Chapter 23
Cori
It’s not often that Leander Lamb summons me to meet him. I don’t remember the last time I met with him alone for a meal. Mom is always with us.
I would have stopped off at home to change my shoes, but the tone of his voice had me worried, so I left the office to head to Seven Heaven.
As I pass my apartment complex, I notice a white moving truck, and hope and pray that if I’m getting new neighbors, they won’t be noisy.
The parking lot at Seven Heaven is nearly empty, which is not surprising since it’s closing time, but the owner will make exceptions for someone like my father.
“Your daddy’s in the back, honey.” Ms. Hazel, owner of Seven Heaven, points to the rear of the restaurant when I walk in.
As expected, the place is empty as she counts the cash out of her register.
“Do me a favor, darling, and lock the door for me.” She hands me a set of keys.
I do as she asks and return the keys to her before searching for my father.
I spot him. He sits in a secluded booth in the back. He stands, looking nervous, but my dad has never been nervous around me. He’s not perfect, but I love him.
“Hey, Dad. What’s—”
The rest of the question dies on my tongue when Daxton Hunt steps from the side and walks to the booth. My steps falter, and I offer Dax a tentative smile. I smooth down my pants and really wish I had changed before coming here.
I wanted to put on something sexy, invite him to my apartment tonight, and tell him that I’ve agreed to be with him and take our relationship public.
“Cori,” Dad says. He stands and gestures, with a shaky hand, for me to take a seat at the table. He clears his throat and sits back down. Dax stands next to Dad, and I’m suddenly uneasy.
“What’s going on? Why is he here?” I point at Dax.
“It’s nice to see you, too, sweetheart.” I swallow the sharp rebuke and refocus on my father. If I’m going to be Dax Hunt’s girlfriend, I should probably be nicer to him.
Dad rubs his hands over his bald head, and a coldness takes over my body. Whatever this is, it’s not good, but I don’t understand why Dax would be here while my father delivers bad news.
Whenever they have to give bad news, he and Mom do it together. A horrifying thought hits.
“Is Mom okay?” I quickly grab his hands.
“Yes, your mother is fine, Cori.” I exhale in relief and let him go. “Why are your hands so cold and clammy?” He rubs his hands on his pants and sighs.
He clears his throat. “It’s actually good news.
” I don’t buy that for a second. He’s sweating so much, he wipes his shiny forehead with one of the handkerchiefs I gave him last Father’s Day.
I embroidered his initials on them, and he said it was the best gift he had ever received.
And here he is, nervous and sweaty, two things he’s never been around me. I brace myself for whatever this is.
Dad slides a folder in front of me. While I scan the contents, he speaks. “There is an orthopedist in Chicago who has agreed to see your mother. He’s a specialist, and if she qualifies for surgery, there’s a good chance she might be able to ditch that wheelchair.”
He’s right. This is excellent news, but I’m not mollified. Why is he telling me this in front of Dax? Why is my mother not here when this is about her?
“I thought the insurance denied another surgery?” I stare into his eyes, and he looks afraid. I’ve never seen my father afraid, and I hope I’m wrong.
“They have, and that’s where the good news comes in.” He gestures at Dax, who stands tall. “Daxton here has graciously offered to pay for your mother’s care. Whatever she needs. Forever.” Dad clears his throat. For such good news, he doesn’t seem as happy as he should be.
I glance at Dax, but there is no expression on his face.
“He has?” I foolishly allow myself to have a moment of hope for my mother.
“I have, Bella,” Dax whispers.
“Well, that’s amazing. Does Mom know? Why don’t we go to the house so you can tell her the news?
” There’s an air of trepidation that’s unexpected at a moment like this.
Maybe it’s fear mixed with skepticism since Mom already had surgery that made her situation worse, but this news doesn’t give me a sense of relief.
On the contrary, it makes me nervous. “When she meets with the specialist, I want to go too. I want to make sure that this surgery won’t make things worse like last time.
If there’s a chance—” I don’t realize I’m crying until a tear rolls down my cheek.
“Well, I want to talk to you about it first before we go to your mother, honey.” Dad rarely calls me honey.
Whenever he’s done it in the past, it was never under good circumstances.
He called me honey when he asked for the money I had managed to save.
He called me honey when he said Mom needed me and asked me to put off fashion school for just one more year.
