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“I just need to grab some things from my vehicle.” She doesn’t have to know I won’t be coming back. Dammit. I don’t know the new gate code. “Hey, I need to run a quick errand too. Mind buzzing me out?”
Her eyes narrow a fraction, and she tilts her head slightly to the left. It’s late, so she’s probably wondering what errand can’t wait until tomorrow. “The thing about actors, Cannon, is that our bullshit meter is often more sensitive. Why are you running out on my daughter?”
Aw, hell. I failed at explaining my reasons to Penelope. She refused to accept them. Thus me sneaking out like a damn coward. Now I have to justify my reasons to her mom. “Everything she wants will be ruined because of my past.”
Brittany thinks about what I said for a moment. “Are you sure about that?”
I’ve never been surer of something that feels so wrong. “It’s not an outcome I want to risk. She’s worked too hard to let a fling with me destroy her dreams.”
Brittany sighs and pushes her hair behind her ear. That’s where Penelope gets it from. Instead of chewing her nails, she mimics her mom. “I’m not one who believes in having to persuade a man to stay. Both sides need to do the work in a relationship. They shouldn’t need to beg.” She crosses her arms in a move I’ve seen several TV moms make. “But I will tell you that with Roman she was all, ‘Yes, Roman. No, Roman. Roman wants me to do this. Roman wants me to do that.’ ”
“She’s told me.” I could picture it when I met Penelope. After I saw how manipulative he really was and his motivations, no girl would’ve stood a chance.
“I’m sure she did. She wanted to do everything to please that man, and looking back at how her father and I were as parents, I’m tempted to smother myself with the guilt I feel about it. But my point is, she’s not that way with you. Since you entered her life and made her feel safe, I finally got to know my daughter. You’re not a fling, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Knowing other people can see how much Penelope and I mean to each other doesn’t make this easier. “If I stay, it’ll only make it impossible for her. Once the media realizes she’s teaching again and I’m around? They’ll speculate, and it’s as bad as an accusation. Parents won’t trust their kids with her because of me.”
“I think it makes it easier for you to tell yourself that.” She lifts her chin to the door. “Just press the buzzer, and I’ll open the gate for you.”
She continues to the office, and I’m left alone to carry out my decision. For a moment, I ponder going back into the bedroom, curling up beside the woman I love, and when we both wake up, losing myself in her sweet body. But then the image of her gliding across the dance floor in the blue-and-black competition costume rises in my mind. I walk out the door.
