Page 48 of The Daddy’s Girl

“Thank you,” I mumble with a grin.

“I’m so glad you came out. I really like you.”

“I like you too,” I reply.

Jacob starts talking about his trip and their plans, but I feel a pair of guarded gray eyes on my back the entire time. Trying to look natural, I turn over my shoulder to find Matis staring at me.

His gaze is intensely focused on me, and he almost seems disgruntled. Hope blossoms like a flower in my chest. Is this what West was talking about? Is this the sign that Matis has feelings for me like that?

But then his attention is suddenly called back to Olivia, and my hopes are dashed like balloons being shot out of the sky.

“Would you like to dance?”

Quickly turning back toward Jacob, I find him holding out a hand toward me with a warm, inviting look on his face.

Of course, I mean, why wouldn’t I dance? I truly need to put in the effort here, don’t I? For myself, I need to at least try.

“Yeah,” I chirp in response, putting some pep in my step and acting with excitement. I place my hand in Jacob’s and let him lead me out onto the dance floor.

It’s crowded—far too much so for my comfort, but I suck it up. Focus on his smile, his hands, the beat, my body as it moves in sync with his.

And before long, something miraculous and unexpected happens.

I have fun.

Jacob puts his hands around my waist, and I move in closer to him, letting the rhythm bring us together. When he smiles, I breathe a bit lighter. There is undeniable attraction in his eyes. He really likes me, and I do like him. The shyness in his gestures and the warmth in his smile loosens the tension inside me.

When our eyes collide, caught in the moment, I know he’s going to lean in for a kiss maybe even before he does.

He inches closer, and I wet my lips in anticipation. But then I peer over his shoulder, noticing a pair of dark steel eyes watching me, and the room grows stifling and small.

Like someone flipped a switch, the temperature around us spikes.

Jacob leans in, and I lean away.

My mind becomes a cacophony of thoughts and fears all jumbled into one until it’s deafening and debilitating.

Jacob isn’t the one I want. Matis is.

What am I doing?

Why am I faking it?

What if Matis does love me and I’m ruining it?

“Everything okay?” Jacob asks over the bass of the music.

“I need—” I back away, wincing against the lights and the crowd and the music. Like an avalanche, everything hits me at once.

His hands tighten around my arms, not in a harsh, painful way but in a desperate, worried way. Still, it’s too much. I pull back again.

“I need air!” I call out, but he only tugs me closer again.

“What happened?” he pleads.

I’m about to snap. I’m about to scream and cry and yell, my temper growing stronger than my ability to control it. I haven’t had a real overload fit in a long time, and it makes me feel like a child, but I can’t help it.

Just as I open my mouth to scream at him, fire and heat flooding my cheeks, I’m engulfed in a warm, familiar scent. A tall, comforting body takes up the space between me and Jacob. Time slows as I glance upward at my godfather holding me delicately in his arms.