’s ready for anything serious, either.” Hal looked down at his beer for a moment. “He didn’t have the easiest time of things in the army. He was out before he joined the service, plenty of people are now, but he never found anybody there, either. When he returned home, he was…closed off, for a while. Being around him was kind of like seeing him through a window.”
“Huh.” Dominic didn’t seem like that at all to me. “It looks like he’s gotten over it.”
“He really stepped up when Ariel left.” Hal took another drink. “Only good thing to come out of that shitshow, honestly.”
I wasn’t going to be the one to bring it up, but since he’d broached the subject… “Where is she now?”
“I don’t know for sure. With her aunt in Jersey, maybe? Not too far. She still tries to call every now and then, but I told her if she wanted to talk, she could do it in person.”
“That’s kind of harsh on the girls, isn’t it?” I ventured. It wasn’t that I didn’t think Ariel had been in the wrong in wanting out of the marriage, and she’d done it in the most brutal way, but there was no good reason to punish her daughters for her mistakes. They missed their mother; that much was plain. Marnie had compensated by going full speed all the time, and Steph had responded by shutting down.
“It is, I know it is, but…” He sighed and ran his hand down his face. “You weren’t here in the aftermath, Max. You didn’t see them in the moment. The first few weeks were hell, especially after thinking their mama might be really hurt, might be dead. And she let them think that. She let them live with that, and then she calls up like everything’s fine and chats for all of two minutes before hanging up the phone. ‘Checking in,’ she said. Checking in and hanging up before her kids could be any more of a burden to her.”
There was the bitterness again, bitterness and anger and a huge helping of guilt, if the way he was pinching his mouth shut was any indication. “Fucking cruel is what it was,” he spat. “I can’t let it happen to them again. If they get used to not hearing her voice, then maybe the pain will start to fade. Maybe they’ll be able to move on. And if she wants to reestablish herself in their lives? Then she needs to make more of an effort than a once-weekly call and a few emails. My lawyer is still figuring out where to send the divorce papers to, and I—”
I took his beer out of his hand, put it on the counter behind him, and pulled him into a hug. Hal collapsed against my shoulder, just a little bit, enough to let me know that he really needed it. I held onto him tight, warmth flooding through my chest as I rubbed my hand over his back, and wondered when the last time he’d gotten a hug like this was. He was bigger than me, but I could carry his weight. For a little while, at least.
We were quiet for a few minutes, just standing their leaning on each other, before the sound of Marnie singing “Let It Go” permeated the whole first floor, maybe the entire block, and broke the mood. Hal straightened up and, not quite looking me in the eye, said, “I’m fuckin’ glad you’re here, Max.”
“I am, too.” I squeezed his shoulders with both my hands then gave him a little bit of space. “Thanks for not asking me to be your lawyer, by the way,” I said with a smile.
He rolled his eyes. “You’re a corporate lawyer. You’re useless to me.”
“I know. I’m not sad about that.” Hal seemed sad, though, about a lot of things. It was almost enough to make me wish I was a divorce lawyer, just so I could help him out more directly. “Is there anything else I can do?”
Hal shook his head. “I’ll be fine. Eventually.” Then he raised his voice so the others could hear. “I’ve got my girls. You two get out of here.”
Marnie looked up. “Where are you guys going?”
“We’re going to go work on my house for a while,” Dominic said as he stood up from the table. I followed suit and got our jackets out of the closet then grabbed the pack that held my tablet. When I gave Dominic his, our hands touched, and I was pleased to see a familiar flush along his neck again.
“Can I come?”
“Not this time,” Dominic said, ruffling Marnie’s curls before leaning down and kissing her cheek. He kissed Steph as well, and then the girls looked expectantly at me.
“Uh…”
“Come on, Max!” Marnie patted her cheek, and I obliged with a kiss for both girls while their father laughed at me from behind his hand. For all that Steph looked more like Ariel, Marnie had so many of her mother’s mannerisms it was unreal.
“See you girls later.”
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Hal called out as we headed for the door.
“Gonna be a boring evening, then,” I called back.
“Gu—not like that, you asshole. I’m talking about on the repairs.”
“Daddy! Language!”
I shut the door with a chuckle. “Time to make a break for it.”
“Don’t run,” Dominic cautioned me as we walked down the driveway toward his Jeep. “I don’t want to have to catch you again.”
“Are you sure about that?”
Dominic looked at me with a glint in his eye. “I mean, don’t leap into my arms or anything, but maybe you could fall onto my bed?” He immediately put a hand on his face. “Oh my god. I’m not smooth. I’m sorry.” He unlocked the doors and got inside, and I followed him.
“That was actually pretty smooth. Maybe we can start with you showing me around the house and putting me to work. There have to be some two-person jobs around the place, right?”
“A few,” he admitted, starting up the car and glancing into the road before he pulled out. “If nothing else, you can act as my backup against any unwanted guests in the walls.”
I snorted. “I can do that.”
…