Unfinished Business

Chapter 5

Owen

I woke up the next day, ready to get answers out of Abby. When Bree woke up excited for the party, is when I realized I was probably not going to get them. I couldn't ruin Mr. and Mrs. Moore's party no matter how much I want answers.

I turned the TV on and told Bree to watch her cartoon's while I went to the bathroom to shower. When I was finished and dressed, I helped Bree get dressed and told her it was time for breakfast.

"Can we have pancakes?" She asked as I opened the bedroom door to the hall.

"We are guests, remember. So, we eat whatever we are given." She nodded, but I heard a little sigh too and laughed. She loved to have breakfast and it was hard sometimes working to raise her to be polite and grateful. Her mom wasn't the best example when it came to these and other things.

As we reached the end of the hall, where the stairs were, Abby stepped off the last stair. I send her a smile, trying to make her see that I'm not angry like I was last night. I want answers but after thinking about it all night, I know that she would never do anything to hurt anyone no matter how mad at me she was. I know I should apologize to her for yelling at her, but, the fake smile on her face this morning makes me think I should wait.

"Queen Abby," Bree draws her attention to me and I see her fake smile turn into a real one.

"Good morning, Princess Bree."

"Are you ready for breakfast?" Bree asks her and she nods her head. "Me too! What is your favorite food to eat?"

I caught Abby looking at me quickly before looking back at Bree, "Pancakes. How about you?"

"Pancakes too!" Bree told her loudly before wiggling her hand from mine and grabbing Abby's. "Hurry lets go see if Mrs. Moore made some. I like her pancakes."

"Me too. Let's go," Abby said, walking away from me. I watched them walk off with a small smile before I followed. At least she liked my daughter, even if she didn't like me.

When we get to the dining room, everyone else is already there. Mr. Moore is listening to my dad tell him something that sounds like his latest golf game. Both moms stop setting the table to give Abby sympathetic looks. Caleb won't look up from his plate to even acknowledge anyone, least of all Abby. She sits down across from him, with Bree crawling up into the chair beside her. I sit beside Caleb, "Morning, man," I tell him as Mrs. Moore sets a cup of black coffee in front of me. "Thank you," I give her a smile before looking at Caleb again. I hear Abby sigh and look at her. She has that damn fake smile on her face again. I want to see the real one. I saw it all the time when we were growing up. Even when we were together, she was always so happy.

I'm pulled from my thoughts when Mrs. Moore sits a plate of pancakes down on the table and Bree lets out a happy giggle. "Yes!" She pumps her fist. We all laugh at her excitement, including Abby, which makes my smile grow. I tell Bree to hand me her plate so that I can give her food, but she tells me that she wants Queen Abby to do it. I look at Abby and she nods her head, letting me know that she will help her.

"Thanks," I tell her, turning to my own plate. I don't feel like eating right now, but I don't want to insult our hosts so, I dig in.

"Mom, what all needs to be done for the party still?" Abby asks her as she cuts up Bree's pancakes for her.

"We don't have anything to do, ourselves," Mrs. Moore answers. "The party planner has everything under control. I was actually thinking that us girls, Bree included of course, as long as Owen is okay with it," she stops and looks at me. I nod even though I don't know what she is planning because I trust her. "We girls can have lunch and then head to our appointments at the salon." Abby looks at me, but looks away before I can read her face. "We will all have our hair, makeup and nails done for the party. That's okay, Owen?" Mrs. Moore's question draws me from staring at her daughter.

"Of course," I smile, "if it isn't any trouble," I only look at Abby to gauge what she is thinking.

Abby shakes her head at me then looks at Bree beside her, "it will be lots of fun. What color is your dress, Bree?" My daughter's eyes light up when Abby talks to her and I feel a tug on my heart. Both because my daughter is so infatuated with her and because I can't help but think of how she would be with our child that doesn't even exist. I shake my head, pushing the thoughts away. Now is not the time.

"Yellow," Bree tells Abby.

"Is that your favorite color?" Bree nods her head. "You know what? It's mine too," Abby tells her and Bree's eyes grow wide.

"Daddy, did you hear that me and Queen Abby like yellow!"

I smile at my happy daughter, "I know, princess," I tell her. I can feel Abby watching me so, I look at her and see the slightest blush on her cheeks. I know everything about her or at least I used to. She can't possibly be surprised. But then again, I did leave and who knows what she thinks of me now.

The women and Bree left a couple of hours later, after me telling Bree to be good and reminding her to use her manners. She sometimes lets the princess thing get to her head and gets demanding. "Why don't we go to lunch too?" Caleb asks me, walking into the living room just as I sit down.

"Sure," I shrug, "Big Mike's?" I ask. Referring to our favorite bar in town.

"You know it." I stand up and head to my room to put my shoes on then head to his car which he is just getting into. "I can't wait to have some wings," he rubs his hands together and I laugh. We both love Big Mike's wings and since it is a local bar, we only get them when we're in town.

"You get the wings, I'll get the nacho's," I tell him. Nacho's are the other thing we love about going to the bar. Besides the beer of course.

"Deal."

The bar only has a few other people when we walk in so we take the first empty table we get to. We are only just sat down when the waitress shows up. She throws a couple of coasters on the table in front of each of us and smiles wide. "What can I get you guys?" I look her up and down. She isn't anything special. Not that she isn't pretty but she sure isn't Abby.

"Wings, extra spicy and Nacho's. Plus a couple of draft beers," Caleb tells her. His words are followed with a wink. I laugh at the girl's blush, shaking my head, I smile at her before she turns and leaves. "So," he says after watching the waitress walk away. I just give him a look that says that he should know better. "What? I can look just not touch," he shrugs. "Anyway, what were you and Abby fighting about last night?" I fight the urge to cringe when I think about how I have to lie to him.

"You know," I start and thank God that the waitress decides to show up with our beers just then.

"Your food will be out soon," she says before leaving us again. I grab my beer and start drinking it trying to think of what to say.

"You okay?" I nod and set my beer down. Caleb raises a brow in question. "So, you and Abby?" Great, he didn't forget.

"It was stupid, I just asked her about what you had said and you know it was obviously a sore subject." I finish my beer as our food is set in the middle of the table for us. We thank the waitress and start to eat.

After a while, Caleb sighs and throws the wing he was about to eat back on the plate. "What was stupid was me bringing it up. I can't believe I did that. It just slipped, but it shouldn't have. Everything was really, really hard on her and she hates talking about it. I know that." I nod along with everything he says not wanting to risk saying something that would let him find out anything. "I could strangle the guy for leaving her all alone when she told him," he tells me, and I know he is serious by the look on his face. A part of me wonders if maybe the real reason Abby didn't want to talk to me about it last night was because I wasn't the father. I was sure she wouldn't have been with anyone else that soon after I left but maybe I'm wrong. Caleb's face tells me that he might know the guy and he hasn't killed me yet, so he doesn't think it's me. Maybe she just didn't want to tell me that she moved on from me so quickly. Maybe she hates me more than I thought, maybe she never really loved me.

"I really need to talk to her now," I whisper to myself. There is no way that she is going to get away from me. I will find out everything that went on after I left if it's the last thing I do!