Pieces of it All (10 page)

He had to admit, though, rehab proved to be a good thing. Maggie changed his life. The thought of alcohol sickened him now. He didn't want to go back. He couldn't. He needed answers because the one lone photo of his mom didn't give him any information. It wasn't fair his father refused to answer questions or even acknowledge she existed. He had every right to know where he came from. He was so much more than a recovering alcoholic. The smiling boy in the photo -
that
was Harvey. Where did he go? When did it all change?

"Harvey? Can I see you in my office, please?" Nelson dismissed Harvey from the counter, leaving the only other employee currently working, an elderly gentleman named James, to man the store.

Nelson closed the door behind them. "Please, take a seat." Harvey sat in the plastic chair, placing his hands in his lap. "I wanted to talk to you about what happened yesterday." Nelson's chair scraped against the floor as he pulled it out from under his desk. He cleared his throat as he sat down.

"I thought we already did. It won't happen again, Nelson." He'd be fucked if he lost his job, and not in the way he liked. "I don't know why that guy singled me out." He couldn't associate himself with Ricky, and doing so wouldn't help his argument to stay employed at the auto store.

Nelson steadied his chair on two legs, and crossed his arms behind his head. Harvey got a view of the gray hairs trying to run from his nose. His nostrils found the hair his head lost. "I'm aware we discussed this already. I just need you to understand I can't have this kind of activity in the store. I'm trying to run a business here." He released his hands from behind and folded them across his chest. "Whatever activities you ran with Ricky Hicks before you cleaned yourself up needs to stay in the past."

He managed to find enough saliva in his mouth to swallow. "I understand." Son of a bitch. Nelson wasn't dumb, and was well aware of Harvey's connection with him. The clocked ticked in the background, each second drawing out the tension.

The legs of the chair met the floor, an echo of doubt forming in the air. "Do you? I'm doing quite a favor for my cousin. Maggie swore up and down you were a good guy and you wouldn't cause any trouble." He pointed his finger at Harvey. "I've got every right to fire your ass."

He couldn't let Maggie down. She pulled a lot of strings and broke the rules to get him this job, and believed in his ability to start a sober life on his own. The anticipation of leaving the facility had panicked him up until the moment he was about to walk out the door. She had reassured him everything would be okay. He believed her. There was no reason not to.

"I'm sorry about Ricky. I don't hang with him anymore. I swear. It won't happen again." He forced a swallow, fully aware he made a promise he had no control over.

Nelson furrowed his graying brow. "I'm sure you've said those words a lot in your life."

Harvey pressed against the chair, Maggie's voice in his head guiding him. Eight months ago, this is when he would dive over the desk and hit Nelson as hard as he could, and race home and polish off whatever his dad had in the house. Then him and his father would have another altercation over drinking his alcohol. He thought of Beth. Not only would he be letting Maggie down, but Beth as well. He'd have a ton of explaining to do. He locked his past away, and he intended to keep it there, or at least make the effort to do so.

"Sir, your cousin helped me through quite a bit. I've changed. Yes, I have said that in the past. I truly mean it now. I don't want that part of my life anymore. I'm ready to be a dedicated employee. I doubt Ricky will come back in here. I won't disappoint you." He needed to believe his own words. Now more than ever.

A torturous minute followed as he waited for Nelson to respond. Begging wasn't going to happen. He'd find something else before he pleaded. It may have been easier starting over with Maggie's help and connection to her cousin's store, but maybe filling the gap in his resume with some stupid lie would've been simpler than dealing with Nelson's doubts.

Nelson folded his hands under his chin when his elbows met the desk. "I'll give you one chance. That's it. You got it?"

Harvey did. He'd already been given the second chance the moment he checked himself into the rehab center. He was lucky he even had that one. He couldn't blow it.

The dishes clanked in the sink as Beth's mom washed off the leftover scraps before placing them in the soapy water. "I really wish we had a dishwasher," she admitted. "Of everything we've upgraded in this house, we should have gotten one." Her mom wiped her hand across her forehead and let her eyelids fall.

