Pelican Court (Cedar Cove #3)(43)

A few minutes later, a breathless Rosie returned. She took the chair across from him and exhaled slowly. They sat in the kitchen without speaking for five minutes. Ten…The silence felt strange and awkward, as though each was afraid of bringing up the subject of their difficult daughter. Zach knew he was. If they started talking, he might have to admit the role he’d played in this mess.

Furthermore, Zach wasn’t sure what to say, especially after his enlightening conversation with Janice that morning. Apparently Rosie didn’t either. When he thought he couldn’t sit still a moment longer, Zach stood and began straightening up the living room. Rosie tackled the kitchen, which was in even worse shape. Once he’d finished vacuuming, he moved into the kitchen. They worked side by side for an hour.

“You hungry?” Rosie asked.

Zach hadn’t thought about it, but now that she asked, he realized he was. “A little.”

“How about a ham sandwich?”

He shrugged.

“Do you want a slice of pineapple to go with it?”

“And cream cheese?” he asked hopefully. When they’d first started dating Rosie had invented the sandwich and it was his all-time favorite. He couldn’t remember when he’d last had one.

As Rosie put the sandwiches on plates, he got cold sodas from the refrigerator, and they sat down across from each other again. Searching for possible topics of conversation, Zach almost mentioned that Janice had handed in her notice. He bit his tongue before he could make such a foolish mistake. Rosie would certainly gloat over that information. She was apparently dating this widower now, and the relationship must be going well. She might be stressed and tired, but he’d never seen her look better. He glanced away before she caught him staring at her.

They heard the front door open, followed by the sound of teenage laughter.

Zach and Rosie were instantly on their feet. They hurried into the living room and discovered Allison, another girl Zach didn’t recognize—possibly Hannah—and Allison’s so-called boyfriend. The three teens froze when they saw Zach and Rosie.

“What do you want?” Allison demanded, glaring defiantly back at them.

“I think it would be best if your friends left now,” Zach said.

“They can stay if they want.”

“I don’t think so.” If she was looking for a standoff in their battle of wills, Zach figured he had the advantage. He stalked over to the front door and opened it wide. “Nice seeing you both, don’t come back again unless invited.” He raised his eyebrows. “Do I make myself clear?”

Ryan nodded and edged toward the front door as though he couldn’t get away fast enough. The other girl looked unsure, then decided leaving was probably her best option.

“Where have you been?” Zach snapped.

Rosie stepped forward. “Don’t give her the opportunity to lie, Zach,” she said, sounding perfectly calm and reasonable. He, on the other hand, was furious and not afraid to show it.

“Why should I tell you?” Allison muttered. She crossed her arms and stared angrily at them both.

“You skipped school and took the ferry over to Seattle.”

That her mother knew was clearly a shock to Allison. The girl’s lips curled as if she were about to ask where Rosie had uncovered that information, but she stopped herself before the question had formed.

“You’re going to have to be smarter than this if you want to fool your parents,” Rosie said smoothly.

Zach was grateful that Rosie was the one doing the talking. In his present frame of mind, he was useless. The urge to take Allison by the shoulders and give her a good shake was almost overwhelming. He’d been worried sick. Apparently she didn’t know what she’d put her parents through; furthermore she didn’t care. That was the crux of the matter. She didn’t give a damn, and he said as much before he could censor the words.

“That was a crazy, selfish stunt you pulled, and I’m here to tell you it won’t be happening again.”

Allison’s eyes flared with defiance. “I hate you!” she shouted. “I hate you both.”

“You can hate me all you want, but you’ll respect the rules of this family.”

“This family,” she echoed. “What family? You destroyed our family.” She pointed at Zach and then Rosie. “Both of you destroyed our family. I hate you—I hate both of you for what you did.” Whirling around, she raced toward her bedroom and slammed the door with enough force to rattle the pictures on the wall. The eight-by-ten family portrait, taken two years previously, swung violently and then crashed to the floor. The glass shattered.

Silence ensued, and Zach collected his breath. “Well,” he murmured, “that’s that.” He wasn’t proud of the way he’d lost his composure. In fact, he didn’t feel proud of much at the moment.

At least Rosie had been with him when he’d confronted Allison and they’d faced her united. She was much better at this sort of thing than he was. His ex-wife knew what to say. He didn’t.

After a few minutes, Rosie gathered her purse and coat and started for the front door. She seemed reluctant to leave and he was equally unwilling to let her go.

“Thanks,” he said, walking with her. “You handled the situation ten times better than I could have. I’m grateful you were here.”