Chapter 42
FORTY-TWO
Dane
As I approach my driveway, all I see is my dad’s black Porsche sitting in my driveway. He’s been MIA all week ever since we gave him an ultimatum. Not sure where he’s been, but now I’m curious why he is parked in my driveway.
Lifting my foot off the gas pedal, I cruise into the driveway, parking right next to him.
I peer over, and he’s sitting there in the driver's seat with both hands on the steering wheel. Slowly, he turns his head toward me, nods, and opens his door. My body isn’t moving, even though I watch him close his door and walk to the front of our cars.
I can either get out or drive away. It’s time to face him, so I make my way out of the car. “Hi, Dad,” I say firmly.
“Hi, Dane.” His tired eyes stare back at me. “Can we talk?”
I gather myself, bracing for whatever comes next. “Sure, come on in.”
He follows me through the door and straight to the kitchen. I might need a beer for this conversation. Snagging one from the fridge, I glance over my shoulder. “Want one?”
“No, son, I’m good. Thank you.” His tone is somber. I wonder what’s up with him. Maybe he’s here to wish me luck in my next endeavor and deliver the signed papers. But why would he just come to my house and not involve Logan in the conversation?
He has me curious, wondering what he’s doing here. “Let’s sit on the deck.”
We sit across from each other, me with one leg over my knee, looking as relaxed as I can be.
“You might be wondering why I’m here.”
“That crossed my mind,” I chuckle. My nerves might be getting the better of me. I need to have this wrapped up so Kendall and I can live our lives together with no interference from the man sitting across from me.
Wiping his hands along his thighs, he clears his throat.
Is he nervous too?
I don’t think I’ve ever seen my dad like this. What is going on with him?
“I visited Kendall today…”
“You did what? I can’t believe you would subject her to another visit from you,” I all but shout, interrupting him, lifting myself off my chair.
“Please sit back down. If you let me finish, you would have heard me say that I apologized to Kendall and had a conversation about you…and her.”
I sit back down, and my hands grip the arms of the chair as he speaks. “Wait…What? You apologized and had a conversation with her. She let you near her?”
“Dane, I’m not a threat to her.”
“I beg to differ.”
He shakes his head. “I don’t want to lose anyone else in my life—you, Logan.” The paper that he pulls out of his jacket pocket looks familiar. He takes them and rips all the pages in half, stands up, and drops them in my lap.
“I have a lot of work to do to earn your trust again and, frankly, build back our relationship after what’s happened.
After talking with your Gram, it became really clear I was dead wrong—about everything.
I thought Kendall was the problem, but in fact, Gram pointed out I’m the problem.
I’m putting all my fears onto your relationship. It was wrong.”
“Yes, you are completely wrong.”
He stares at me. “I’m sorry for barging into your life and making threats to the woman you love.”
I interrupt him. “Wait. How do you know that?”
“Son, I saw it written all over your face when you were talking with your brother. I remember your grandfather talking about Gram, and he had that same look. One of admiration, happiness, and love—the love of his life.”
I blow out a breath. He’s just as observant as I am. “You listened in on my conversation with Logan?”
“I did.” Hanging his head low. “That tone, the way you talk about Kendall, it was also how I used to talk about your mom. At first, it was good, perhaps too good. Your conversation about Kendall hit a nerve, and I went off the deep end.”
“Yeah, you did. I never expected you to go to these lengths. It was shocking and hurtful. My heart literally hurts because you have Kendall questioning everything about our relationship. And I can only hope that this mess doesn’t sever what we have—the love we have.”
“If there’s anything else I can do, I’ll do it. I’m sorry, son,” he says, shaking his head.
We haven’t had a conversation like this in a while. I’m somewhat shocked that he opened up to me about my mom. That’s usually an off-limits conversation. Telling him how I feel about Kendall seals it. I love her with all my heart, and I’m not letting this be the end for us.
I move to stand up and say, “It’s really important that you understand this cannot happen again.
You need to not meddle in my life again.
You’ve talked about doing the right thing; now you need to follow up with actions.
It’s going to take some time to fully trust you again, but I love you, and we aren't going anywhere.”
