Promises (TP 6)

64 - Answer

By the time Patrick finished work on Monday, he felt exhausted. He couldn't afford to think of his personal life at work, so he focused on his patients. Driving home, he remembered he had a house full of guests. He loved his parents, but he really wanted to try calling Tessa or go for a surf or both. Because it was lighter, longer in the summer, he could surf after work.

The house smelled wonderful when he walked in. His mother was in the kitchen. He asked, "Where's Hannah?"

"She's been at the beach all day."

"It's her night to cook. Does she know you're cooking?"

Dawn shook her head. "We came home from our outing with Kristi, and I looked in the refrigerator. I didn't see anything for dinner, so I had Gabby take me to the store. She didn't mention Hannah."

"Where's Gabby now?"

"I think she's upstairs with Brooke, Logan, and Kevin, the young one. The old one is on the deck."

Patrick saw his father sitting with a beer and a crossword book. He was a crossword whiz. He stepped into the garage and grabbed a beer from the fridge. There was enough left over beer that he could have one every day for a month. He'd have to have Dan over, but that meant Kristi. He wanted to avoid Kristi, because he didn't want to tell her he was a failure.

He didn't know why he was so bad at relationships. He never was in the past. Why was he so clueless? Just when he thought it was going well, it wasn't.

"Hey Dad." He sat down beside him with a sign.

"Good day?"

"Yeah. I had two simple jaw repairs and then spent the afternoon with consults and follow-ups. Very routine, but there will be a surge of teenagers now that school is out for the summer."

"Are there really that many people around?"

He laughed. "Compared to California, Maine's tiny, but there are less of us. We only compete with one other practice in the Portland area."

"I'm proud of you, son. You're doing a good job with those kids too."

He shook his head. "I'm not so sure." He was angry with Hannah. He put it aside because of graduation.

He hadn't expected the graduation to be so difficult. Maybe he was naïve. The moment he made eye contact with Jack Harris, he knew. Other than playing poker with him, he didn't know Jack very well. Maybe he was avoiding him because of what they had in common. He wondered if Jack cried when he went home after graduation, although Jack didn't go home to an empty bed.

He put down his beer. "I think I'll go check on Hannah."

His father nodded and went back to his puzzle. He stepped back into the kitchen.

"I'm going to check on Hannah."

"Have you heard from your girl?"

He frowned and shook his head. "I'll be back."

As much as he wanted to call Tessa, he didn't. He had left her too many voicemails. Each time her phone went unanswered, he felt a step closer to the reality that they weren't meant to be. Maybe she wasn't ready, or maybe it was him. He just didn't understand, because things felt fine to him. Did he push her? He wasn't hiding that they were a couple at the party. That was probably the catalyst for Hannah's outburst over Tessa's gift.

Sadness filled him, but the cause was difficult to pinpoint part of it was Erica, but there was also disappointment. He had mentally embraced the possibility of a future with Tessa. He was getting to know her daughters. They were having a baby. He didn't know anything about custody and visitation. It overwhelmed him.