In My Father's Shadow

by JL Paul

  Ally groaned and smacked RJ when he laughed at her. She picked up her heaping bag and dropped it unceremoniously in Cole’s trunk. “I’m picking the music,” she informed him before walking to the passenger’s side and yanking on the door handle.

  Cole waited for Alec to drop his bag in before slamming the trunk shut. “As you wish, princess.”

  She stood on the door frame, ripped her glasses off her face and glared at him over the top of his car. “Do not call me that,” she ordered, pointing a finger at him.

  Alec groaned as Jamie and Ren jogged to the parking lot. “Jamie,” Alec whined. “Please let me ride with you! I can’t take an hour and a half of this!”

  Jamie shrugged, wry smile on his face. “Dude, I’m riding with RJ.”

  RJ laughed harder and motioned for Alec to get in his car. Ally huffed, her jaw dropping. “Hey, I want to ride with you, too!”

  “Sorry, princess, you’re stuck with me. Get in the car,” Cole smirked as he opened the door and slipped in the car.

  She shot RJ and Jamie a glare before jamming her glasses back over her eyes and hopping into the car.

  “Good luck, dude,” RJ called with a grin. “See you there.”

  ****

  “Are you ever going to talk to me again, Al?” Cole asked after miles of silence – not even a peep from the radio.

  “No,” she pouted, staring out the window.

  He rubbed his forehead, unsure how to handle the situation. “What do you want me to do, huh?” he asked, desperation in his voice. “Do you actually want to risk our friendship that way? Or would you prefer me to treat you like I’ve treated my girlfriends in the past – forget all about them when I get busy with music and don’t call them, blow off dates – that sort of thing. Is that what you want?”

  “I don’t want to talk about this,” she said stonily, refusing to even glance his way.

  “Damn it, Al! I can’t stand you being mad at me!” He pounded his palm on the steering wheel and made her jump. “See, this is why I think you and I would be a bad idea. You can hardly stand to be around me and we haven’t even done anything.”

  “Cole,” she said softly. “Stop – just stop. I’ll get over it. Just give me some time.”

  “Fine,” he said angrily, snapping on the radio. “Just tell me when time’s up, huh? Do you think you could do that for me?”

  She nodded, ignoring his sarcasm, and glanced at him from the corner of her eye. They spent the rest of the drive in polite silence.

  ***

  Ally could hardly contain her excitement when they pulled up to the gates of her house. She dug in Cole’s glove box and found the remote control, pressing the OPEN button. She leaned forward as he carefully drove up the drive and the rustic, two story house came into view – the house she’d grown up in and the first one her father had ever purchased.

  As soon as Cole put the car in park, she unsnapped her seat belt and bolted out the door, eager to see her parents even though she’d barely been gone a month.

  “Don’t worry, Al,” he called after her sarcastically. “I’ll get your bag.”

  “Thanks,” she shouted over her shoulder as RJ’s car parked behind Cole’s. Ally bounded up the steps, figuring her friends would follow soon enough. They’d been there plenty of times and knew they were always welcome – didn’t even need to knock as they all had their own keys.

  Cole watched as she dashed up the steps where Liz, Ally’s mom, waited. He admired the striking difference between the two of them and the similarities. They were nearly the same height, Ally maybe a touch shorter, but Ally was dark with blue eyes whereas Liz was blonde with green eyes. He watched as they embraced before he dragged Ally’s bag out of the trunk and followed Alec up the steps.

  Jay, Ally’s father, stepped out on the porch and grinned at Cole as Ally launched herself into his arms. Jay kissed the top of her head as he hugged her while Alec greeted his mother.

  “How’s school, princess?” Jay asked. Cole snorted as he brushed past them, earning a glare from Ally.

  “Fine, Daddy,” she said, ignoring Cole.

  Cole laughed and entered the house, not surprised to find everyone gathered in the living room, waiting for their children. He dropped Ally’s bag and sought out his own father who was standing near the fireplace, a casual arm draped around the petite blonde’s shoulders next to him. Cole strode across the room and embraced his father. It had only been a few weeks since he’d left for school but Nate seemed to have developed few more lines in his face and a little more gray touching his temples.

