Free Completing the Pass by Jeanette Murray Page B

plate from Carri the same time he tried to shove back. Josh had to lunge to catch him before he fell, his balance thrown off by too much movement at once.
    Maeve gasped. Gail stood quickly, and Carri grabbed the plate from her father’s hands before he dropped it. All three watched with mixed looks of horror and worry, and maybe a little secondhand embarrassment.
    â€œSnagged the chair on the carpet,” Josh said without hesitation, doing his best to soothe the older man’s pride. “Happens to me all the time.”
    â€œDamn rug,” Herb muttered. “Stupid fucking thing.”
    â€œHerb!” Maeve scolded sharply.
    â€œIt’s okay,” Gail started.
    â€œDad?” Carri asked quietly.
    â€œWill everyone just leave me the fuck alone?” Herb yelled, shuffling toward the hallway that led to the bedrooms. After he got there, he let out a muffled curse and shuffled back. “How the hell do you get out of this stupid house anyway?”
    Maeve looked at Gail, who mouthed it was okay. “I’m so sorry. Carri, please stay to help them clean up. I need to . . . I just need to,” she finished and hustled out the door toward Herb. None of the three remaining moved a muscle until they heard the front door close with a bang.
    â€œAre you all right, Carri?” his mother asked.
    Josh risked a look at her, taking in her red face, her glassy eyes that were staring at her father’s half-full plate of food, at the way her shoulders slumped a little.
    â€œYeah, no, I’m good.” She gave his mother a brilliant smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m sorry about that. He’s . . . He gets irritable when he gets tired.”
    â€œOf course he does,” Gail soothed, coming over to wrap an arm around Carri. “Let’s clear the table. Then you can go to the family room with Josh for a bit.”
    â€œI should get home and help them,” she said, following Gail into the kitchen with the plate in her hands.
    â€œNonsense. Your mother has it handled. You give them time to get Herb to bed, then head on home. Just a few minutes of quiet will do your father a world of good.”
    Josh started collecting glasses. After dropping off the plates at the sink, Carri wandered back in and picked up the silverware, their movements blending seamlessly into a routine they’d been used to since they were young children. After depositing the glasses and silverware in the sink and beside it—nobody washed dishes but Gail, as she had her specific way about it—she followed him into the family room. SportsCenter was still on the television, but muted.
    He picked up the remote and held it out. “Your pick.”
    She watched him sit, then stared at the couch for a moment. Deciding whether he would bite? Not tonight. Tension was written all over her face. She was close to losing it, and though he loved messing with her, even he had his limits. “Just sit, Carri.”
    She did, her skirt fluffing around her like a pillow. She clicked the channel button up a few times, then back down, then up again.
    â€œYou’re just seeing the same stuff over and over again. You know that, right?”
    She huffed, then let the remote fall to her leg and her head rest on the back of the couch. Eyes closed, she looked . . . defeated.
    â€œCarri, talk to me.” His mother started the water in the kitchen sink, ensuring they wouldn’t be overheard. He reached over and covered her hand on top of her leg. “C’mon. I promise tonight I won’t give you shit about it.”
    She just shook her head, dislodging a few pins that had kept her hair from her eyes.
    He tugged a little, flexing his hand over her thigh. Then, shocking him, she scooted over and curled up beside him. Her head rested on his shoulder and her knees curled up on top of his thigh. She said nothing, and from what he could tell, she wasn’t