His eyes widen, and his jaw tenses before he says, “You said he; have others?”
“I’m sixteen. Sexting is—”
“Not dating. Any little fuck sends you sexual messages—”
“They get blocked.”
“They?” His voice is higher than I’ve ever heard.
“I’m going to a movie, Dad. We’re meeting friends—”
“I can drop you off at a movie, where you can—”
“Dad,” I groan exaggeratedly. “You told me when I got my license that I could ride in a car with my friends. I haven’t yet.”
“Never said boyfriends,” he grumbles.
“Never said he was my boyfriend, Dad. It’s a first date.”
He stares at me; I stare back. Then he nods.
“What do you really want to say?” I ask.
“He doesn’t deserve you.”
“He’s a friend, who asked me on a date, not for a freaking—”
“Don’t you dare,” he warns.
“Then trust me, Dad. Trust. Me. He’s not the one you should be afraid of.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”
“It means he’s the first one to ask, not the ‘first’ one.” I air quote first. “I’m not going to sleep with the first boy I date, get knocked up, and—”
“That’s not cool, Bella.”
“Then tell me what you want to tell me, Dad.”
“He doesn’t deserve you,” he states matter-of-factly, again.
“How will I know if anyone deserves me, Dad? I haven’t even been kissed.”
He doesn’t even fight to hide his smile this time. He beams.
I flop back on my pillow. “Oh my God, can I just go to sleep?”
“When you even think he’s possibly the boy who deserves your first kiss, Bella, you make damn sure he deserves you. Which means you know him. You know he treats his momma right, because that’s the way he’ll treat you. You remember you can do anything he can, and if he makes you feel like that’s not the case, he’s out. You remember to still dress like you and don’t change for him. No over-the-top makeup shit, Little Bell. Never let him think for you. Don’t get your head stuck up your ass, because the right guy for you will love that you’re intelligent and can think for yourself. And remember, you never have to do anything to make someone love you. The right person will cross the fucking desert in tin foil just to open a door for you.”
He pushes his arm under my head and pulls me into a hug. “Compare every single boy you ever meet to the man I was when you came back into my life. Nobody will love you like I do. If he even comes close, I will shake his hand and give him my blessing.”
Two
Date Night
I’m done getting ready for my date long before Chad is expected to pick me up so that I could be out the door ASAP, giving little time for Dad to embarrass me.
When Chad, the son of two doctors, shows up in his BMW to take me to a movie, Dad beats me to the door.
“Come on in, Chad.” His smile is big, bright, and welcoming.
I feel it’s safe to allow such a thing for two reasons. One, it’s a first and he doesn’t seem all that “Jase Steel” over it. And two, I overheard Carly threatening him with a week on the couch if he was, in her words, an asshole.
I start to feel good about this meet and greet … until Chad smiles back, walks in, and I see Dad narrow his eyes as he glares at the back of his head.
Then Dad offers him a beer, to which Chad thankfully declines, saying, “I’m sorry, sir, but I’m not of legal age, nor would I put your daughter in harm’s way by drinking even a sip of alcohol before driving her in my vehicle.”
Nice, I think … until I see Dad looking at him with his eyes and jaw set.
“Chad”—the way Dad says his name is rather obnoxious—“you’ve never had a drink?”
“Yes, sir, with my parents on Christmas, I had some spiked eggnog, and it was disgusting.” He laughs, and Dad narrows his eyes.
“Hey, Chad, I’m Katherine Steel, Little Bell’s sister.”
Little Bell? Ugh, seriously?
I turn and see her reaching out her hand to shake his and notice the tee-shirt she’s wearing.
On top, it says, “Heads-up, Boys.” Below it is a picture of my father, shirtless, inked, and jacked. Below that, it says, “This is my father.”
I notice Chad’s eyes widen, and then he smiles and shakes Kiki’s hand. “Pleasure to meet you.”
Max runs into the room in one of Kiki’s tutus … and nothing else on.
I glare at Dad, and he holds his hands up as if to say, wasn’t me.
When Carly walks into the kitchen, her smile falls as she looks at Kiki then at Dad. “Really?”
He grins. “Hey, Carly, can I get you a drink?”
She sighs. “Make it a double.” Then she looks at Chad. “Hi there, I’ve heard a lot about you.”
And now, I want to crawl under the table.
He smiles. “All good, I hope.”
As if things couldn’t possibly get any worse, I hear Uncle Cyrus ask, “Anybody home?”
I shoot Dad a look, and he bites back a smile.
“Well, we should get going,” I say, nodding toward the door. “Don’t want to be late.”
Chad looks back at my parents. “Nice meeting you.” When he turns around, he looks up as Uncle Cyrus walks basically into him. Chad looks stunned.
I shoot Cyrus the same look I just shot my dad, thinking if the other two show up, I’m going to be out of ammunition really quick.
“Chad, this is my uncle Cyrus.” I literally push Cyrus aside with my hip, and he chuckles. “And we’re going to be late.”
“Nice, me-me-meeting you.” Chad hurries past the intense glare Cyrus appears to be giving him, but it’s honestly his natural expression.
We’re at the threshold, and I think we’re clear, when I hear Cyrus say, “Hey, Chad.” Saying Chad in the same tone my father used.
We both turn as he tosses something to him.
Chad catches whatever was thrown, looks at it, and then closes his hand around it.
Cyrus smiles menacingly. “Those come much faster after ten o’clock, you feel me?”
“Yes, sir.” Chad then hurries past me and toward his car.
“What the hell was that?” I snap at my uncle.
He shrugs. “It was an anti-condom.”
“What’s an ant condo?” Max asks from behind him.
“What did he just say?” Carly asks.
“It’s a place little insects crawl into.” Cyrus smirks as he picks Max up. “Dude, what the hell are you wearing?”
“It’s a three-three.”
I walk out and don’t look back.
When I get in the vehicle, I look at Chad. “I’m sorry for whatever just happened.”
“Is this”—he pauses, his face pinches up—“normal?”
I answer honestly, “Nothing about my family is normal. What did he throw at you?”