  “How’s school going?” Nate asked, smiling fondly at his son.

  “Good,” he answered as he moved to peck the woman standing next to his father on the cheek. “How are you, Stacy?”

  “Fine, Cole,” she smiled softly eyes sparkling. “You look tired. Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah,” he said, waving off her concerns. He ruffled her hair and turned to greet Richie and Callie - RJ’s parents, and Mark, and Gretchen - Jamie’s parents.

  They all retired to the deck and he watched as Jamie threw a football to the younger boys. RJ’s little brothers, Ray and Ricky, looked like miniature Richie’s while Jamie’s little brother, Trevor, greatly resembled Gretchen. The mish-mashed family was all together again and normally that would bring him great peace. But that usual feeling was absent thanks to the tenseness that existed between him and Ally.

  He scanned the deck and found her with her arms around her father, smiling up at him, telling him all about her first volleyball game of the year. He kissed the top of her head and chucked her under the chin.

  “Sorry I couldn’t get your game,” he apologized. “I might not be able to make any at all this year but we’ll be done with the tour for most of basketball and probably all of softball season.”

  She beamed at him and kissed his cheek. “It’s okay, Daddy. I understand.”

  Cole turned away from them and walked to the edge of the deck, promptly lighting a cigarette.

  “I’m going to go say hi to Dancer,” he heard her say. She bounded off the deck and dashed to the barn to visit with her horse. “I’ll be right back,” she shouted.

  A pair of arms wrapped around his waist, startling him, and he jerked around to find Liz. He smiled at her and placed his arm around her shoulders. He’d always loved Liz and used to wish his own mother was more like her. “I thought you were going to quit?” she said.

  He shrugged, a rueful smile on his lips. “Yeah, well, you know.”

  “You two are arguing, aren’t you?” she asked quietly, nodding at the barn in which Ally had disappeared.

  He let out a short laugh. “How’d you guess?”

  She just smiled knowingly and patted his stomach. “I watched you two grow up together and I know how close you are. I could always tell when you two had a disagreement because you both are so stubborn that neither one wants to apologize.”

  He let out a genuine laugh and hugged Liz to his side. “Well, you pretty much hit the nail on the head this time.”

  “She’ll come around,” Liz reassured him. “Come on and eat. I know your dad is anxious to get you home. He has a lot to talk to you about.”

  Cole blanched as his arm locked around her. “What’s wrong, Liz?”

  She smiled again and squeezed his waist. “Honey, it’s not bad. Please don’t worry. Come inside and get something to eat.”

  “Yeah, sure,” he said as she dropped her arms and slipped inside the house with the other women. Cole finished his cigarette, his eyes trained on the barn. Ally suddenly reappeared and trekked slowly across the grounds toward the house and his heart flinched at the pain he could tell she was trying to hide. He wished he could do something to make everything better again but he had no clue where to start. He’d been eager to get home and ask his father how he should handle things but his father obviously had something serious to discuss with him. There was no way Cole would bring up his pesky little problems now.
>
  His world, which had seemed so in control at the beginning of the school year and heading in the right direction – was suddenly spinning in crazy circles and he was getting nauseous. He had no idea how to change things and set them right on course.

  Chapter Eight

  Cole beat his dad and Stacy home. He let himself in, dropped his bag in the brightly lit foyer and made a beeline through the lush living room and straight to the refrigerator. He opened the door and dug around until he pulled out a bottle of water. He cracked the seal and started to chug as he heard the front door open.

  “Should have known you’d head for the fridge,” Nate teased as he strolled into the kitchen and slapped Cole on the back. “Come down to the basement when you’re done, huh?”

  Cole nodded, threw his empty water bottle in the recycling bin and grabbed two more. He pounded down the stairs and found his dad standing near the drum kit, raking his fingers through his hair.

  “Don’t tell me you’re getting so old that you forgot what those things are,” Cole chided as he handed his dad a bottled water.

