Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83756 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
“Yet, he’s engaged to her.” His words are like a slap, but I can’t accept what he is saying. “If the roles were reversed, would you want him to do that to you?”
“He wouldn’t.”
“Exactly,” he says, squeezing my knee.
“So, I should just let him marry someone he doesn’t want?”
“It’s not your place to decide that.”
“But he wants me.”
Dad makes a face. “Please, Emery. In my head, you and your sister are nuns.”
I snort at that. “Be real, Dad. Stella is married, and I’m very much attracted to Quinn.” My dad looks as if he might vomit, which only makes me laugh harder. But it dies off as I realize that I haven’t been with anyone since Quinn. “I wish I could go back and change how I handled things.”
“What do you mean?”
“I wouldn’t have broken things off with him. I would have admitted how I felt.” I swallow thickly. “I wasn’t happy in California. I compared every guy to him. I thought I didn’t want to be tied down, but I always was. To him. When I did things to celebrate, I wanted so badly for Quinn to be there.”
Dad swallows as he nods slowly. “A bit of advice?”
I nod eagerly. “Please.”
Dad reaches out, threading our fingers together. “The past is the past, sweetness. Trust me, I have always been so in love with your mom, and our past was a clusterfuck of hell. She hid Aiden from me, and all the while, I was miserable without her. I hurt her, she hurt me, but we wouldn’t be where we are if we didn’t leave the past in the past and make a future together. It wasn’t easy, but we overcame it with honesty.”
If I thought Quinn’s and my story was a shitshow, nothing compares to what my mom and dad went through. It sounds like it was difficult, but even a blind person can see how much they love each other. “How can I make a future when he’s marrying someone else?”
He thinks that over. “Have you talked to him? I know you—I know how you do things, and I doubt you’ve been honest.”
I press my lips together. “I mean, I told him I wanted him.”
“Did you apologize for the past?”
“Sort of,” I admit. “I told him it was a mistake.”
“Did you tell him what you’ve told me, that you were miserable without him?”
“No,” I answer softly. “But he wants to sit down and talk.”
He nods. “Then that’s your chance. Lay your heart out there. Tell him everything, and be honest. Don’t let your pride get in the way. If you want him, you have to lay yourself bare.”
I cringe. “That’s not easy.”
“Not at all. But is he worth it?”
I don’t even hesitate. “Yes.” I bite my lip. “But I made him feel like he wasn’t.”
Dad holds my gaze. “And that’s something you need to own up to. Something you need to fix.”
“But what if he doesn’t let me?”
“Then maybe you need to let him go,” he says softly, his eyes searching. “You can’t make someone want you, Emery, no matter how scary you are.”
Laughter sputters out of me as Dad pulls me into his embrace. I snuggle deep into his side, closing my eyes as he engulfs me in his arms. He kisses the top of my head, and I sigh deeply. I didn’t realize how badly I needed my daddy’s arms until now. Against my hair, Dad says, “Back to your initial question, Emery Elaine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You are the most passionate, gorgeous, murderous little genius I’ve ever set my eyes on, and I’m honored to be your dad.”
Tears prick behind my eyes as I squeeze him to me. “Thanks, Daddy.”
I feel him grin against my head, and we sit like that for a long time. On an exhale, he asks, “You’re still going to try everything possible to break up that engagement and take Quinn for yourself, aren’t you?”
I don’t need to hesitate. I don’t even need to consider his question. The answer is easy.
“Absolutely.”
As his laughter fills the space around us, I smile against his chest.
“That’s my girl.”
My dad gave me good advice, and I truly listened. I want to be a better person. I want to be a patient good girl, but that’s not me. I am who I am, and I’m sure if I were a guy doing what I’m doing, everyone would make excuses for me. Since I’m a woman, though, I’m labeled crazy.
And guess what?
I don’t care.
I am crazy.
Fucking insane for Quinn.
Chapter
Twenty-One
Quinn
I may need a new set of siblings.
Posey sits with Zac in her lap as she grins at her phone. Beside her, Shelli is holding back laughter with Roman in her lap while looking from her phone to me then back again. It isn’t enough that I’m getting roasted in our group chat; she has to watch my face too.