Well, one more year has turned into seven.
The only other time he called me honey that didn’t end in disappointment for me was when he said he was going to sign a lease for my apartment. But now I’m wondering if there’s something about that that I don’t know.
“Whether or not she gets the treatment she desperately needs depends on you.”
The hair on the back of my neck stands up. I was right to be nervous, but now I’m also confused. Dax is looking down at his phone, seemingly bored, while he types something on the screen.
“I don’t understand how that would depend on me.” I clear my throat and let out a nervous laugh. “I’m not the doctor, and I don’t have the money.” My joke comes off flat. Dad wipes his forehead again, and Dax finally slides his phone into his pocket.
“It seems you still have all the power, sweetheart,” Dax says. I narrow my eyes at him.
“Dad, can you please tell me how all of this depends on me?” I side-eye Dax again, but I decide to ignore him for now.
“Well, here’s the thing. Dax will only do this if you agree to—” Dad lets out a series of coughs before he has to use both of his shaky hands to pick up his glass of ice water. He takes a few sips and coughs as if he’s choking.
“Get a hold of yourself, Lamb,” Dax impatiently snaps. “Man the fuck up.”
“What the hell is the matter with you? Don’t talk to him like that,” I snap in defense of my father. “Are you okay, Dad?” I start to rise from my chair, but he raises his hand, signaling for me to remain seated.
“I’m fine, honey. Listen.” He sits straight, clears his throat once again, and takes a deep breath.
“Daxton will agree to cover the travel expenses for your mother and me to go to Chicago, pay for the surgery, rehab, and all treatment-related expenses for life. That means we will never have to worry about insurance again, and your mother can get the best possible care. You don’t know this, but she’s felt so guilty about being in the chair. ”
“It was an accident, Dad. I don’t want her to feel guilty.” I shove down my own guilt for getting angry at putting my dreams on hold while Devin got to go off to college without any expectations of caring for our mother.
“I know you don’t, but she does. She wants to be able to take care of us like she did before the accident, and we finally have a glimmer of hope now. But Dax will only do it on one condition.”
The trepidation not only returns, but it’s now accompanied by the rapid beating of my heart and blood aggressively coursing through my veins.
“What condition?” I nearly whisper.
Dad stares at Dax, who remains silent. It’s as if they are both waiting for the other to drop the news. The air in the dining room changes and becomes stifling. Sweat pours between my breasts. No one speaks, and it’s as if we’re moving in slow motion.
“What is the condition?” I ask again, sharper and louder this time.
“You have to marry Daxton.” The words rush out of my father’s mouth and hit me like a punch. His words have such an impact that I’m pushed back in my seat.
The room goes eerily quiet while I blink several times. There’s no way I heard what I think I heard.
“I’m sorry, Dad, but what did you say to me?” I squint my eyes at him.
“You have to marry Dax before he’ll agree to—”
I hold up my hand, unwilling to hear whatever bullshit my father was to say. I don’t need him to repeat it.
I rise from my chair and sling my purse over my shoulder before giving these crazy men my back. But I’m intercepted by Dax.
“If you know what’s good for you, you’ll move your sorry ass.” I point at his face and feel nothing but disgust. And to think I was going to give him a chance. I attempt to slap his face, but he moves, and I miss.
“Cori, your mother deserves a chance to get out of that chair.” My dad’s voice forces me to lower my head in shame. He’s right.
“You’re right, Dad, she does.” I face him again. “Mr. Hunt should do it out of the goodness of his heart, not because he expects anything in return. Especially this.”
I feel tears pool in the back of my eyes. I feel shame at denying my mother this.
“Come back and sit down, please, honey,” he says. There’s a tremor in his voice and tears in his eyes. I’ve only seen my father cry twice in my life, and both times happened after my mother became injured. “He’s a good man, Cori. He’s well off and will take good care of you.”
Of course, that’s where he would go. Mom only worked part-time before she was hurt. Dad always saw himself as the provider, but I’m not looking for the same arrangement he had with my mom.
“I prefer to take care of myself,” I say without any emotion. “And I never want to get married. You know this. I’ve been saying it for years now.”
“I didn’t think you were serious. And I’m not old-fashioned. You and Dax can take care of each other.” He grabs both my hands in his. His palms are sweaty. “I would not ask this of you if—”