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“You have no fucking say anymore, Gwen. I never should have left them with you. Look how you’ve fucked them both up. First, it was…” He waves his hand toward the house, and I know he’s about to bring Sophie into this. He’s about to dead name my little sister, and everything in me wants to explode with anger.
“Don’t you dare bring her into this,” my mother snaps, stopping him before he even has a chance. “You lost that chance when you abandoned her.”
When she tries to shove his hand away from her face, he pushes her backward, and I snap. My dad has never been violent with me or my mom, but he’s always dominated the conversation. He constantly silenced her or talked down to her, and right now, the sight of him shoving her away like her voice means nothing has me seeing red.
“Don’t touch her!” I scream, trying to force my way between them. But my mother is fighting back too, and he’s too busy screaming at her around me that he doesn’t seem to care that I’m trying to stop him.
The scuffle between us intensifies quickly. I distantly recognize the sound of more voices from afar, two car doors closing. But I have tunnel vision, focusing solely on getting my dad as far away from my mother as I can. There’s so much yelling, though, him shouting at my mother, her screaming back at him.
Suddenly, I can’t even believe what my eyes are seeing as two large, broad hands grab my father by the collar and throw him hard against the wall of the guest house.
I must be hallucinating because Emerson has his face in my father’s, snarling at him like an angry animal. “Touch either of them again, and I’ll fucking bury you.”
“Emerson!” I scream.
“Emerson?” my dad echoes in surprise. “You’re the asshole fucking my daughter?”
My hand covers my mouth, and I glance toward the house again to make sure Sophie isn’t around to hear this.
My mother grabs my hand, pulling me away, and I feel the way she’s trembling. But I can’t take my eyes off of Emerson, the anger and hatred dripping from his expression and the tone in his voice.
He looks unhinged as his brow furrows even more. “Watch your mouth, you piece of shit.”
“You make me sick,” my dad snaps.
“Both of you, stop!” I scream, coming toward them.
“Stay away from him, Charlie. Call the police,” my dad snarls, but Emerson shoves him back up against the wall.
“Please, stop,” I beg, wrapping a hand around Emerson’s arm. When he glances down at me, there’s a hint of softness in his eyes. And he seems to struggle with his next breath as he lets out a heavy sigh. Carefully, he pulls his hands away from my dad’s shirt and backs away. The moment is wrought with tension as the two men stare daggers at each other.
“Gwen, did you know this forty-year-old man has been doing…God knows what with our daughter?”
“Dad, please stop,” I beg, the humiliation washing over me again. A large hand rests against my back, and I lean into his comfort.
My mother scoffs. “Yes, Jimmy, I knew.Hecame to Sophie’s birthday party.”
There’s a brief moment of shock and confusion on my father’s face as he looks between her and him and me. I can see all of the things Emerson wants to say to my dad just hanging on his lips.
I feel like I can barely move. Like one wrong word or move and everything between them will explode.
“Why didn’t I know about this party?” my dad replies.
“Because you weren’t invited,” my mother snaps back in a clipped tone. I’ve never heard her talk to him like that, and I sort of love her for it.Go Mom.
“I think you should leave,” Emerson growls.
“Me? This is my house, asshole.”
“I don’t think your family wants you here right now while you’re acting like this,” Emerson says with a level tone. “So why don’t you leave and calm down. Come back when you can talk like a real man.”
Neither of the men move, and it feels like there’s a ticking time bomb between them.
“A real man?” my dad replies with a scoff. “You think you’re a real man? Manipulating young girls. I know all about your disgusting club, and my daughter deserves far better than you, you sick fuck.”
“Hey!” another voice yells from the fence line, and we all turn in unison to see Beau standing by the gate. My mouth hits the ground as I watch him march toward my father with a look of pure rage on his face. “Don’t talk to my dad like that.”
Emotion claws at my throat, like someone is sitting on my chest, and when I look at Emerson, I see the way his expression changes too. The anger fades and the shame beneath it shows through.
