Page 30 of Burn It Down

I shifted my weight and admitted, “That darkness, what I did that night… it’s not the first time. When I finished my training, I went through a bit of a vigilante phase on the city streets. I’d told myself it was to test my skills in a real-world environment, to ensure I was prepared for my mission against the Infidels. But it was more than that. I relished the fight. That power… the whole thing.”

He scrubbed his hand over his face, not liking my words one bit. “I didn’t want this life for you.”

“I’m a grown-ass woman. You can want what you like for me, but you can’t enforce it.”

He gestured around the basement. “This situation here would say I can.”

“Lan,” Olivia groused.

“Keeping me away from the guys won’t change that. Even if they hadn’t come into my life, my plan was to start my own private security business. Asher actually thought it was a good idea.”

“What?”

“Yeah, he said it would enable me to use my skills and to help people.”

“Help people? He cared about that?”

“He cared about me doing that.”

I could see him struggling to reconcile what I was telling him.

I took the opportunity to step up to him and ask, “You have my phone?”

He stared at me.

“Dad,” I pushed.

“Yes. Why?”

“Let me see it. There’s something I want to show you.”

“You can’t call out. I’ve blocked the ability as a precaution.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to do.”

He reached into a pocket of his tactical vest and pulled it out, then turned it on for me.

“Have you gone through it?” I asked, when he handed it over.

“No.” He looked at Olivia. “Liv pointed out that it would be a step too far.”

I smiled at her. She was the voice of reason for him, somehow able to cut through that stubbornness.

“Good, then you haven’t seen these yet,” I said, as I scrolled to my text messages with the guys.

I handed it back to him. “Read over these. I want you to see the way things really are.”

He frowned, but did as I asked.

It was a risk, given the sexual stuff in some of those text exchanges, but I was hoping the rest would outweigh that for him, that he’d see what I needed him to.

The care, the humor, the love of my men for me.

Those text messages were like the story of our relationship.

A few moments passed in strained silence, until my dad scrubbed his hand over his face and frowned.

And then he was lowering himself onto the edge of the little couch and continuing to read.

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