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My daddy gave me a small smile. “I can’t tell you that, baby girl.”

“And why not?”

“Because if I tell you, it won’t be a surprise, now will it?”

I laughed. “You right.”

“Come on.”

He reached for my hand, and I followed him out of the venue, leaving my gifts behind for the moment. His Range Rover was parked nearby, and when we reached it, he opened the passenger door for me.

“Thank you.”

I climbed inside, and he closed the door behind me before walking around to the driver’s side.

Once he got in, he started the truck and pulled away from the venue.

I looked out the window for a few minutes, trying to figure out where the hell he could possibly be taking me this late. Every time we passed somewhere familiar, another possibility got crossed off my list.

Maybe he was taking me to see a new car. Nah, that couldn’t be it, because I didn’t need one.

To see some jewelry? He could’ve gotten me that back at the venue. Another thought hit me, and I slowly turned my head in his direction.

What if this man had gotten me a building? My heart damn near jumped at the thought.

I’d been saving to open my own cosmetic smile studio for a while now, but every time I felt like I was finally getting somewhere, some other expense came up and knocked me a few steps back.

Bills didn’t give a fuck about your goals. My daddy knew how badly I wanted my own place, too. We’d talked about it more than once, and he’d even offered to help me financially, but I’d always turned him down. I wanted to be able to say I’d built something of my own.

But if he’d gone behind my back and bought me a damn building for my birthday? I wasn’t giving shit back.

A small laugh escaped me as I settled farther into my seat.

“What?” my daddy asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

“Nothing.”

He glanced over at me briefly before looking ahead again.

I smiled to myself and turned my attention back toward the window. The farther we drove, the less familiar everything became.

I looked over at my daddy again. He hadn’t said much since we’d left the venue. Both hands stayed on the steering wheel, his eyes fixed straight ahead.

“How far is this surprise?”

“Not too much farther.”

“Can I at least get a hint?”

“Nope.”

“Damn.” I laughed softly. “You ain’t giving me nothing.”

Usually, he would’ve laughed with me, but this time he didn’t.

I noticed, but I didn’t think too much of it. Instead, I turned back toward the window and watched the lights pass by as my dad continued driving us toward whatever destination he had planned.

Because as far as I knew, my birthday wasn’t over yet, and knowing my father, I was convinced he’d saved the best surprise for last.