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“I love her.” I didn't let my voice waver. “I love Evie, James.”
He inhaled a sharp breath, staring deeply into my eyes.
I poured my emotions into my orbs. At this point, I was as plain as paper. I had nothing to lose and everything to gain from telling the truth.
He bit his lips before glancing around. “Love…” he trailed. “That's the only thriving emotion here.”
“I don't under—”
“You know, Rachael used to say something.” The smile on his face was distant. “She would say it whenever two birds perched on our window and I tried to swat them away. She would say don’t ruin a love story, James.”
My heart shook.
“Then she would nudge my arms…and then we’d laugh.” He shook his head, his eyes glistening with tears. “I just never thought that one day I’d apply that same statement to a situation between… between my best friend and daughter.”
“Recalling the statement made me think, was I really protecting Evie or was I ruining something? It occurred to me that I was ruining…hindering her happiness. As much as Evie wanted to deny it, I knew that she wasn't happy, even when she first arrived,” he sighed.
It’d been hard for her too.
“She tried to put on this… happy facade but that was just for me, not her. Then I— I found her chat.”
A flicker of pain crossed his eyes.
“Indeed, she wasn't happy but she believed she had no choice.”
His thumb lightly rubbed against his index finger, an act he did when he was in deep thought.
“Like I said to her, it is times like these that test us. And if I failed as a father, it wasn't a bad thing… because failure can be a chance to start again.”
As I stared at him, it dawned on me. The indecipherable emotion I’d seen earlier was acceptance.
“I guess love… is a damn weed,” he laughed, planting eyes on nothing in particular.
“It grows in the most unexpected places…” he looked at me. “…and even through the cracks in the most guarded hearts.”
I watched him without words.
“Perhaps, Ethan, this is a chance for you to prove that you're worthy of her love, not just as someone who's trying to get her back but as a man who loves her."
The words felt like a dream. Never would I have thought that I’d meet this— James talking without anger.
I could tell that he hadn’t completely forgiven me, but he had accepted the situation. He had accepted me. And that was a good start.
“Thank you, James. Thank you.” My voice was raw.
He nodded slowly, a bit of lag in his movement.
“She's home, planning to leave the house to do something with her volunteering experience.”
My fist clenched.
“Leave me here,” James rasped dryly. “Go.”
I didn't need to be told twice before I jumped out of my seat and raced to my car.
Just like Dr. Amelia said. Love, true love, transcends everything. It’s a primal connection, a force that defies logic.
forty-four
