Moving from my text messages, I open my emails and see one from Karissa.
Dad,
I hope you had a great night.
You and Dalilah looked so sweet together. I like her. I’ll talk to you when we get back from the honeymoon.
Thank you so much for being an amazing dad and for always being there for me.
I love you, Karissa.
P.S. Here are some photos of you and Dalilah.
I blink back tears and straighten my shoulders. Women and their mushy shit. I type back.
Karissa,
Be careful, baby girl. Be sure Deck takes good care of you, and don’t forget the contraception.
Love, Dad
My finger hovers over the attachment. I want to see the photos, but I have an equal need to open the airplane hatch and toss my phone out onto the tarmac.
The desire to see her again wins out.
Inside the attachment are ten photos of Dalilah and me at the wedding reception. My heart slams into my chest and then sputters. I’m not ready to see this.
The pictures capture her youth, beauty, and innocence. I was prepared for that. But that’s not all. The look on her face as she stares up at me is full of what could be viewed by an outsider as love.
Sadly, I’m not an outsider, everything about the weekend was fake. All of it from the pretend relationship to her phony name.
I stare at the images for several more seconds, letting the anger fill my veins. I don’t want to forget this feeling and start wishing things were different. Hell, they can’t be altered. She didn’t even give me her name. I need a clean break to forget everything about her. I click on the email and press delete.
Chapter Thirteen
Chloe
I WALK into the bathroom and put up my toothpaste and toothbrush. When I open the medicine cabinet above my sink, I see the round container of birth control pills. Oh shit. That’s what I forgot.
My face heats as visions of our intertwined naked bodies flood my brain. I grab the sink with both hands and groan. This is not good. My knuckles are white against my pale flesh.
A wave of nausea rolls over me. Swallowing back the bile, I straighten my shoulders. It can’t be that big of a deal. I’ve only missed two days.
I grab the rectangular container and study the back of it, then my eyes slam shut. I’m such a dumbass. Not one pill is missing. Why would I take them? Randy and I haven’t had sex in the last three months.
That might be why he’s letting Bridgette give him the old once over. I begin to giggle and then slap my hand over my mouth. This is not a laughing matter.
I walk over to my desk calendar and count the days since my last period. Day twelve. Is that good or bad? That’s bad, isn’t it? I try to remember what we learned in health class but can’t focus. What do I do if I get pregnant? I can’t tell Damon. He’s already raised his children.
My parents. They’ll be so disappointed in me. Stop catastrophizing. Most people try for months before getting pregnant. Yeah. There is nothing to worry about. I slide open the container and wrinkle my nose. Do I start at the beginning, or the day I should be on? Start over? I scrunch my face and nod. Start over. I pop the pill out from the beginning of the pack and swallow it without water.
My doorbell rings, and I jump like I’m leaving a store without buying anything. Seriously, I’m innocent. The laughter that started earlier overcomes me until tears are streaming down out of my eyes. Oh, this weekend has been a blast.
I walk across the living room floor and peek through the peephole. Oh, goodie, my parents. All remnants of laughter die. I snap open the door and wave my dad and Soraya inside.
“Hey, guys.” I paste a smile on my face and try to appear innocent.
“Hey.” My dad glowers and pulls up the sleeve of his dress shirt. The huge face of his watch lays across his strong wrist. “We stopped by an hour ago, and you weren’t here.”
“Yeah, I stuck around longer than I intended, and traffic was backed up.” All the flights were delayed due to some delay with an earlier flight. Not going to tell them I had to fly from somewhere to get home. I step back and make room for them.
Soraya shuts the door and opens her arms for me. “Hey, baby girl. Tell me about this asshole.”
I stand motionlessly in her arms as she rubs my back. How can she know about Damon? As far as they know, I was at Dalilah’s parent’s estate all weekend. Not in Tahoe. Should I come clean, or should there be a limit to my return to good girl status?
My dad paces the room, and a vein in his neck pops. “I always knew the guy was a prick. You are too good for Randall Dawson.”
Oh. That’s who we’re talking about. Thank God. I snuggle into Soraya’s embrace. “It was disgusting.”
She pats my back and releases me. “I can’t imagine walking in on that.” She shudders, and the long hair that waves down her back flashes in the light of the living room.
Red ends? I arch an eyebrow. “Red?”
“Yes, red. I’m angry. You are my little girl, and I hate knowing some guy hurt you.”
“Really, Soraya. It’s okay.” I pace the living room.
“That’s bullshit. I’ve got a few choice words for him.” My father’s jaw works in anger. He’s an imposing man. Having been in the business world his entire life, he’s used to intimating the shit out of people.
But I can handle Randy. Hell, he’s not that important. The feelings I had for him pale in comparison to what I feel for Damon. Felt. Could have felt. Whatever. Randy’s nothing.
“Dad.” I walk over to him and place my hands on his forearms. “Don’t get involved. Randy is a punk. I can deal with him. It’s not like it was a grand love affair or anything. We dated for a couple of years, and that’s it.”
“Are you sure?”
He stares at me with the same eyes I see in the mirror every day. Those damn eyes that I’ve never been able to lie to. The only way to survive this is if he doesn’t figure out the right questions to ask. “Yes, I’m positive.” He opens his arms and gives me a quick hug. “Everything is fine.”
Then, those freaking eyes narrow and stare at me between two slits. Oh, crap. Here it comes.
He crosses his arms and holds in a deep breath. When he lets it go, it sounds like a tea kettle going off. “Everything is not fine. You might be an adult and living on your own, but you do not have the right to disrespect Soraya or myself like that.”
Soraya rolls her eyes and places a hand on my father’s back. “What your father is trying to say, but is fucking up, is that we love you and want to know you’re okay. It would tear us up if anything were to happen to you, or if we didn’t know how to find you in an emergency.”
“Soraya.” My dad turns to glare at her, and I feel the first wave of relief. They love angry sex, and I’m not above manipulating the shit out of this situation.
“Thank you, Soraya. You said it so nicely.”
“You’re welcome. Your father’s language is Neanderthal, and mine is English.” Soraya flips a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Woman, you’d better watch your smart mouth.” My dad’s upper lip curls.
Soraya cocks an eyebrow. “Or what? You have a plan for my mouth?”
He rolls his eyes and cups Soraya’s face into his hands. “What if I do?”