Hold Me (Fool's Gold #16)(50)

“Uh-huh,” Starr said. “Sure. No problem. Bye.”

She pushed a button on her cell phone and tossed it onto the sofa.

“What’s wrong?” Destiny asked.

“Nothing.”

Starr’s voice was strangled, and she didn’t turn around.

Destiny crossed to her. “Hey, tell me, please.”

Starr slowly faced her. Tears filled her eyes. “My dad called. Our dad called. He wanted to wish me a happy birthday.”

Destiny’s whole body tensed as horror swept through her. “It’s your birthday? Oh, no. I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” She wanted to slap herself. How could she have not found out it was her sister’s birthday? Talk about thoughtless.

“It’s not,” Starr told her as she wiped away tears. “It’s not my birthday. When I told him, he didn’t think it was a big deal.” More tears fell. “He’s my f-father, and he doesn’t even know when I was born.”

Destiny moved in and reached for her. Starr resisted for about a second, then collapsed against her.

“I’m sorry,” Destiny whispered, knowing the words were stupid and wouldn’t help at all. Not that she could think of anything else to say. “He’s like that sometimes. You know it’s about him, right? Not you?”

“Because he’s the only one who matters?”

“Pretty much.”

Starr began to cry, then. “He’s my dad. Why doesn’t he love me?”

“He does.”

“No. I’ve seen how other dads act. He doesn’t care about me.”

Destiny hung on tight. “Jimmy Don isn’t like other dads. I’m sorry he did that to you.”

She continued to hug Starr until the teen finally straightened and wiped her face.

“Thanks,” Starr told her, her face blotchy and her eyes red. “It sucks, you know.”

“I do.”

“Can we still play guitar together?”

“Sure. Later we’ll make cookies.”

That earned her a slight smile. “I’m not five. You can’t distract me with a cookie.”

“Maybe not, but I can try.”

Starr sniffed. “I need to blow my nose. I’ll be right back.”

Destiny waited until she was out of the room, then she emailed herself a reminder to get in touch with her father’s lawyer. She needed to know a whole lot more about Starr than she did now. Starting with her sister’s birthday. Because when that day actually came, Destiny wanted to make sure it was one to remember...in the best way possible.

* * *

AT NOON ON SUNDAY Starr got a text from Abby, inviting her to an impromptu sleepover. Destiny talked to Liz, Abby’s mom, got confirmation that there would be no boys or unsupervised time and dropped off Starr at four. By six-thirty, Destiny was pacing the floor.

She didn’t know what was wrong, but for some reason, she couldn’t seem to settle. She cleaned both bathrooms, did a couple of loads of laundry and then tried working on a song from her notebook. Nothing worked. She flipped channels, did a bit of internet shopping and by 7:18 knew she was going to jump out of her skin if she didn’t find something to distract herself.

She shoved house keys, her cell phone and a credit card into her jeans pocket, then locked the front door behind her and started for the center of town.

There were still plenty of people walking around. The sun had yet to set, and the evening was pleasantly warm. Most of the restaurants had outdoor patios where happy locals and sunburned tourists mingled easily. Several people called out greetings to Destiny. She nodded and smiled as she walked but didn’t stop. It seemed she had a destination, although she had no idea what it was. Not until she got there.

She came to a stop across the street from The Man Cave. She stared at the sign and at the caveman statue beside the open door before giving in to the inevitable.

Once inside, she felt as if she could breathe more easily. A couple of baseball games played on TVs over the bar. Most of the seats were filled. The crack of balls from the pool tables mingled with laughter. The smell of popcorn and beer, perfume and burgers, welcomed her home.

Maybe it was because she’d grown up in honky-tonks. Maybe it was because being around people made it possible for her to lose herself when she couldn’t in the quiet of her house. Or maybe it was the stage at the far end of the room.

The sign said karaoke started at eight every night. Destiny walked to the bar.

“Long Island Iced Tea,” she said. “Make it extra long.”

The bartender, a woman she didn’t recognize, nodded. “You walking?”

Because this was Fool’s Gold, Destiny thought. A place where they made sure you weren’t going to be drinking and driving before you even started drinking.

“I live less than six blocks away.”

“Good to know.”

Destiny settled on an empty bar stool. She glanced around the room and figured she knew at least a dozen people, maybe more. Friends. Acquaintances.

Aidan was with Nick, Miles and a couple of other guys. She nodded at them but ignored the wave over. She wasn’t in the mood to deal with any of them tonight. Especially not Miles, who’d gone out with both Shelby and Madeline.

She hoped neither of her friends would fall for the man. They both deserved better. He would break their hearts and then move on. Better for Madeline to crush on action star Jonny Blaze and Shelby to find someone a whole lot nicer than Miles. Not that they would listen to her.