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.The biggest issue is that you’re presently so limited in what you can do.A girl would not want to go on a date with you if your sister had to come, too.”Luke grinned, his eyes still bright with tears.“I really am a mess, aren’t I?”“You’re fixable,” Zach replied.“Problem is, only you can do the fixing.”“So what if I fix myself and Mandy decides to get married? She says she doesn’t want a husband, but if she got one, he might not like me.Then I’d be all alone.”Zach knew he needed to stay focused on Luke’s problems, but he couldn’t help but ask, “Why doesn’t she want a husband?”“Hey, man.With a father like ours, would you ever want one?”“No,” Zach admitted.“I guess I wouldn’t.Does she even have a social life?”Luke shook his head.“I nixed that.She went out on dates a couple of times, but I—” He stopped talking and gulped.“You’ll think I’m really awful if I tell you this.”“I won’t think you’re awful.Everyone does things they regret later.Spill it.”“I ruined her dates.On purpose, I mean.Stupid stuff, like pretending I fell and hurt myself, or that I was sick.Another time, I sneaked into the kitchen when the sitter was in the bathroom and put a towel on the stove burner, turned it on, and almost made it back to the sofa before the lady came out.Nailed.She called Mandy and refused to watch me ever again.She said I was a pyromaniac.”“Well, I can sort of see her point.Did you set the kitchen on fire?”“No, just the towel.The lady managed to put it out.”“That was a dangerous stunt to pull.” Zach sensed there was more.“So what else did you do to ruin Mandy’s dates?”“When she went on the third one, I took a swing at the sitter.Mandy gave up after that.She never went out again.”Zach tugged hard on his ear.“You truly were a little shit, weren’t you? It’s not okay for a guy to smack women, Luke.You need to get that cemented in your brain.”Luke nodded.“I know.”Zach wanted to drive that point home even more but decided to save it for later.“So your sister has been on only three dates, and she’s how old?”“Twenty-eight.”“Damn, Luke.She’s not a nun.”“Yeah, well, I’m not a monk, either, and it’s her fault I don’t have a life.Why should I let her have one?”Zach said nothing.He let that hang in the air between them until Luke finally broke down and whispered, “I’m doing it again, aren’t I? Blaming her for everything.”“Yes, and that’s wrong.We all make mistakes.You’ve just admitted that you’ve made your fair share of them.A mark of maturity is when we realize that no one is perfect, including ourselves, and we’re able to forgive others, not because we’re noble, but because we know that, sooner or later, we’ll screw up and need forgiveness, too.”Luke ran a hand through his hair, leaving rooster tails atop his head.“It’s hard to change the way I’ve been thinking most of my life.It may take some practice.”“Probably so.Old habits can be hard to break.But it’s not impossible.”“I’d really, really like to have a girlfriend.”Zach laughed.“Well, then, shape up and find one.”When Mandy got home, she saw Zach’s SUV parked at the curb and wondered what he was doing there.She entered the house with one hand laden with heavy plastic bags to find the living room empty.“Luke? Mrs.Peabody? Yoo-hoo, I’m home!”No one answered.She hurried to the kitchen, checking every surface for a note to explain why Luke and the sitter weren’t there, but she found nothing.Her heart started to pound with fright.Abandoning her mission to get the groceries unloaded and put away, she put the bags on the counter and raced for the phone.Mrs.Peabody didn’t answer until the eighth ring, and by then Mandy was in a full-blown panic.“Hello,” the older woman said.“Mrs.Peabody, this is Miranda Pajeck.Where on earth is my brother?”“At some park, best I know.A man with a little horse came and got him.”Mandy’s pulse slowed a bit.“What park?” she asked tautly [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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