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“You were the one that punched him first when he was trying to be a gentleman.”
“A gentleman? He took advantage of our daughter and got her pregnant to spite me. Is that the kind of person you want her to be with?”
I raised my face and looked at him. “He didn’t know you were my father before he came here, and it already happened before that.”
“Bull shit. You can believe that for all I care. I don’t and never will.” Dad turned and stormed out of the room.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart,” Mom whispered as she held me close, “I will speak some sense into him.”
“He hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you. He loves you very much and is always on the lookout for you. All you have to do is just calm down and allow me to handle the situation, all right?”
I nodded and wiped the tears from my eyes. “Thanks, Mom.”
“Come on, let me take you to your room. You look tired.”
I took a deep breath, turned, and followed Mom to my room while the tears continued to fall.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
MASONBLACKWOOD
I took another drag of the cigar and blew the smoke away as I watched the performers sing a sad song that mirrored my mood. I was sitting in my friends' club; the music was loud, the lights were down low, and there were a lot of people drinking and dancing on the dance floor below.
As I sat in the VIP section above them, I reached for the glass to sip again, but Josh, my friend, and the club owner, took it and dropped it on the other table before he sat beside me. “If one of the richest men on Earth wants to die, there are a million places to do it apart from my new establishment.”
I chuckled and took another drag, loving how it made my tensed body relax after having one of the worst days of my life.
“How’s it going, my friend? We have known each other for a long time, and I swear I haven’t seen you smoke or drink this much before.”
I sighed and closed my eyes, muttering a curse as I remembered the day’s events. If I had known it would turn out this bad, I would have come here the way I did the first time.
But instead, I had driven myself there just to act like an ordinary man to the Edwards and see where it brought me. And all that I got was a punch in the face three thousand miles away from home.
“When you called me and told me you were around, you know I couldn’t believe it.”
“Yeah,” I muttered as I took another drag, “Just had a bad day.”
“Want to talk about it?”
I sighed and shrugged. “It’s complicated.”
He rested his back on the chair, put his arms behind his head, and crossed his legs. “Make it less complicated then.”
I took another drag of the cigar before dropping it in the ashtray, leaned back in my chair, and took a deep breath. I then let out a huge sigh, ready to tell him how fucked my life was.
********
An hour later, Josh sighed and took a sip of the drink brought out for him. “Man, I do not wish to be you.”
“Yeah, tell me about it.” I scoffed and looked down at the dance floor, seeing everyone dancing and drinking the night away, smiling.
“What do you intend to do?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “I wish I knew. I obviously can’t force her to come back home with me. I want her to feel safe with me and want to come home. Either way, her father is going to continue to see me as an untrustworthy fellow.”
“You know, man, I think the only way to handle this shit is if you are patient enough to allow your girl to make her choice because, trust me, she’s the only one that can turn the tides in your favor.”
