AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“No. I’ve got this.” I kissed him quickly before leaning down to kiss Cutler on the cheek and walking toward my dad. My long white dress swooshed at my feet.
He was standing alone, which made me feel bad. He’d burned a lot of bridges lately, and my mother didn’t know if she could forgive him for all the lies. I’d never imagined a world where my parents weren’t together, so it hurt me to think of them both being alone. But at the same time, he’d done some horrible things, and I didn’t know if I could forgive him either, so I understood her struggle.
“Hey,” I said when I came to a stop in front of him.
“You look beautiful, sweetheart. You aren’t wearing the splint anymore. Does that mean you’re healing well?”
“Yeah. It’s been a few weeks and it’s healing nicely. No boxing with Pinky right now, though, or lifting anything heavy for a while.”
He nodded. “I’m glad you’re okay. I am sorry that I blamed Romeo for what happened when it ended up being Ronny behind the attack.”
“You know what, Dad,” I said, holding my hand up when he attempted to interrupt me. “You say I’m sorry a lot, but it doesn’t mean anything anymore because you do it all again the next time something doesn’t go your way.”
He looked away, gazing out at the water. “I’m not a perfect man, Demi. But I’m doing the best I can.”
“That’s not good enough anymore. So, you have two options. You can keep lying and protecting the wrong people, or you canstep up for your family. Romeo and I are moving in together. I’ve never loved anyone like I love him. And you’ve done some horrible things to the man I love. You need to try to make that right, or you and I will never be okay.” I let out a long breath. “And Slade is working hard to move forward, and releasing all those secrets he was carrying helped. But you could go there. You could own your part in what happened. Help your son get his life back.”
“I don’t know where to start,” he said, his eyes locking with mine.
“Well, you’ve done nothing so far, so anything will be an improvement. Saying I’m sorry to the people you’ve hurt and following that up by not repeating the same mistakes again would be a good start.”
“I don’t know if your mom can forgive me,” he said.
“I don’t either. But the only way to find out is to start being the man she thought she married.”
“I don’t know how I got so lost along the way.” He shrugged.
“Just because you’re lost doesn’t mean you can’t find your way home. I hope you do the work that you need to. Because I miss my father.” I pushed up on my tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.
That was enough for today.
We had a long way to go, and I wasn’t certain we’d get there, but I hoped we would.
When I made my way back to Romeo, River was on the phone, and everyone was quiet and watching him. I gave my boyfriend a curious look, and he wrapped an arm around my shoulder.
River ended the call and reached for his drink, taking a long pull. “Lionel had a stroke.”
“What the fuck happened?” Kingston said, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees.
River ran a hand down his face. “I don’t know. That was Doreen calling. Apparently, it happened at the bar when he was getting ready to head over here for the party.”
“He’s not that old. How the fuck did he have a stroke?” Romeo asked.
River glanced around at each of us, and then he cleared his throat. “He’s dating that woman who’s a lot younger than him.”
“And we’re blaming her?” Hayes asked.
“We’re blaming the double dose of medication he took, along with a shit ton of supplements to help him with some issues—down south.”
“Jesus. I never knew good loving could be the death of me.” Kingston shivered.
“He’s not dying. He’s going to be fine. But he’s going to be in the hospital for a while and then need physical therapy. He won’t be up and moving for a few months.”
“What can we do to help?” I asked. “Should we leave and head to the hospital?”
“No visitors until tomorrow. So we can take shifts. I don’t know what the fuck will happen with the bar. Doreen said she called Ruby. They’re hoping she can come to manage the bar until he gets on his feet.” Lionel’s daughter, Ruby, hadn’t lived in Magnolia Falls for the last few years, but she and Lionel had always been close and she visited when she could.
“Wow. Isn’t Ruby Rose the only person that ever beat up the champ?” Kingston said over a fit of laughter as he waggled his brows at Romeo.
