Chapter 24
COSETTE
Ibarely felt my feet touch the ground before Nero was on me, his lips attacking mine in a flurry of hungry kisses. In turn, I wrapped my arms around his neck, letting my fingers run through his nape and up into his hair.
“Fuck me,” he exhaled against my lips as I felt him shiver at the touch, and I wasn’t able to stop myself from joking as I replied, “I’ve been trying to.”
We continued to make out like we were having a battle between our tongues, and with Nero’s arms supporting me by my waist, we walked to the front door.
To say I was impressed that I managed to unlock the door without having to pull away from him would be an understatement. I didn’t want to break the spell, because I know for a fact that if I stopped, I would get all shy and I wouldn’t be meeting his kisses with the same urgency this confidently.
Turns out, though? We really should’ve stopped.
“Nero?”
Shit.
Shit, shit, shitballs.
I could feel the temperature turn down from blazing hot to frozen cold in a second.
I looked towards the couch, where the voice originated, as the embarrassment of the moment finally hit me.
“Dad.”
How could I forget he’s home from his trip?!
“What in the actual— you,” he said, looking at me with wide eyes, before turning to Nero with much narrower ones as he pointed a finger at him.
“And you. I trusted you. Let you into my house. And you’ve been hiding this from me?
I’ve seen the looks you throw at my daughter ever since you broke up with Andy, but god, I trusted you both! How could you hide this from me?”
“Look, dad, it’s not—“
Wait, what did he just say?
“What do you mean ‘the looks’? This is… all of this is new. It’s our first date tonight.”
“Ba-ha! Yeah, right. Eh mas malagkit pa sa kanin ang titig sa’yo nitong lalaking ‘to eh!”
Oh, he’s mad mad if he’s talking in Filipino.
“Dad. I promise tonight was our first date. We’re not trying to hide anything from you.”
Of course I’ve been keeping my two boyfriends secret from him, but that’s out of the topic at hand. I need to defuse the situation. I didn’t want my dad mad at him. Not when he’s Nero’s only current father figure.
Dad’s gaze shifted to Nero. “Not that I believe you more than my own daughter—trust me, I don’t—but what I can do is hurt you if you lie to me.”
“She’s telling the truth, sir. We haven’t— I mean tonight was going to be our first time—“
I stomped on Nero’s foot, making him hiss as he corrected himself, “Dating. First time… dating.”
Dad’s jaw tightened, and he fixed us with a hard stare that was truly intimidating, and I had to admit, it was impressive. I never truly understood just how lax he’s been with me until tonight.
“Okay,” he said, letting out a long breath before he continued, “Okay. I believe you two. For now.”
Nero only nodded, and I sighed, feeling like a total dumbass for not thinking clearly and accidentally putting him in a situation like this.
There was a silence in the living room, Nero rocking on his heel and toes, and I had to groan in defeat, knowing my dad wouldn’t stop giving him the death glare until he left.
Totally under parental supervision.
Taking hold of Nero’s hand, I tugged him outside through the front door, and, as expected, my dad was right behind us, keeping an eye on us and making sure we left space for Jesus between us or something.
“Sorry about all of this,” I muttered once I figured we were out of earshot. I ran my hand up my hair, feeling so frustrated, because I could still feel how my heart was beating fast, the possibility of what could’ve happened heavy in my chest.
To his credit, Nero just smiled at me with no hint of annoyance on his face as he tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “Don’t be. Your dad loves you, and he’s just trying to make sure you’re safe.”
“What? From you? He should know by now that I’m always safe with you,” I said, my tone surprisingly turning soft.
“Yeah?” He asked with a shit-eating grin that made me laugh.
God. I hated that our date had to end like this.
“Hey. I had a great evening. With or without what was supposed to happen,” he said.
I nodded in agreement, hooking my pinky with his. “Me too.”
My dad cleared his throat, and I had to find my inner peace not to roll my eyes at him. Nero saw the effect it had on me, making him nudge my chin affectionately, immediately giving me comfort that this wasn’t a total bust.
“I hate to make you wait again after you’ve spent years crushing on me, but I promise, I’ll make it worth the wait when it does happen.”
Nero bent down, giving me a kiss on the cheek before gently gripping my hip and squeezing it away from my dad’s eyes.
“Go on, and enjoy your chocolate mousse. Good night, Cosette.”
With that, he backed away, greeting my dad a ‘good night’ with a polite wave before turning around to walk back to his place across the street.
“He didn’t drive the truck to their driveway,” my dad said suspiciously as I walked past him to run upstairs.
“We’ll be riding to school tomorrow together, anyway.”
Don’t get me wrong. I love my dad. Yet, I really hate how tonight ended, even if it was my fault for not being careful.
It’s not like I’m mad or anything. I was just feeling embarrassed, maybe even a little bitter.
“Anak,” he called out to me before I reached halfway up the stairs, and his voice softened a lot that I knew I couldn’t just ignore him.
“You know I give you your freedom. But you have to understand that in my eyes? You’ll still be my little girl.
My daughter, who laughs whenever someone calls me ‘Hoyt’. ”
My snort came out on its own, and that’s all it took for both of us to know everything’s okay.
“I know, dad. I don’t blame you. Teens today are… wild,” I said, as if I wasn’t tag teamed by my two boyfriends on a goddamn dining table while I was enjoying said freedom that my dad’s allowed me.
With the guilt I felt in the bottom of my stomach, I ran down the stairs and I attacked my dad with a hug.
Has it been long since I’ve done this? I don’t even remember the last time I did.
“We’ll have to talk more soon, and I promise I’ll catch you up on things. I missed you.”
I felt his fatherly arms come up to wrap around me, and in his arms, I didn’t feel like I had to be the powerful woman I’m pushing myself to be.
I could be vulnerable. Because this was the man that single-handedly raised me since I could remember, and while I’m expanding the circle of people I could trust, he still only had me.
“Go to bed, anak. And tomorrow, you can gush to me about how your date went. I know you’ve been crushing on Nero ever since he stepped onto our porch years ago.”
“You’re horrible for reminding me that you know my secret like you’re my girl friend or something,” I teased, pulling away and jokingly glaring at him before trudging up the stairs. “Night, dad.”