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“For always, Miss O’Malley.”
ChapterTwenty
VINCENT
“Lock up anyone we know lately?” Angelina smirks at her question and I laugh.
“No, actually, it’s been kind of boring in Christmas.” I think about the break-ins that have been getting closer to town over the last week. “I do want you to be extra vigilant when you’re out at night, though, honey. Remember those string of home invasions? They’re getting closer to town lines. My precinct is on it, but nothing has turned up lately. They seem to target areas where there are no street lights and where people don’t want to talk about what they’ve seen.”The exact type of area Daisy lives in.
“I’ll stay vigilant, Dad. Mace, remember?” Her tone is sarcastic.
“I’m being serious, Ang! I know you think Christmas is the safest place in the world. Which is exactly why I stayed here once we moved in. I want you to have that safe space feeling in your home. I’m just saying, the world is different now than twenty years ago and you need to be careful.”
We’re enjoying dinner at the Italian place on Main street. The same place I was at with Daisy just a few short weeks ago. It’s hard to believe it’s been just shy of three months since I’ve met her. And look how things have changed so quickly.
She’s enjoying chicken parmigiana, and I have a huge plate of ziti. She sips from her white wine and I have a beer.
“Speaking of twenty years ago, how are things with Daisy?”
I freeze mid chew and glance at her. A wide smile spreads across her face, and her eyes twinkle with excitement.
I was waiting for this.
“You want to talk about my dating life?”
Snickering. “I know you’re doing more than dating, Dad.” She rolls her eyes and keeps eating.
We’ve always been very open with each other. I pushed for this from the start. Knowing she had no woman to confide in, I wanted her to understand that just because I’m her dad, doesn’t mean she can’t confide in me about anything and everything. I was always respectful and listened to every word, whether or not I wanted to hear it. Afterwards, I’d rage alone and say prayers over and over, but she knew she could always come to me.
And now it looks like it’s my turn to go to her.
“I like her, Angelina. I like her a lot, actually.” I pause, waiting to gauge her reaction. When there’s none, I press. “Are you okay with this?”
“Dad, I’m not mad about it. I want you to find someone. I’ve wanted that for a long time. I hated seeing you alone all these years.”
Putting my fork down, I take more of my beer. “Guess I haven’t done a good job of showing you what a healthy relationship is, huh?”
“What? No way! Dad, if anything, you’ve shown me to be selective and not give in to someone just because they looked my way. It’s why I broke up with Jack. What are you trying to talk yourself out of right now?”
“Nothing! I’m not talking myself out of anything.” I make small circles on the table with my hand. Play with the label on my bottle. “I just feel maybe my devotion-”
“Overbearance.” She cuts me off.
“Protection.Can we settle on that?” When she nods and laughs, I continue. “Maybe my over protectiveness of you has done a disservice in letting you knowing how to handle things yourself.”
She watches me. “You’ve spent time talking to Daisy about this.” When I nod, she goes on. “I’m glad she told you. We’ve spent a lot of time talking to each other about this.”
“How so?”
“Even though we’re similar, she was raised differently. Her parents wereprotectiveof her, too, but way over the top. She had strict rules at home. She wasn’t allowed to work in high school. Her parents thought they were helping her by giving her things. In most cases, it would have made her a spoiled princess, but Daisy has a fire about her, if you haven’t noticed, that makes her very independent. I think constantly being told ‘no, let me do it for you’ pushed her into being very dependent upon herself. That’s why I think you two are good for each other. You’re going to be old soon. You’re going to need someone young to help you.” She snickers.
“And what about me? What on earth can I help her with?”
“You’re going to be that guy who stands by her.”
“Yeah, well, when I tried to stand by her, she got mad.”
“Mm. I heard about the windows.”
