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She bit her lower lip as she retrieved her purse from a hook on the wall, sliding it over her shoulder. “He shouldn’t really need anything, but he’ll let you know if he does.”
I wasn’t exactly sure what she meant, considering Charlie couldn’t exactly speak to me, but I trusted her.
Ellie walked to her father sitting in a recliner in front of the TV. She leaned over him, pressing her lips to his forehead and smoothing down his hair. “See you later, Daddy,” she whispered, almost too quiet for me to hear. “I love you.” My chest tightened.
She straightened and strode back to the door, opening it quickly. Right before she walked out, she finally met my gaze. “Thank you, Ty.”
I nodded. “No problem.”
“I shouldn’t be too long. Call me if you need anything. I’ll have my phone on.”
Then she was gone, the door snapping closed behind her. The roar of an engine let me know that Mel, in fact, had come to fix her car yesterday. He’d said as much when I called to check, but it was good to be sure nonetheless. Now, we had to figure out how to keep dicks like Callen Hunter away from Ellie and her property.
Thinking about Hunter had my blood boiling. I walked stiffly to the small couch on the wall opposite Charlie’s recliner and plopped down. I had no idea what Ellie thought she was doing with a guy like that. A guy that obviously didn’t give a shit about her.
My teeth clenched and I caught Charlie’s blue-gray eyes staring at me. I tensed, something about his expression soured my stomach.
Charlie had always been extremely protective of his daughter, and I was glad for that. But he’d always trusted me too. The way he stared at me right now, gave every indication I’d lost that trust. He probably would’ve gutted me if he had the ability.
I sighed, my shoulders sagging. “I guess I deserve that look, huh?”
Charlie’s gaze narrowed farther and his chin dipped a fraction in a small nod.
My hands fisted over my knees. “Yeah, I know.” I licked my lips, the weight of Charlie’s disappointment crushing. I’d felt a lot of disappointment in myself the last few years, but this was something else. This was the weight of a father. My gut twisted with shame. “I didn’t mean to hurt her.” I paused as if he were going to speak words into the silence. “I don’t have an excuse. Not a good one anyway. I just needed to get out of here for a while. I needed—” I cut myself off, glancing away. The truth was, I hadn’t known what I’d needed when I left town.
The only thing on my mind when I left was getting away from it all. I was running away from the voice of my father—my abusive, piece-of-shit father—blaming me for everything. I hadn’t been thinking of anything, or anyone, else.
When I looked back up, Charlie wasn’t staring any longer. He’d turned his attention to the TV where an episode of a daytime game show played. I breathed in deep, something in my chest loosened.
I leaned back into the couch, taking in the place for the first time in years. Not much had changed. It was cleaner, the space worn and lived in, but spotless. There was no dust on the surfaces or walls. No clutter on the furniture. There was a basic, spiral bound notebook sitting on the side table next to the couch and I picked it up, curious.
I opened the blue cardboard cover. A pen was stuffed into the silver spiral and I slipped it out, thinking of doodling to pass the time. As I flipped through the pages, it seemed that most of them were filled.
Ellie’s handwriting covered every page. I paused, afraid I’d stumbled upon her diary. But looking closer, it was something else. Flipping back to the beginning, I started on the first page and began to read.
It was some kind of story, like a handwritten novel. Ellie always loved to read and I knew she journaled, but this…this was something else entirely. I had no idea she wrote books and according to this, she was good at it. She had a way not only with words, but with creating characters that felt real and raw.
I wasn’t sure how much time passed, but Charlie made a noise deep in his throat that brought me out of Ellie’s novel world. I blinked over at him. He stared at me expectantly.
I checked the time, shocked that hours had passed. I was supposed to give him lunch. I popped up from the couch, giving Charlie an apologetic look. “Sorry, I’ll get your food.” I set the notebook down on the coffee table, already excited to come back to it later. Charlie glanced down at it, his brow arched. I scrubbed the back of my neck. “Ellie is something else. Did you know that she liked to write?”
One side of his mouth twitched up as he nodded.
“She’s really good.”
He nodded again. I grinned, turning and heading toward the kitchen to grab his lunch.
After lunch, I lost track of time when I went back to read. Before I realized it, Ellie came bursting through the door of the trailer. I jumped up from the couch where I’d spent most of my time reading. Ellie met my gaze briefly before she hung her purse back up on the hook. She went to Charlie and planted a kiss on the top of his head.
“How was everything?” she asked.
“Good. I think Charlie enjoyed my company.” I winked. Charlie grimaced before looking up at his daughter and rolling his eyes.
Ellie smiled—a real, genuine smile I hadn’t seen in so long. It stirred something in my stomach. She looked at me again, that smile falling slightly, but not completely. Something about her demeanor changed, like she was standing straighter. Her expression was less guarded as she studied me.
She crossed her arms over her chest and stepped closer. “I really appreciate it, Ty.”
“Anytime.”
