Read Online Linked by Heather Bowhay - Free Book Online Page A

could muster, I said, “Hmm…are you a little rusty or do
you just need some pointers?”
    He
turned bright red. “Oh, suddenly sassy are we?”
    “Nope.
Just better than you,” I giggled and pretended to dust something off my
shoulder. “But,” I glanced up at him, “if I do seem a little cocky, I recently
learned it from someone else in this room. I won’t mention names or anything.”
    He
laughed. “I suppose I deserved that. Go ahead, you might as well finish me off,
and then we can grab a snack and hang out on the patio.”
    “Your
wish is my command.”
    “Hey,”
he said excitedly, as I hammered the ball in for the winning goal, “you and I
have to play doubles against Trevon and Shelby sometime. They are the reigning
champs, and nobody can beat them. But I have a feeling,” he slapped the edge of
the table, “you and I could decimate them.”
    The
rest of the day was casual and fun. We lounged around on the patio, went for a
walk, and made spaghetti for dinner. Well, he did most of the cooking, I just
chopped the peppers and onions – more like an assistant chef.
    When
the darkness of night settled over the island, we decided to go in the hot tub.
Self-conscious in my bikini, I raced to the third floor balcony so I’d be in
the water before he arrived. Bubbles bounced wildly around me, and the forceful
jet streams massaged my back. Although it was almost pitch black outside, I
enjoyed watching the outline of his body before he sunk down into the water.
    “Don’t
suppose you’d tell me more about your biological dad?”
    Gazing
into the dark shadows, I contemplated. At long last, I decided to share a
little more about that very personal part of my life. I couldn’t see his face,
and that would make it easier to tell the story. Without city lights to
interfere, the heavens were illuminated with millions of tiny lights all trying
to outshine each other.
    “According
to my mom,” I began, “my biological dad was prone to depression, and eventually
he turned to alcohol and drugs to dull the despondency.” I cleared my throat
and sat up taller. “One night, when I was about three years old, he’d been
drinking heavily and was pretty smashed. Apparently, I’d been having a full
blown tantrum, like most toddlers do. Anyways, when he couldn’t get me to stop
crying, he smacked me across the face, and I went flying across the room.” I
heard a snag in Jason’s breathing, but he didn’t utter a word. “Luckily, I
wasn’t hurt, and I don’t even remember the incident. The physical violence was
the last straw. My mom was seriously scared for our safety and wasted no time
in leaving him. She packed up Greg and me and asked her parents for help. We
moved in with my grandparents, and my mom divorced my dad.” Sighing, I gently
slapped the water in front of me.
    “I’m
sorry,” Jason said with empathy from the other side of the massive hot tub.
    “Yeah
well, I’m grateful my mom had the courage to get us kids out of an unsafe home.
She said she’d never wanted to get a divorce, because she believes marriage
should be forever, but she decided our safety was her first priority.”
    “She
sounds like a remarkable woman, Alex.”
    “Yeah,
she is,” I said, suddenly feeling very hot. Pulling myself out of the water, I
sat on the edge of the Jacuzzi. I knew Jason couldn’t really see me, so I felt
more at ease. “Anyways, she told him that if he would seek treatment – go in
for drug and alcohol rehabilitation she’d agree to let him see us. He flat out
refused. So she told him that if he would sign over all parental rights, she
would never ask for a dime in child support, but he’d never be allowed to see
us again. He agreed to that,” I said this with disgust and smacked my hands
against my wet legs.
    “Wow,”
he said quietly.
    Staring
into the water, I said, “When someone’s life is so completely controlled and
consumed by drugs or alcohol that they’ll give up their children all