Willing Captive(71)

Squeezing her, I say, “I thought you liked the quiet.”

Squeezing back, she utters, “There’s quiet. And then there’s quiet. And I don’t like quiet.”

Releasing her, she looks past me to Nox. Using his cane for support, he comes forward, and Mom’s face turns devastated. Not a second later, she takes him into a motherly embrace and mutters over and over again. “Thank you so much.”

He did save my life, after all.

Nox holds her. “I’d do it again in a heartbeat, ma’am.”

Pulling back, she smacks his chest, “Don’t you ma’am me. You’ll call me Mom.” Staring at her in shock, she turns to me and adds with a wink, “Nice ring.”

I mentally smack my forehead.

I forgot to take off my ring. Some surprise.

Mom tuts, “We need drinks! And I think the occasion calls for something bubbly.”

She moves across the pristine kitchen with such ease it looks as though she’s gliding. Opening the refrigerator, she pulls out two bottles of Dom Perignon and hands them to Jon to pop the corks.

He pours and hands us our glasses, but something doesn’t feel right.

“Where’s Dad?”

Mom’s happy face droops. “In his office.”

Silence.

We stare at each other for a moment before I blurt out, “I should go get him.”

Moms smile reappears, gentler this time. “That would be nice, sweetie.”

Nox squeezes my neck and asks Mom, “Do you think I could sit down somewhere? I get tired pretty quickly these days.”

Her face falls, “Oh, honey! I’m so sorry. Of course we can sit. Let’s go outside. It’s such a nice day.”

Linking her arm with his free one, she leads them to the backyard, and Nox turns to wink at me. Shaking my head, I smile and bite my lip to stop my laughter. The goof is giving me time by distracting my mom.

I love that man.

Watching them all exit through the double doors, I take a moment to prepare myself for this encounter. I love my dad. I do. But I wish he’d done things differently.

It’s too late to do anything about that now, but it still bugs me.

Quietly making my way down the hall, I stop by my dad’s office and listen in.

Nothing. Not a sound.

Peeking in, I see my dad at his desk, going through a photo album. I assume he wants privacy, so I turn to leave, when I hear, “Nothing scarier than almost losing a child.”

Stopping in my tracks, I listen as he goes on, “Losing a child, as in your wee one passing away, I think ye could come to terms with. It’s so final. I’m not saying it would be easy, just that it’s permanent. But almost losing a child…” He clears his throat. “…It’s a very hard thing to witness. Ye do the best ye can to hold it together for yer family. Somehow, it always comes back to that day. The thought of ye being out of me sight for even a minute was enough to make me loopy.”

Turning, my eyes met my father’s as he continued, “Because if ye were out of me sight, I couldn’t protect ye, love. It’s a father’s duty. And I only did what any father would do. I could handle ye thinking I wasn’t fair. As long as ye were safe, I could deal with yer attitude, Lily.”

And although I don’t completely understand, I get it somewhat. Nodding once, I shift from foot-to–foot, suddenly nervous.

A smiling Dad breaks the tension with, “So he fought the underworld for ye?”

Not able to keep the smile down, I whisper, “He promised he’d come back for me.”

He looks serene as he says, “Must love ye a lot, Lily girl.”

Dipping my chin, I tell him, “He says he does.”

Dad returns in perfect Irish sarcasm, “I’d be inclined to believe him. Coming back from the dead is overkill, but the gesture was nice.”

And I laugh softly, shaking my head.

Standing, Dad smiles up at me. “Missed ye a lot, darling. Do ye think…ye think I could get a hug?”

Not wasting another second, I cross the room in a second flat and wrap my arms around my father’s waist. Placing my cheek to his chest, I take in the warmth and love being given in this moment. I mutter into my dad’s shirt, “I’m getting married.”

He sighs and strokes my hair, “I know, sweets. It’s time for me to let go and place ye in the hands of someone who deserves ye. And I think Nox deserves ye.”

Squeezing my dad, I assure, “He does deserve me. As much as I deserve him.”

He pulls back a little and smiles softly, “Shall I go meet my future son-in-law then?”

“Yeah. I think that would be nice.”

Wrapping his arm around my shoulder, we walk together to the back patio where everyone sits chatting. Terah’s leading the conversation, as always.

Nox turns to the doorway and smiles, seeing me and my father wrapped up. Taking his cane, he stands a little unsteadily, and walks towards us. My father holds his hand out. Nox takes it. And I’m a little stunned when Dad pulls him towards him and hugs him tight.

My throat tightens. My eyes burn.

Still in a manly embrace, my dad says, “Owe ye everything, son. Ye need or want anything, ye just ask.”

Nox earns a point in my dad’s book when he utters, “I’m quite partial to your daughter, actually. I was kinda hoping I could keep her.”