"Another migraine?"

"No. I'm fine." She opened her eyes and kept cleaning the dishes.

Beth squeezed in next to her. "Let me finish this. Get some rest." Beth wondered when she would finally give in and go to a doctor about the headaches. Her mind wandered to a mountain of possibilities: a stroke, a tumor, or something else in her body affecting her brain. Gosh, she was still a teenager; she
needed
her mom.

"Thanks, dear." She flung the towel off her shoulder and onto the counter. She walked over to the table and sat down.

"Mom, why don't you go lay down in your bedroom?" Beth suggested as she rearranged the dishes in the sink. She liked the plates on the bottom, bowls stacked on top, cup placed in a circle around them, and the silverware inside those. She couldn't wash them any other way.

She waved her hand up, but not quite in surrender. "I will in a minute. I have to talk to you about something."

Her mom didn't often sit her down for a serious discussion. Her parents never felt the need to have a lot of "talks" with her. Maybe she finally went to a doctor. Oh, God, could it be cancer? Or something worse? She turned the faucet on and ran her hands under until the water heated up. "About?"

Her mom clicked her tongue, a noise she always made when trying to formulate the best opening line. Today Beth didn't care how much the sound annoyed her. If her mom was going to dump the news on her she had cancer, she could make all the noises she wanted. "Your father and I talked for awhile before he went to work. We think you need to get a job."

The soap squirted past the dish and onto the stainless steel. She used the sponge to wipe it up, squeezing under the water to form a lather. A job? Talk about being out of left field. "I'm going to school in less than two months. Why get a job now? I figured I'd find something part-time on campus once I'm in school." Beth thought for a moment. "This is dad's idea, isn't it? Why didn't he stay down here to talk to me?"

"I thought I should. Dad tends to get a little anxious about these things."

"These things?" His life revolved around telling people how to make and use money. She doubted he was nervous.

"Boys."

The dish slipped out of Beth's hand, but she managed to catch it. "What are you talking about?" Apparently the conversation they had earlier in the day wasn't good enough.

Her mom pinched the bridge of her nose. "You seem to be spending a lot of time with this Harvey fellow. A job will keep you busy."

"Mom, you're assuming all I do is think about this guy twenty-four hours a day and pine over him. I'm not like that. That's not what's happening." Sort of. She'd be lying if she said she never thought of his incredible body and tasty lips.

"We know, honey. We want to make sure it doesn't get too serious too fast. You're so young, Beth."

She set a dish on the drying rack. Her parents were acting like she were tying the knot tomorrow. "You and dad were young."

"You're right, but times were different then." She rubbed her hands on her cheeks. "I just think you need to slow things down."

Slow things down
. They hadn't a clue the speed of anything. They did marry in a different time, when getting married young and starting a family was something everyone did. Were they even
aware
of
how many girls in her school had sex? They'd be in for quite an eye opener if they listened in on some of the conversations the girls at school had. "You think, or Dad thinks?"

Her mom let out a sigh. "We
both
think this, Beth."

She picked up another dish, scrubbing the soap harder than necessary. "I can't figure out what any of this has to do with Harvey. I'll get a job when I start school. It's not fair to wherever I work if I leave two months after I start." Or Harvey, who she wanted to spend as much time with as possible. Or Lucy, who she had to hang out with a little more before she left for school. Or herself, who just wanted to enjoy her last summer before officially becoming an adult.

"I talked to Aunt Sue. She said she could use some help with her cleaning business."

It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the need to work, even as a teenager, but they agreed two years ago when she got her license school was enough responsibility. Education topped the priority list and a job may be too distracting. Getting a job with the intention to leave in two months was irresponsible. Her parents insisted on this for all the wrong reasons. They hadn't even met Harvey and already were trying to keep them apart. "So what, I'm supposed to
clean
all summer?"

Giving into her headache and imminent migraine, her mom excused herself from the table. "You'll be fine, Beth. Make a little extra money - she's going to pay you with cash - and you'll stay busy, rather than be holed up in the house the next few months."

