Page 139 of The Daddy’s Girl

When my phone buzzes on the nightstand, I pick it up to find a text from Ronan. The sight of his name is like a punch to the stomach. There is no living in the moment when this decision looms over me. My own fate threatens to ruin everything. I can’t be in two places at once. I can’t be two men at once.

Ronan: Would love to talk about the London club today if you have time.

I stare at the text, unsure of what to say. My mind is swirling with indecision.

“What are you doing, old man?” she calls from the bathroom. “And why aren’t you joining me?”

Leaving my phone on the bed, I hop out and join my love in the shower.

Rule #39: Always look through the peephole before answering the door.

Amelia

“Your bathroom is far too small for this,” I giggle as I try to brush my hair in the mirror while he shaves.

His face is covered with white foam as he slides the razor along his jaw. Standing next to him like this, giving me a small glimpse of what our future could hold, feels like a fantasy.

“Not too small at all. I like having you as close as possible.”

My stomach does another flip. The grin on my face has a mind of its own and couldn’t be stifled if I tried.

I comb out my hair and slip on the same dress I wore yesterday. Leaving him in the bathroom to finish shaving, I walk back out to the living room and find my phone stuffed away in my purse, which I threw onto the couch last night in our passionate frenzy to get each other naked.

There’s a text from my mom asking me to check in, and honestly, I’m proud of her for not panicking when I didn’t come home last night. I did shoot her a quick text to tell her I was staying at a friend’s, but I didn’t divulge anything more.

Amelia: I’m fine. Be home in an hour or two.

As soon as I hit Send, there’s a knock at the door.

“Expecting someone?” I call.

“No,” he replies, stepping out of the bathroom in nothing but his pants while wiping the remnants of shaving cream from his face.

I’m so distracted by his cute smile and how hot he looks half dressed and shaving that I don’t think to look through the peephole or have Matis answer it himself.

Because I just open the door, still smiling at the man behind me.

And when I find my dad standing in the hallway, the earth stops turning.

For a moment, no one moves.

Not my dad. Not Matis. Not me.

Maybe none of us want to acknowledge the moment we’re in.

“Amelia?”

“Dad.”

His eyes fly to the man still standing behind me. “What…the fuck is going on?”

Matis sighs in surrender.

“I–I can explain,” I stammer.

“What did you do?” The venom in my dad’s words is so sharp that it makes me flinch, but he’s looking at Matis as he spews them.

“Dad, listen to me,” I cry but he doesn’t. Instead, he presses the door open and brushes past me, marching into the apartment.