  “Just remember who taught you,” Nate said, yanking a set of sticks from his back pocket. He thrust them in Cole’s hand.

  “What?” Cole asked, hiding a smile and raising a brow. “What do you want me to do?”

  “Let’s hear this new stuff you and RJ are working on,” Nate said, nodding at the drum set.

  Cole grinned and set his water on a chair before walking behind the kit and settling on the stool. He warmed up with a simple beat before jumping in on the new stuff they’d been trying to teach Parker.

  They played around on the drums for about a half hour until Nate grew quiet and pensive. Cole put his sticks down and got out from behind the set.

  “All right, Dad,” he said, his anxiety level rising rapidly. “Tell me what’s going on.”

  Nate sighed, snatched an ashtray from a storage chest and motioned for Nate to follow him out of the music room and into the huge den, complete with a large screen plasma television anchored to the wall. Nate set the ashtray on the coffee table and grinned at his son.

  “Give me a smoke, boy, and keep it quiet. Stacy hates when I smoke in the house,” he said a bit sheepishly.

  Cole grinned, shook a cigarette out of his pack and offered to his dad. He popped one in his mouth and lit up, too. “She can’t kick both our asses.”

  Nate laughed. “Don’t be too sure.” Nate set his cigarette in the ashtray and watched as the bluish smoke curled as it floated toward the ceiling. “Smoking is nasty – you need to quit.”

  “Look who’s talking,” Cole said, his insides quivering. His dad usually just came straight out and said what was on his mind but his beating around the bush was really starting to worry Cole.

  “I did quit,” Nate said, pointing at the cigarette still burning in the tray. “Just once in awhile, you know, I get that urge.”

  Cole drew on his cigarette and stuck it next to his father’s. “Just spit it out already, Dad. Tell me what’s going on before I freak out here.”

  “Cole, do you like Stacy? I mean, honestly,” Nate asked, his eyes not meeting his son’s.

  Cole wrinkled his brow, totally confused. Maybe something was wrong with Stacy or maybe she was leaving or something. Cole hoped not – his dad had spent most of his life working and doing things for Cole. It was about time he had some kind of happiness in his life. And he knew Nate was crazy about Stacy – apparently they’d dated years and years ago but had to break up for some reason – something to do with her family. Cole swallowed uneasily. “Yeah, Dad. You know I’ve always told you if I didn’t like a woman you were dating. I’ve always been honest with you about that.”

  Nate nodded slowly. “Stacy and I have been talking and I think we’ve decided to just go ahead and get married.” Cole’s eyes lit up and his mouth opened but Nate stopped him from speaking. “But I’m not going to do it if you don’t approve.”

  “How can you say that?” Cole protested, his voice coming out in a squeak. “Of course I approve. I really like her and she seems to make you happy.”

  Nate visibly relaxed and stubbed the barely touched cigarette out in the ashtray. “Well, it’s just been you and I since you were ten and I just don’t want things to get awkward around here.” He looked a little sheepishly at his son. “She practically lives here, I know, but it’s not the same thing. I want to marry her but I don’t want it to be weird for you.”

  Cole shrugged and took a drink of his water. “Dad, it’s not weird for me. I like Stacy, a lot, and I think she fits in well in this crazy adopted sort of family we have going on here. I know she makes you happy and it seems like you make her happy so I think you should go for it.” Cole’s lips curled into an evil smirk. “Or are you demanding she make an honest man out of you?”

  Nate laughed and threw his bottle cap at his son. “You’re a riot, kid.”

  Cole sat back, the tension evaporating from his body. “Yeah, I know. So when are you getting married?”

  Nate shrugged. “Probably around Thanksgiving. We already have a break from the tour scheduled so Stacy and I figured that’s as good a time as any. It’s going to be a simple ceremony – that’s what we both want.” Nate’s smile warmed as he placed a hand on his son’s shoulder. “And I’d like it if you’d be the best man.”

  Cole’s eyes grew. “What about Jay?”