My dad stands up and steps closer to me, putting his arms around me, and says, “I love you, too, son.” He pats me on my back a few times instead of pulling away like I would expect.
Surprised by his emotional state, I hug my dad back. Squeezing him one more time, I say, “Tell me what happened with Kendall. I haven’t heard from her. Why didn’t she let me know? Is she upset?”
“No, I asked her to wait until later so I could talk with you.” We sit back down, and he tells me the entire conversation with Kendall. She is the most amazing, loving, and caring woman, and I want her in my life forever. My hope is high that she’s choosing herself, and then she’ll choose me.
She has to choose me—please let her choose us.
“Dad, I love her.”
“I know you do, son. I’m not interfering again. It’s your life.”
The thought of losing us, Logan and I, clearly weighed on him. He can’t just bulldoze his two sons. Forgetting he’s our dad and taught us well. I chuckle.
I check my watch to see the time. It’s been talking for over two hours.
He stands up and says, “You need to tell her you love her.”
“I do.” I stand up, and we walk to our cars.
With a deep breath, I knock on her door. All I wanted to do was gaze into her eyes; there was no time for texting. I leaped out of my car and ran to the door. Composing myself, I run a hand down my shirt.
She opens the door. A sight to see. Her fiery red hair sprawls around her shoulders.
I pause for a split second before I wrap my arms around her and almost tumble on the floor.
Feeling her arms wrap around me, it's a small gesture, but it sends all my nerve endings firing. Tears well up in my eyes. I can’t lose her.
“There’s no more waiting for me.” I brush her hair off her face and gaze into her sparkling emerald green eyes.
Her shock gives way to a bright smile. “I love you, Kendall. I can’t hold back anymore.
I was trying to give you time and space.
It was too much. My heart is literally going to burst out of my chest.”
Her hand slides to my heart and taps it. “You love hard, don’t you.” It wasn’t a question. She knows and kisses the spot she was tapping—my heart.
“I fall fast and love hard,” I shrug, like I’m confessing my sins.
Lifting herself up on her tippy toes, she guides my face down to hers. So close to each other, her eyes close. “I love being loved by you…” She opens her eyes and says, “I love you, too. There’s no denying we sprinted into this relationship.” We both laugh.
She presses her lips to mine. To feel her again, my blood pressure skyrockets, and my dick stands at attention. Our lips move, starving for each other. It feels like forever.
Breaking away from me ever so slowly, she says, “We should probably talk.”
“Yeah, yeah, good idea.” I reluctantly let her go, feeling the loss of her warmth.
Then, she slips her hand into mine and leads me to the backyard. Being connected to her, it’s perfect—it’s right. I want to be touching her, close to her. So I sit with her on the lounger. “Do you already know your dad stopped by the salon today?”
“Yeah, he showed up at my house. We just finished having a two-hour conversation.”
“Oh, is that good?”
“It’s great, sweetheart. He filled me in. Desperate man, desperate measures. Honestly, I couldn't believe he went to see you again.”
“So you really didn’t know?” she asks, searching me.
“Not a fucking clue.”
“I didn’t realize your mom cheated on your dad.” She moves forward to touch my face. “I’m putting the pieces together.”
I massage my temples and let out a sigh. “He’s still hurting from it all, and it’s been years.”
“I could see it in his eyes. It’s heartbreaking.” She rests her hand on my leg. “Looking back on this week, a part of me wants to thank your dad for trying to pay me to stay away from you.”
Jolting back. “What?”
She pulls me to her. “Dane, it made me take a step back and think about myself, us. We were moving at the rate of a freight train.” I laugh.
She isn’t wrong. “I know without a shadow of a doubt, I haven’t lost myself in you.
I’m still me. My ambitions are larger than life…
and so aren’t yours. Our hearts are tethered.
Our connection is undeniable. Our work/life balance—we’re working on it… We’re perfect for each other.”
“We’re soulmates.” I cup her face and rub her cheekbones. Her eyes flutter.
She’s gorgeous.
“I think we can make anything work after all of this.”
“Me too, sweetheart.”