Page 38 of Nicks and Cuts

“She told me. I congratulated her.”

“Is Riley another sibling?”

“My sister—the youngest. Both my older brothers are married, one with kids, one with a fur baby, and now Riley is engaged. I am letting down the family again.”

“What do your siblings do?”

“Alex does voice-overs and has branched out into audiobook narration, and his wife does the tech.” Shannon’s Dad said. “Kelly mostly does stage productions. He can sing so he also does a bit of session work.”

“What Dad’s leaving out is that between performing, they are waiting tables or helping Dad with the real estate.”

“Everyone has to make ends meet somehow,” Shannon’s father cautioned. “Not everyone can do nine to five, and more importantly, not everyone wants to sell their time for dollars.”

Shannon took a drink, fighting the urge to say something.

“You’d know all about that, Dante. I can’t imagine that knife making is like a regular job.” Shannon’s mother smiled at him, seeking back-up.

She wasn’t going to get it from him.

“Some days I wish it was nine to five. The trouble with working for yourself and running your own business is that you’re always working. There are always emails to reply to, a website to update, stock to get, advertising to do…it’s not all banging away in the workshop.” As Shannon put it.

It had been at first. He would stand for as long as he could hammering out blades until his leg was ready to give up. Then he’d rest, and use the gym, pushing himself until sometimes he couldn’t walk up the stairs.

A look passed between Shannon’s parents. It was one Dante couldn’t decipher. They were nothing like his parents, who would happily work all day and then spend their evenings dealing with the horses and their weekends doing more horsey stuff. He’d been so fucking sick of horses by the time he left for the army…

In that moment, he understood Shannon just a little bit more. He was sick of the whitened teeth, big smiles and hunger for the next thing. His need for stability made a whole lot more sense now that he was talking to the people who raised him.

“Well, it’s a very nice place you’ve got here, and I’m glad you rented out a room to Shannon, so he had somewhere to land. As a parent, it’s always worrying when a child takes off, and it was so out of character for him.”

“Thanks, Mom.”

“I’m just saying, you are not the one who threw down your toys and walked out.”

“It was hardly throwing down my toys,” Shannon said dryly. “I wanted a change and this job came up. It was serendipitous.”

“We worry that’s all. You’re so far away. If anything happens to you on that bike…”

“You’re literally listed as my emergency contact, and if it would make you feel better, I’ll stick your number to the fridge so if something happens, Dante can call you.”

Shannon’s father pulled out a magnet. “It’s got my mobile on it.”

It also advertised his real estate business.

Dante picked it up. “Thanks.”

Shannon rolled his eyes.

“Well, we had a very long day, and if we have to drive back tomorrow…” Shannon’s mother looked at him.

Dante smiled. “You’re welcome to stay a few more days. I will give you the same room rate as Shannon—pro rata, of course, because you’re not staying a full week.” Dante lifted his eyebrows as if he was quite happy to have them stay longer for some extra cash.

Shannon’s father laughed. “You’re a real shark.”

“And that’s why I’ve got to be on my best behavior,” Shannon said with a tight smile.

“We’ll head off to bed and see you in the morning.” Dante didn’t miss the way Shannon’s father looked at their son as if silently telling him they’d be talking alone.

Shannon got up and hugged his mother and father and showed them to the spare room, which was not that far from Dante’s room.