Total pages in book: 135
Estimated words: 128211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128211 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
“There’s my girl.”
I swallowed, spine snapping straight like a soldier called to attention. That greeting — warm and proud — always hit like a paradox. It wrapped around me like a soft blanket and sank like a stone in my stomach all at once.
“Hey, Dad.”
“It’s been more than a month since I’ve heard from you.”
“You know, the phone works both ways.”
“Well, I never know with your… job if you’ll be able to answer. I just assume you’ll call me when you can.”
I rolled my eyes. Just one of many of my father’s assumptions.
“And here you are!” he continued. I could almost see his bright grin, the way it took up his whole face like a politician’s smile. “How are you? Where are you? Oh, your mother is here, too.”
“Hello, darling,” Mom’s soft voice called from the background. “So good to hear from you. I’ve been hoping I’d see you post an update on Facebook but haven’t seen anything.”
I chuckled. “No offense, Mom, but I only post on Facebook because you and Aunt Zoe beg me to. You need to download Instagram. Also, I can’t post anything until the show airs, remember?”
There was a beat of silence, like they’d both completely forgotten about the show.
Or maybe they’d hoped it wasn’t real.
“Oh, that’s right,” Dad said with that tone I was so used to hearing over the years. It was the same one he used when he and Mom hosted a party and he got caught in a conversation he wasn’t particularly interested in, or one he didn’t agree with. “So, you went through with that, did you?”
“I told you I was.” I tried not to grit those words through my annoyance that they were pretending like this was surprising news. “And it’s going great, which is why I wanted to call. We just wrapped up the fifth charter, got four more to go. Captain Gary has told me a few times now how proud he is of me.” I sat a bit straighter at that, my smile genuine. “He says he knew I’d be a great chief stew and that I’m proving him right.”
There was another long pause. I wondered if my parents were exchanging that look they thought was so hard to read when I knew exactly what it said even if no words left their mouths.
“Well, it doesn’t surprise me that you’re good at making cocktails and doing laundry, Ember,” my father clipped. “You’ve been great at everything you’ve put your mind to all your life. I just wish you put your mind to something a little more respectable.”
Ice pricked my veins just as there was a knock on my cabin door. It flew open before I could say a word, and Eli swung in with one hand on the doorframe and a wide grin on his face. “Em, what are you—” He clapped a hand over his mouth when he saw me on the phone, mouthing a sorry. But instead of backing out of the room, he took one look at my face and frowned, easing inside and plopping down on the bed next to me.
“It is respectable, Dad. It’s hard work. You know how many years I’ve hustled to earn this title.”
“And you know there is a position waiting for you here with me that would pay four times the amount you’re making there — if not more.”
“It’s not about the money.”
Dad’s laugh made my jaw ache. It was a placating kind of laugh, and I knew he was likely shaking his head, too. “And that’s how I know you’re still young, my sweet daughter. You may think I’m being harsh, but I push you because I love you. I want the best for you. You’ve never had to live a life where money is tight. You’ve never experienced the things I did as a child — and I’m glad for that. I’m happy your mother and I could provide a better lifestyle for you than either of us had. But you don’t think about money because you’ve never had to.”
I swallowed, my chest flushing with something between rage and shame. He was right, of course. But I hated that he was using my privilege to discount my passion.
“And as your father, sometimes I have to play the bad guy in order to set you up for success.”
Mom had either left the room or was staying silent, as usual. How I wished she was the kind of mom who would step in at times like this. How would it feel to hear her hush my father for once, to tell him to mind his business while she asked me more about whatever it was that made me happy?
What would it be like, to have the support of even one parent?
“I’m happy, Dad,” I said, and Eli put a hand on my knee, squeezing. My eyes stung with that little sign of support. “I’m making a name for myself. I am successful, and some day, I’ll be running a superyacht all on my own as the sole purser.”