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Now he frowns, just slightly. He knows me well enough to know that this isn’t something I’d do just for anyone. In fact, he knows it’s not something I’ve ever done at all. At least, he thinks he does. Now I’m sure he’s racking his brain, trying to figure out if this is normal Sean behavior that he somehow missed so far.
“You didn’t have to do that, I’m sure,” he says, his eyes going to his daughter. In the small preview at the bottom of the video feed showing us our own camera input, even I can see in that tiny frame that she looks nervous. Stiff and anxious. He must know by now that something’s up.
“I wanted to,” I say. I take a breath and then do it, I reach over and take her hand, our fingers automatically interlacing together. “I wanted to make sure she was safe. And there was more than that, too. I couldn’t take my eyes off her.”
Candace glances at me and our eyes meet, a slight flush coming over her face. A look of gratitude and love at my words. I hope that Bill doesn’t miss it.
“What’s going on?” Bill asks his tone now deeply suspicious.
“Bill,” I say, not looking away from her. It’s important, this moment. It’s the most important thing we’ll probably ever do or say, as far as Bill is concerned. He needs to know how serious this is, and he needs to know it fast, or we’re never going to get anywhere. “I’m in love with your daughter.”
She squeezes my hand, a joyful smile breaking out on her face. I relish that for a moment, glorying in it. But then I have to look back at my screen – and I see that Bill has narrowed his eyes, looking furious but also even more suspicious.
“This isn’t a funny joke,” he says.
Oh, dear.
“It’s not a joke, Dad,” Candace says, finally gathering the courage to speak up. I hold her hand tightly, to make sure she knows that we’re together in this. That it’s going to be alright because I’m here. “He’s serious. And so am I. I’m in love with Sean, too.”
Bill splutters for a moment, then shakes his head. “No, you’re trying to wind me up,” he says. “Well, good one. You almost got me. But now you can give up and tell me that you’re about to head to the airport, so we can get this over with.”
“It’s not a wind-up,” I tell him. I draw Candace’s hand to my face and kiss the back of it. “It’s real. The only reason we’re calling is that it came time for us to leave, and neither of us wants to. This is serious.”
“You can’t…” Bill starts, but I can see in his eyes as he looks between us that this is really starting to sink in. He’s beginning to realize this is true. “No. You can’t be serious. It’s been a week. You barely even know each other.”
“We know enough,” I say, glancing at Candace again. “We’ve spent just about every moment together since we realized how we felt. I can’t explain it to you, Bill. I know it seems fast. But it’s real. I just know she’s the one for me.”
“It can’t be,” Bill says, shaking his head. “This is ridiculous. And anyway, you’re old enough to be her father!”
“Only if I had her unusually young,” I point out. “And besides, that doesn’t matter. Age – it’s just a number.”
“It really doesn’t matter to me, Dad,” Candace adds. I can feel her shaking just slightly through our hands and where she’s sitting against my side. “I love him, no matter what.”
“But it’s predatory!” Bill explodes. “You’re a grown man. Almost middle-aged. My daughter – she’s just a kid. You’re exploiting her, using her innocence to make her think she’s in love with you!”
I can see Candace’s face on the video screen, and she looks shocked. Appalled. Like her father just slapped her in the face. “That’s not how it is, Bill,” I say, my tone firm. “She’s not a kid anymore. She’s a young woman. She can make her own decisions, and I haven’t… tricked her into anything.”
“You can’t be serious,” Bill exclaims. “She’s a kid. She’s half your age. I could report you for this, for trying to corrupt her - preying on her.”
“Dad,” Candace says, her voice rising and her cheeks flaming red. I can’t tell if she’s ashamed, or angry, or just so shocked she doesn’t know what to think. “What are you saying? You can’t make those kinds of accusations.”
“I can make any accusation I like – especially they’re true,” Bill thunders. “You’re too young to understand. You can’t see what he’s doing to you. How he’s seduced you!”
“Seduced me?” Candace throws the words back at him, sounding incredulous. “It was me who went after him. He even held back, when I wanted to go full steam ahead.”
