Free Better Not Love Me by Dan Kolbet

was sitting in the Dallas airport lounge waiting to catch a flight to Spokane to have his first meeting with Amelia Cook about Mr. Z's Toys. But the doctor needed to see Nate right away. He postponed his meeting with Amelia for one day and headed to the doctor's office and into the unknown.

Chapter 11
    Present day
     
    "I really appreciate you helping me out on this project, Marcus," Nate said as he held a level against a support post and adjusted the angle. They were standing at the base of the half-built deck.                                              
    "I'm happy to do it," Marcus said. "It's pretty boring over at our cabin and Mom won't let me go to the park to play basketball anymore."
    "No basketball, huh? Why's that?"
    Nate could see that Marcus hesitated, like he didn't want to answer the question truthfully, or at least directly.
    "Oh, no reason. She just wants me to stay home."
    "I see," Nate said, knowing full well that Marcus was withholding something from him.
    "Is Chloe around today?" Marcus asked.
    Nate knew the real reason the boy was so eager to help him build the deck—he was after his daughter Chloe. Chloe at just 17 years old had already been forced to fend off many young and old male suitors. She was asked to the prom and homecoming by seniors when she was just a freshman. Chloe was a beautiful girl who, in his fatherly opinion, showed too much skin; but she was a good kid and looked so much like her mother it was painful. He and Chloe had a great relationship, but he wasn't always able to be there for her like he should be. He worked too much. Weekends weren't enough for a teenager. Especially one who'd rather spend her Saturday and Sunday with her friends.
    "Chloe is at the supermarket getting groceries," Nate replied. "We were running low on just about everything."
    Nate saw Marcus' heart sink at the news. Sorry kid , but not really, he thought.
    Bringing Chloe to Idaho this summer was not easy to sell, until he bribed her. She wanted to stay in Dallas and work at a water park to earn money for a car.
    "Spend the summer at our cabin on Lake Coeur d'Alene, and I'll buy you a car when we get back. But you've got to promise not to mope the entire summer.  I don't think I can handle that."
    "So no job, but I get the car anyway? I just have to spend the summer at the beach in Idaho?"
    "That's the deal."
    "I think I can handle that," she said.
    After meeting Marcus on their first day she hadn't complained once. She even seemed excited about the next few months.
    Marcus and Nate were sinking decking screws into the first half of the base floor of the deck. They were both on their hands and knees. Marcus was holding the boards in place, while Nate sank the screws. Once that section was complete, they would tear down the old half of the deck and begin the process of setting the support structure and eventually the rest of the deck. They'd finish it off with a new railing, then they would stain it.
    "How come my mom hates you so much?" Marcus asked. The words were casual, but Nate was still surprised to hear such a direct question. Or maybe he was surprised by the word "hate."
    "I didn't know her dislike for me went quite that high," Nate said, not showing his surprise at the question. "She said she hated me?"
    "Well, not in those exact words, but she's normally really nice to people and she's not very nice to you."
    "I noticed that."
    "So, how come?" Marcus asked again.
    "We worked together for many years. We didn't agree on everything, but I think you'll have to ask her that question."
    "I did."
    "And what did she tell you?" Nate asked.
    "She said she didn't really know you, but the parts she knew weren't very nice."
    "That's a fair statement, I think," Nate said, knowing that Amelia really didn't know him at all. Their interactions were so limited, how could she?
    "Do you hate her?" Marcus asked.
    Nate sank the next screw, then set the drill down so he could