Free Beauty & the Biker by Beth Ciotta Page B

this.”
    “You say that every time I give you a lift to and from work,” Angel said as she pulled back onto the street. “You really need to stop. Seriously. Stop. Your place—”
    “Dad’s place.”
    “—is on my way home. It’s not an imposition. How was work?”
    “Good. Same. Except for Carson’s unexpected visit.”
    “The man is persistent.”
    “Only his approach was different this time. He homed in on dad. Said he needs professional help.”
    Angel didn’t say anything, which was as good as agreeing. Or maybe she was considering the best response. Angel rarely spoke without thinking, unlike Emma and Georgie who often blurted whatever came to mind. Chrissy was more stingy with her opinions but when she voiced them she was usually blunt. Not that anyone had commented at length on her dad’s drinking or Bella’s decision to move home.
    Not for the first time, she felt like her friends had been walking on egg-shells ever since her mom’s death. She just wanted life to go back to normal, although how could it? Her life had been altered—along with everyone who’d loved Laura Mooney.
    Bella clutched her bag to her knotting stomach. “If he’d just talk to me…”
    “He will. Eventually.” Angel flexed her fingers on the wheel, pressed her lips together as she turned onto Frontier Street.
    “Whatever you’re thinking, spit it out. I can take it.”
    “You sure?”
    “I’m all ears.”
    “Give me a sec.” Angel held silent while blowing past most of the stores lining the street, a third of them deserted. Nowhere had been dying a slow death for the last twenty years. Younger generations kept moving away to explore more exciting and viable locations. Years ago, the Inseparables had made a pact to stay in Nowhere, working in their own unique way to keep their beloved town alive. They’d been kids then and they were all still here. With the exception of Sinjun Ashe. Although they had recently reconnected with their long lost friend via Party-Line. Ah, the wonders of social networking.
    “Okay. Here goes,” Angel said, yanking Bella out of the past as she smoked the town’s limits. “And please don’t take this the wrong way. I know you lost your mom,” she said, raising her voice as they roared into the wind, “and that’s a God tragic blow. Especially since you were so close. But your dad lost his soul mate, his wife, lover, and friend. They’d been married how long?”
    “Thirty-five years.”
    “That’s a long time. Eddie and I barely made our third anniversary before I lost him, but we’d been sweethearts since the sixth grade so it seemed like we’d been together for a lifetime. And then Baxter, well that was a different kind of love and we only made it two years, but, if he had lived, I just know we would have been together forever. Anyway, even though the intensity of the grief varied, I can honestly say there is no greater heartache than losing a beloved spouse. At least none that I’ve experienced.”
    “So you’re saying Dad’s hurting more than me?”
    “I’m saying it’s a different kind of pain. One he may not feel comfortable discussing with his daughter.”
    “So you’re agreeing with Carson. You think Dad should see someone. Like a grief counselor.”
    “Maybe he just needs more time. And space.”
    Why did the latter feel like an insult? Bella shoved her wind tossed hair from her eyes and angled toward her friend. She wanted to change the subject, to sidestep what felt like an oncoming dose of tough love, but she’d sworn she could take it. And to be honest, she was curious. “Go on.”
    Angel cleared her throat. “Remember how you and the girls kept checking in on me after Eddie? After Baxter? Comforting me? Caring for me? “
    “I remember you telling us that you needed to stand on your own two feet.”
    “I could have leaned on you forever. Happily. Both times. But then I never would have healed. I needed to be okay with being alone. With taking care