"Or with Harvey."

"Or with Harvey. You can see him, honey, but don't spend every minute he's free with him."

She started scrubbing another dish, the soap covering her hands. "Harvey has a job. I don't spend every free minute with him." The calm, rational Beth disappeared, giving way to agitated, speed talking Beth. "And if I wanted to spend all my time with him, what's the big deal anyway? I'm going to be meeting all kinds of people in school. Are you going to stop me from seeing them, too?" The dish almost broke when she slammed it onto the drying rack. She ran her hands under the water to clean the excessive soap off. "I've always been responsible. Why don't you and Dad trust me all of a sudden? He didn't freak out I was dating Ryan."

"We
do
trust you, Beth. We don't necessarily trust this Harvey guy."

"You don't even know him." Beth's voice deepened, slowing as she said the words.

She took a few steps forward and leaned against the counter, placing her hands on her hips. "People talk. We've heard a few things."

Beth picked up a towel and wiped the tops of the cups so the water wouldn't pool. "Like what?"

She rubbed the side of her neck. "His dad has a, um, well, a drinking problem."

She'd had it. She tossed the towel on top of the drying dishes. "That's a rumor, Mom, and even if it
were
true, does that mean Harvey has one too? I hope you have more confidence in me than to date someone like that. It's not fair to Harvey, or me, to judge him before you know him. What kind of a person does that make
you
?" She pointed her finger at her mom, quickly putting it back down. Holy shit. Beth's heart raced as she stared back at her, tapping her foot rapidly on the floor. She put her hand on the counter for support while she waited for a response. Her mom started laughing. What the hell? "What's so funny?"

She traded the laugh for a silent smile. "Beth, you are growing into quite the young woman. You're right. I shouldn't judge Harvey, but that doesn't mean your father and I can't look out for you." She pushed herself off the counter. "Harvey or not, please call Aunt Sue. A job isn't a bad thing. I know you know that. A smart girl like you realizes it isn't too early to start saving up some cash." Her mom approached her now, and put her hands on Beth's shoulders. "Fine. I'll give Harvey a chance." She paused. "If you get a job."

Sigh. A job
would
cut into her time with Harvey, but working for her aunt would give her more freedom than any other job. School was eight weeks away, and then she'd be off on her own, making her own decisions. Her mom wanted to lie down, and she wanted to be done with the conversation. "Okay." She was defeated.

Chapter Twelve

Beth wasn't uncomfortable going to her aunt's house alone; she preferred Harvey accompany her. Her mom probably filled Aunt Sue in on her relationship with Harvey, setting Beth up for an evening of interrogation. At least with Harvey along, he could save her from some of the questioning.

Approaching her mom and dad about Harvey coming with her weighed on her the whole night. Her aunt already agreed to it, but she still had to tell her parents. She either had to inform them, or let them find out from Sue, so she bit the bullet and decided on initiating the conversation.

"Hey, Dad," she said as he rushed in the door after work. He tossed his briefcase on the table. Beth sat at the counter, having pretzels for a snack. She flipped a pretzel into her mouth. "Mom! Can you come in here?" Her mom was in the living room preparing for her book club which met that evening.

Her dad took off his suit jacket and rested it on a chair. "Do you need me?" He asked as he opened the refrigerator door. "I got an urgent phone call on my way home and must get upstairs and deal with it." He bobbed his head up and down, searching the contents on the shelves. "Isn't there left over pizza or something?"

Beth pushed her bowl of pretzels aside. "Not sure, but yeah, I need to talk to you, too."

"Is it important?" He shut the door and turned around.

"Yeah, kind of," she answered as her mom came strolling in. "You can either sit or stand. Up to you."

"Which would be better?" He asked as he straightened his stance.

Better? Better would be not having the conversation at all. "It doesn't matter. I'll just talk."

"Good idea," her mom agreed.

She cleared her throat. "Anyway, I'm going to Aunt Sue's tonight to discuss the job like you suggested." Both nodded, their curiosity filling their faces. "Harvey is picking me up."