walked past my mom and barely acknowledged her. He didn’t look at me either.
She grabbed him by the front of the shirt and tugged him toward her.
He moved with the pull, letting her do whatever she wanted, weak whenever it came to her but a fucking badass when it came to others. He stared her down as he waited for her to say something.
She whispered so low I could barely hear. “I love you.”
He melted at her words, and his arm slid to the small of her back, tugging her close and pulling her into a kiss.
My impulse was to look away, but there was something special about the moment, a memory of my parents that I wanted to keep when they were gone, to remember how much they loved each other.
Her arms circled his neck, and she hugged him as she pressed her face into his chest. “I’m so happy that you’re the father of my babies.”
Thirteen
Dex
It didn’t take long for Daisy to figure it out.
Because that shit was all over the news.
Nobel-Prize-winning and world-famous oncologist beat the shit out of some guy in a bar. They showed videos of Dad being taken into the police car, and they also showed a clip of him in action.
Daisy let herself inside, frantic as if she’d run all the way from the lobby and then down the hallway. “What the hell happened?” She shut the door behind herself, wearing a skirt and a blouse like she’d just left the clinic and headed straight here after a late night at the office. “Dad?”
He sat on the couch with his chin down.
She turned to me, in hopes I might give her an explanation.
I shrugged. “It just kinda happened…”
Like that wasn’t a sufficient answer, she marched over to Dad and sat beside him. “Dad, what the hell were you thinking?”
Dad kept his eyes on the coffee table. “I wasn’t.”
She dragged her hand down her face, sighing loudly. “That was so unnecessary.”
“Did you see the video?” I asked. “Mason made the mistake of calling him an old man…kinda his fault.”
“But how did this happen?” She turned to me. “Did you just point him out to Dad or what?”
“No,” I said. “Mason came over and made the mistake of saying hi to me. Thought Dad was Derek and said he’d heard so much about him from you. And then Dad figured out who he was and just lost it.”
Daisy turned to Dad. “So, he came over to be civil and polite, and your response was to break his nose?”
Dad stared at the coffee table. “If you’re expecting remorse or regret, you will receive none.”
Daisy sighed loudly and dragged her hand down her face again. “Dad…I just can’t believe this. I don’t need you to fight my battles for me. He didn’t even do anything that bad—”
Dad snapped. “He hurt my daughter.” He turned to her, looked her in the eye, furious all over again. “He stood you up and dumped you when he was supposed to meet us. He wasn’t there for you, humiliated you, and didn’t deliver on his promises. Fucking prick.”
Daisy looked at me, accusation in her eyes because he’d obviously gotten that information from me.
I shrugged in guilt.
“He broke your heart,” Dad said. “That’s enough reason for me to do far worse than what I could have done.”
Daisy looked straight ahead, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. “Dad—” Her new phone started to ring on her lap. “Great…it’s him.”
Dad grabbed it and answered it with lightning speed. “Bitch, you want some more? Call my daughter again, and I’ll fucking track your ass down.” He hung up and tossed the phone on the table and wiped his hands like they were dirty.
Now Daisy’s face was a mixture of shock and humiliation. “Okay…I need a moment with Dad. Alone.”
Mom and I left the living room and headed into the hallway, but I was too nosy to walk away so I watched them from behind the wall, peeking around the corner.
They sat side by side in silence for a long time.
Dad wasn’t good at this sort of thing when he was angry, so he stayed quiet.
Daisy took the lead. “I know you love me and you’re protective of me, and we all do crazy things in the moment, but…you did not need to do that. I’m a grown woman who can handle myself. Yes, Mason hurt me and it was hard, but I’ll get over it. We all get our heart broken sometimes. It heals, like all