Page 25 of Searching for Love

By the time he was done, the entire upstairs was clean enough to have guests. Sure, the floors up there could use sanding and a fresh coat of stain, but at least he had a massive area rug to cover most of the really bad boards.

He still didn’t have much furniture, but he figured that he could head to his storage unit first thing in the morning and grab a few things. After all, he had to run back to Edgeview to get everything that he’d need to make Hannah and Wyatt’s trial wedding dinner.

When he woke, it was to the sound of thunder. He groaned when he realized he’d slept through his alarm. Pulling himself out of bed, he dressed quickly and gathered everything he’d need to get his supplies for the day.

Since it was raining, and he didn’t have a cover for his truck, he’d have to put off getting too many of his things out of storage.

The short drive on the highway to Edgeview was easy enough, as it was still too early for most people to be out on the weekend.

However, the quaint streets of Edgeview bustled with life as he navigated his truck through the familiar roads. He pulled up to the grocery store closest to his mother’s place, the one store he knew for sure that he could find all the ingredients he needed for his special dinner.

As he stepped out of his truck, a knot tightened in his stomach as an old memory flickered in his mind. He hadn’t thought about it in years. He and his parents had come here one rainy day to get groceries. His mother had been very pregnant with Sophia. He remembered that detail since she was moving so slowly with her very large belly, which had stuck out of the bright yellow raincoat she had on. He could still remember the sound of her rain boots, which had squeaked on the floor as they traveled down every aisle.

His father had been drunk. He didn’t have to think hard to remember that fact since it was a rarity for his father to be sober.

About halfway through the family’s outing, his father had gotten irritated at something and started pulling his mother down each aisle, as if to make her walk faster.

When his mother slipped and fell, he grew even angrier. The only thing that had stopped his father from kicking his mother as she lay sprawled out on the wet tile floor was the store manager rushing over to help his mother up.

That was one of the days that Lucas could remember understanding what his father was. What kind of monster had lived within the man?

Shaking the bad memories from his head, he dashed into the store.

As he moved through the aisles, picking up fresh vegetables, spices, and other essentials for his planned items, he tried not to think of all the times he’d been in this store with his father.

Edgeview was a town filled with memories, but none seemed to haunt him quite like the ones in this store did. It wasn’t often that Lucas dwelled on his childhood, but here, amidst the fluorescent lights and neatly stocked shelves, the memories came flooding back with an intensity he hadn’t anticipated.

Maybe his mind was returning to the past and his childhood after hearing so many wonderful stories from Avery about her life. The difference between their childhoods was stark.

Forty minutes passed in a blur as he carefully selected each ingredient, his focus unwavering despite the unsettled feeling in the pit of his stomach. Just as he reached for the last item on his list, a voice sliced through the air like a knife, sending a shiver down his spine.

Diego.

Jerking his head around, he saw his father standing at the end of the aisle. The years had been unkind to him. The once-vibrant man was now worn down by time and the demons that obviously haunted him.

Lucas felt his entire body tense as his father’s gaze locked onto his. Suddenly, a wave of apprehension washed over him like a tidal wave. He had hoped to never cross paths with the man who had brought so much pain into their lives, yet here he was, standing before him once again.

The smell of alcohol lingered in the air as Diego approached, his footsteps heavy with the weight of years of regret and resentment. Lucas’s jaw clenched as he struggled to maintain his composure, his fists tightening around the handle of the grocery cart.

“What are you doing here, Diego?” Lucas’s voice was low, barely audible above the hum of the store lights.

Diego’s smirk widened, a glimmer of mischief dancing in his eyes, which unfortunately matched Lucas’s so perfectly. Diego leaned in closer, invading Lucas’s personal space with an air of entitlement.

“Heard you’re opening up your place in Pride. Figured I’d come to congratulate you,” he slurred, his words dripping with sarcasm. “Figured it was about damn time you paid me back.”

“For?” Lucas’s eyes narrowed.

“You owe me, boy, for what you done to me. The lies you told. All those years I lost.” His father’s words slurred even more.

Lucas felt his temper flare at the mention of his father’s past sins, his resolve hardening like steel as he met the older man’s gaze with unwavering determination.

“I don’t owe you a thing,” he spat, his voice barely containing his rage. “Not after what you did.”

Diego’s laughter cut through the air like a knife, drawing the attention of nearby shoppers who glanced over with curiosity and concern.

“You always were ungrateful, boy,” Diego sneered, his laughter morphing into a cold, bitter edge. “It’s about time you gave your father some goddamn respect.”

Lucas felt a surge of anger boil within him, but he forced himself to stay calm, refusing to give his father the satisfaction of seeing him lose control.

“You lost any right to my respect that day, ten years ago,” he growled, his voice barely above a whisper. “Now listen to me and listen well. You stay away from me, from Mom, from Sophia. You’re not welcome here.”

For a moment, a flicker of uncertainty crossed Diego’s face as he looked at Lucas’s unwavering gaze. Hopefully, the weight of his words sank in like an anchor dragging him down into the depths of his guilt and shame from his past. Lucas doubted it, but at least the old man paused. Then, the moment was over.

“You can’t tell me what to do, boy,” he muttered, his bravado faltering slightly as Lucas took a step forward.

“Try me,” Lucas whispered, his eyes blazing with anger and intensity. “If you even think about coming near my family again, you’ll regret it.”

With a final, defiant jerk of his cart, Lucas broke free from his father’s hold and made his way to the checkout, his heart still racing from the encounter.

As he loaded his groceries into his truck and drove back to Pride, a sense of determination settled over him like a cloak. No matter what demons may resurface, he vowed to protect his family at all costs, just as he had all those years ago.