  Nate squeezed Cole’s shoulder. “Jay understands – he was the best man for my first marriage, anyway. He thinks it should be this way. And Stacy’s going to have her daughter Stephanie, stand up with her.”

  Cole nodded. “Ah, the elusive daughter I’ve never met.”

  “That’s because you’re always away at school and she was with her dad over the summer.” Nate finished off his water and crushed the bottle in his hands. “Stacy wants to transfer her to Woodsedge Academy after the holidays.”

  Cole rolled his eyes and fell back into the sofa. “Maybe Stephanie can hang out with Ally and take some of the heat off my back.”

  Nate’s brows dipped as he studied his son. “You two seemed a little off tonight. What’s going on?”

  Cole sighed and ran his hands through his hair, the confusion starting the carousel in his brain. “I really don’t know anymore.” He got up and crossed the room to study the memorabilia on the walls. “Honestly.”

  “Did you two argue?” Nate prodded.

  Cole shrugged and bent his head over the water bottle in his hands. “I have feelings for her, Dad, and it’s killing me,” he whispered, breathing much easier now that all the weight was lifting off his chest and shoulders. He’d admitted what was bothering him – confided in someone. He turned to see his father’s reaction

  But Nate was smiling. “Yeah, I sort of thought so.”

  Cole gawked at his dad. “Really?”

  Nate moved before Cole and took his shoulders. “Yeah. So what’s the story?”

  Cole dropped his head and took a deep breath. He lifted his eyes and met his father’s gaze. “I kissed her over the summer, before she left for camp, and it’s kind of gone downhill from there,” he said. “It was an accident – I shouldn’t have done it, but it happened, you know? We talked about what happened earlier this year and I thought that would be the end of it.”

  “But it wasn’t,” Nate prodded.

  Cole shook his head. “She kissed me last weekend after one of our shows. I let her but I stopped it before things could go…you know…too far. She got very upset with me because I told her we couldn’t be together. Now she’s hardly speaking to me.”

  “Why?” Nate asked, utter confusion washing over his face. “Why can’t you two be together?”

  Cole looked up at his dad in surprise. “You should know why!”

  “Well I don’t.”

  Cole sighed. “She’s my best friend. You and her dad are best friends. We’re still in school. The list goes on.”

  Nate smiled again. “Jay and Liz were the best of friends
before they got together and now look at them. I swear they act like they did when they first started dating. And as far as Jay and I are concerned, neither one of us would have a problem with you two dating.” He sat down on the sofa, yanking Cole down beside him. “Liz’s dad told her once that he didn’t believe love knew any age.”

  “I didn’t say I loved her,” Cole quickly butted in – leaning back and holding up his hands as if in surrender.

  Nate laughed. “I’m just saying.”

  Cole released a loud breath. “I’m terrible with girlfriends. I forget their birthdays. I forget about stuff I’m supposed to do with them. I get so wrapped up in the band that nothing else matters.”

  Nate’s face turned solemn. “When’s Ally’s birthday?”

  Cole wrinkled his brow. “February 27th.”

  “What’s her favorite color?”

  “Blue.”

  “When’s her next volleyball game?”

  “Thursday in our gym.” Cole regarded his father curiously. “What’s your point?”

  “You never forget anything to do with her.” Nate sat back with a smug grin on his face.

  Cole groaned and dug the heels of his hands in his eyes. “That’s because she’s my best friend. And that’s my biggest fear. What if we do try this and it doesn’t work? What happens to our friendship?”

  Nate leaned forward and thought for a second. “Well, that’s a chance you have to both be willing to take. Is your friendship strong enough to survive something like that?”

  “I…” Cole started but Nate held up his hand.

  “I don’t need to know the answer. That’s something you need to figure out for yourself. And then something you need to talk to Ally about.”

  Cole closed his eyes and nodded. He digested his dad’s words slowly, knowing all along he was right. But it sure didn’t make things any easier. “Thanks, Dad.”

  “No problem, son,” Nate said.

  “And honestly, I don’t have a problem at all with you and Stacy. It’s about time you stopped worrying about taking care of me and focused on you,” Cole said.