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London lifted her head and looked up at him. “I called my dad an asshole to his face. I need a drink.”
“I think you need several drinks. Let’s go.”
They walked wordlessly to the elevator. Drew held her hand in a firm, comforting grip as they rode up, but he didn’t press her for details. She appreciated that innate sense of his; it was as if he knew without her saying that she needed some time before she could speak about what happened.
He let her into the apartment and headed straight for the kitchen. London looked on as he slipped one of the wines they brought back from the Hill Country last weekend from the wine rack. He grabbed a couple of wine stems and poured two glasses of the Malbec, then directed her to follow him to the couch. They sat, and London immediately settled her back against his chest. Once again, a rush of contentment flowed through her.
Who would have thought that Drew Sullivan’s arms would become her happy place?
“Do you want to talk about it?” he asked after several minutes passed.
Three weeks ago, she would have answered that by draining her wineglass, stripping her clothes off, and mounting him. She still wanted the intense orgasms he excelled at providing, but that could wait. What she craved most right now was that quiet, understanding way he had of listening without trying to fix everything.
She started with the conversation she had with Nina about the photos. Drew’s eyebrows nearly met his hairline when she shared her little sister’s flippant response to her question about what would happen if the photos had been widely shared.
“So shewantedher nudes floating all around school?”
“I honestly don’t know if she was telling the truth or just being a bratty teen,” London said as she sipped her wine. “And, although she denied it, I honestly think that stunt was more about getting my dad’s attention than anything else.” She shrugged. “In a way, I get it. Even bad attention is better than none at all.” She shoved her fingers into her curls and massaged the side of her head. “I just hate that he’s doing this to her. It’s exactly what he did to me—ignored me to the point where I obsessed over any bit of attention I could get from him. It’s like some sick game he has going.”
She took another sip of her wine, then placed her glass on the table. “I definitely got his attention today. The look on his face when I went off on him is permanently imprinted in my mind.”
“I’m jealous,” Drew said.
She looked at him over her shoulder. “Jealous? Of what?”
“Do you know what I would give to be able to call my dad an asshole to his face?”
London sent him a sad smile. “That puts things into perspective,” she said. “I guess you think I should be grateful that I at least have my dad in my life, huh?”
“Nope.” Drew shook his head. “A shitty dad is as bad as an absent one. And if you called him an asshole to his face, it’s because he deserved it.”
“I haven’t gotten to the part thatreallymakes him the asshole of the year.” She told him about how her dad had been using her accomplishments to shame Nina. “It just pisses me off so much that in all the time I was in school he couldn’t be bothered to say, ‘Nice job, London,’ yet he uses me to make Nina feel bad about herself. I mean, who does that?”
“A narcissist,” Drew answered.
London paused. “Wow,” she said after a moment. “I’d never considered that, but he is the textbook definition of a narcissist,” London agreed. “Everything in this world revolves around him. He uses us for what we can do for him, has zero empathy, and you will never find a more self-important human being on the face of this earth. And you want to know what’s truly bizarre? People flock to him. They always have.”
“Narcissists can be charismatic. Couple that with him being a successful attorney and musician, and yeah, I get it. He’s what youthoughtI was in high school.”
“That’s exactly what I thought,” London said. “I’m so sorry.”
“As long as you no longer think of me that way, I consider it water under the bridge.”
He was far more forgiving than she was. She held on to a grudge like a drowning woman holding on to a life raft.
“I wish I were as wrong about Kenneth as I was about you,” London said. “It hurts to know that he will never be the father that I needed him to be—for Nina and Koko’s sake. It no longer matters to me, because I’m done with him, Drew. I’m just done.”
He tightened the arm that he’d curved around her middle. “I’m sorry he couldn’t be the father you needed too,” he said softly against her temple. Several quiet moments passed before he added, “But I think I have something that may make up for your bad day.”
“I’m way ahead of you,” London said. “Let me finish my wine first, and then we can go in the bedroom. I have pineapple-flavored condoms this time.”
“That isn’t what I was referring to, but I approve of that plan. Highly approve.” He took the glass from her and twisted her around so that she could face him. “There’s a doctor out of Seattle, Susan Hemingway. Do you know who she is?”
“Of course. She’s a rock star,” London said. “She’s a pioneer in MSE therapy—that’s multisensory environment therapy. Why?”
“Because she happens to be in Austin,” Drew said.
London’s head snapped back. “How do you know that?”
