Total pages in book: 67
Estimated words: 63496 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 317(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63496 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 317(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
“That’s probably why I didn’t. Self-preservation,” I murmur quietly, making my father laugh.
“Let’s go in and get this over with,” my dad says. It’s weird but when I look up at him, I think I see pride shining in his eyes.
Dane and bitch-face go in front of us. I pull on Dad’s arm to hold him back. “I wanted to warn you, Mom will be here today.”
His fingers brush through my hair, his thumb stroking the top of my cheek. “I’ve been a fool. I know sorry won’t solve it, and the two of us need to have some hard conversations, but I promise you, I’ll do better. I can even handle seeing your mother. I just want time with my girls. Is that okay?”
I kind of felt like I was in the twilight zone. I didn’t really trust what he was saying, but I’ve wanted time with my dad for so long that I pushed all of that aside for now. “I’d like for you to stay. I know Lucy would like to see you too. She’ll be here.” A moment of pain flickers on his face, but he nods. Lucy isn’t the most liked person in the Devil’s Blaze. She hurt one of the original members years ago. She went through an abusive relationship and made a lot of mistakes since then. I do think she finally has her head on straight now. She’s dating some new guy, and they seem really happy. I just hope it works out.
My parents didn’t have a traditional relationship. Mom and Dad were married, but there was another man in the relationship—my dad’s best friend Latch. I never met him, but I’m told the three of them lived together happily. Once I got older, I realized they shared a bed. I wasn’t around to see them together. Latch was overseas when I was born. I was five when he died overseas in a helicopter accident. So, I never met him. After his death, though, everything fell apart. Dad lost himself in a bottle. Mom was broken. I’m not sure what happened, but I think maybe my father loved Latch more than he loved Mom—he took his loss that bad. Mom didn’t react well to his drinking and being shut out of his life. Drew and I were just stuck in the middle. I had two years of memories with my dad being a whole person and I ached for that man to return—despite it being a lifetime ago.
“I’ll be good, I promise. At most, you’ll just have to worry about me killing your asshole ex,” he jokes, making me laugh.
“I guess we better get in there,” I grumble. “I think that man is trying to make me miserable for the rest of my life.”
“I won’t let him do that, Daph. I promise.”
I wrap my arm around his back, pressing my fingers into his side with a squeeze and we walk in.
When I walk into my living room, I’m not sure what I expected to see, but seeing my daughter in Eli’s lap, trembling and burying her head into his side as she nervously looked at her father with tears in her eyes, is not it.
“What’s going on?” I ask, having Cammie’s scared face, Serena’s smirk, Dane’s angry one, and Eli’s apocalyptic one, all turn to stare at me.
Shit. This can’t be good.
Chapter 13
Pez
I stiffened as I watched Daphne’s ex and the woman he had betrayed her with walk through the door. He walked in looking around, his smirk seemingly saying that he found the place lacking. I knew I was going to dislike the asshole. I just didn’t know it would be this much. I’ve met a lot of assholes in my life, but this one might be the biggest I’ve ever encountered.
“Camila, come hug your father,” he says, standing by the sofa, acting like a fucking king.
Cammie looked back at me, her bottom lip wobbling. “Do I have to?” she asks me softly.
I hug her tightly, wanting to tell her no, but knowing that I really can’t. Fuck, this sucks. “I—”
Before I can finish what I’m about to say, Dane barks at her. “Camila Rose Morrison, get your ass over here right now. I’m your father, not him.”
Cammie’s little body jerks as if someone has slapped her. Then I feel her quaking in my arms. I pull her into me without thought, feeling her wet tears slide down on my arm. “Let’s bring it down a notch. You’re scaring her,” I murmur, sliding my hand through Cammie’s hair, trying to calm her.
“Who are you? That’s my daughter. You have no right to tell me anything when it comes to her.” He walks over and stands in front of me. He reaches out and wraps his hand around Cammie’s arm. Cammie cries out in pain and my own hand shoots out to grab his wrist, squeezing it tightly as I pull it away from his daughter.