Chapter 8: Apology Accepted

After Karl had gone to bed that night, Karen was still awake waiting for her father to get home.

She wasn't sure exactly when he was supposed to get home. It wasn't like any of her dates with Arvid, where she gave a set time and place to pick her up.

Lief was a grown man, he could drive around and carouse with Josefin as much as he wanted. She couldn't tell him what he could or couldn't do.

Well, she could, but chances were he'd not take her seriously. 

Karen had no choice but to patiently wait until he returned. She pinched herself from time to time in an effort to keep herself awake.

It was, in fact, nearing midnight when Lief came home. Upon entering, he saw his daughter standing in the hallway, and his cheery mood dissipated.

Chapter 7: Heart-to-Heart

(As a bit of a special gift, there will be two updates for today.)

Karen was still pretty steamed over her father dating again. She was more so when he was now dating Mrs. Oss.

Normally, when her dad found a new girlfriend, she just dealt with it and waited for the inevitable divorce proceedings. But not this time. Not with Josefin.

Thankfully, today was the weekend, so she and Karl had the whole day to spend at home.

And by spend the day at home, that meant they sat and watched TV in their pajamas.

Karen didn't mind Karl. In fact, they got along quite well. Both of them always swapped jokes, and made good company.

Today, though, Karl could sense something was off about Karen's mood. Something not of a laughing matter.

Chapter 6: Lay Bare The Inner Feelings

The early morning confrontation with his teenage daughter still made Lief feel uneasy.

He knew she disapproved of this relationship, but he was still at odds as to what he should do.

Lief knew he could ask Josefin, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to put a damper on their date.

But then, he was also curious about how Arvid felt about it. That is, if Josefin had told her boys at all yet.

In the end, Lief decided to just cross that bridge if he came to it tonight.

But until that point, he was just going to have a nice little time with Josefin.

Chapter 5: Blow Out, Fall Out

Lief had managed to keep his new relationship with Josefin a secret from his children.

He was not entirely sure how they would take it, but it would not be long before the truth came out.

Though perhaps he could have chosen a better time to break the news.

For whatever reason, Karen had woken up on the wrong side of the bed that morning. Perhaps it was simply one of the many quirks of adolescence.

Or, it might have had to do with the fact she fell off the bed in her sleep, at some point during the night.

Either way, Karen clearly was not in the mood for anything displeasing.

Chapter 4: In the Name of the Moon

Some time after what he still wasn't sure was an actual date, Lief still couldn't get Josefin off his mind.

Of course, that had happened to him at least three times before, and none of those times ended well. And yet, something told him she was worth it.

Nevertheless, he was wary. Arvid and Edvin's mother was a widow, after all. He had no experience with widows.

But then, there was nothing wrong with courting a woman with experience. On the other hand, Josefin might still be grieving her late husband.

Lief wasn't going to push her into a potential relationship if she didn't want one. It was still worth a try, though.

So, the next chance he got, he waited until Karen got home from school. When she did, he made sure she was all right on her own.

Of course, perhaps Lief should have taken better note of the night.