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“Have your parents said anything about me?” I ask.
“Jessa and I got into a screaming match at my parents’, and she called me unfaithful because I’m friends withthe enemy. She told them about Maliki and you, and it was a shock to everyone. The way she did it was shitty, and I hope this doesn’t change our relationship.”
“I hope so, too.” I drop two wings onto my plate. “I can’t believe your sister and I are fighting over the same man.”
She crosses her legs. “Technically, you’re not. Maliki doesn’t even see Jessa because he loves you.”
The problem is, he has to see her.
* * *
“Hey, honey.”
I smile up at my father from my chair and stand to hug him.
He wraps me tight, patting my back, and straightens his suit before taking the chair across from me.
“I’m searching for an apartment for you,” he says, diving straight in with no good-morning chat. “I offered the last guy nearly double in rent, but he said no. When you sign a lease, it’s hard to back out.”
He pauses when the waitress comes to take our order.
“I can look outside town,” he continues when she leaves. “Leaving Blue Beech for a while might help you.”
I nod, taking a sip of my orange juice. “You’re right.”
He frowns. “I hate seeing you like this.”
“Like what?”
His face creases in concern. “Sad. Heartbroken. It seems it keeps happening to you.”
“There’s nothing—”
He cuts me off, “I know when something is wrong with my daughter. Is this about Devin or Maliki?”
My cheeks blush. “There’s no way I’m discussing my love life with you.”
He holds up his hand. “Tell me what they did, and I’ll offer my opinion. I’m the epitome of a bad man. I’ll let you know if they stack up or if there’s reason behind their actions.”
“It’s Maliki. He has a secret kid …just like you.”
I recoil in my chair, my appetite disappearing, and notice the change in my father as well. He holds his hand to his lips, shuts his eyes, and then slowly opens them back up.
My situation is so similar to my mom’s.
Maliki has a child and kept it a secret.
Sure, there are a lot more differences than similarities, but my broken heart can’t stop comparing the two.
He raises a brow, finally speaking, “Maliki has a kid?”
I nod. “A daughter.”
“Did he know about her?”
“No.”
“That changes things. Our situations aren’t similar.”
