Test Drive - Samantha Chase Page 0,54

as she stared at her son. “The only thing I was vocal about was finding your passion because without it, a degree was worthless.”

Willow was fairly certain her jaw was on the floor and as her father stood and excused himself, she had to wonder what was going to happen from here.

They all watched as he stalked across the room, out to the lanai, and then out to the backyard. She was about to get up and follow, but again, Levi beat her to it. He bent and kissed her on the cheek and whispered, “Don’t worry. I got this one.”

Once the back door closed a second time, Gammy clapped her hands together and reached for a chocolate croissant. “So, Marilyn, how are the beds at that hotel you’re staying at? Good for sex?”

And for the first time since she arrived in Florida, Willow was thankful for her grandmother and her sexcapades topics.

“Mr. Andrews? Are you okay?”

“This doesn’t concern you, Levi. Go back inside.”

It was tempting to laugh because, seriously, did this guy think he had the right to boss everyone around? “I will in a minute, Sir, but I just thought maybe someone should check on you.” He paused and waited to see if he was going to respond, but when he didn’t, Levi continued. “Things got a little heated and I imagine that happens a lot. Willow’s mentioned…”

“Spare me, Mr. Sullivan. You’ve been dating my daughter for…what…a few months? You don’t know anything about our dynamic. I’m sure Willow’s made us out to be the bad guys…”

“No offense but…even if she hadn’t, you managed to do that all on your own. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out you’re a bit of a control freak and that Willow’s lack of interest in doing what you want her to is a real sticking point for you.”

If looks could kill, Levi knew he’d be…well, he’d be slightly injured because Paul Andrews wasn’t the least bit intimidating.

But it was cute how he tried.

“Don’t try to play armchair psychologist with me, Mr. Sullivan. You’re way out of your league.”

“I’m not playing at anything. It’s not hard to see and you seem to enjoy taking every opportunity to let it be known to everyone. I don’t see why you couldn’t just let this be a pleasant family get-together for your mother’s birthday. It really wasn’t that hard of a thing to do.”

“How dare you!”

Levi held up a hand to stop him.

“No, how dare you!” he snapped. “Like it or not, I care about your daughter. A lot! And I’m not going to stand by and watch you belittle her or bully her into doing something she doesn’t want to do! As a parent, you should be happy that someone has her back, even if it’s against you!”

“Excuse me if I don’t want to take advice from you. Not only are you a stranger to this family, but you’re not a parent. You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Actually…I do.”

Paul quirked a dark brow at him. “Oh, really? Do you have a child? Is Willow aware of it because she hasn’t mentioned that fact to her mother or myself.”

Letting out a breath, Levi tried to relax his stance a bit–to try to diffuse some of the tension. “I have three sisters,” he explained. “They’re all older than me. I’m very close with my father and he’s always been very open and honest about how important it was for them to find men who would protect them. Fight for them. Take care of them. Don’t get me wrong, they had to date a lot of guys before they found the ones that my father approved of, but they did. And to this day, my father talks about how much he respects each of my brothers-in-law because he knows they look after my sisters the way he would.”

They stood in silence for several moments and Levi was certain he had proved his point.

“How touching. Again, you’ll excuse me if I’m not impressed. I know my daughter better than you and I know what she needs. You might think you do, but trust me, you don’t.”

“I hate to be disrespectful here, Mr. Andrews, but…I don’t think you have a clue about what Willow needs. You don’t seem to listen to her at all. I’m guessing you don’t pay much attention to all the ways that she’s gifted and talented.”

Paul let out a mirthless laugh. “Gifted? Willow? Please. Levi, my daughter is a walking accident waiting