Page 324 of Dark Love

His voice echoes in my head.

What do I do? How do I fix this mess I’ve made? I don’t think brownies are the answer. This might be too much, even for an apology pie.

At a loss for words, I stand there staring at this beautiful man I just inadvertently—sort of inadvertently—insulted.

He, on the other hand, munches on my brownie like he has weird conversations on his doorstep with random strangers every day of the week.

How do I get some of that confidence, or maybe it is patience?

The pitter patter of not-so-little feet announces her imminent arrival.

Hopefully, this doesn’t go wrong, or I’m going to have to move. And I really, really like my house.

“What’s up Dad? Hey, Dahlia. You made it.”

I certainly did.

“Dahlia, this is my dad Massimo Rage Vincenti. Dad, this is my friend Dahlia. She lives down the street.”

I wouldn’t exactly call us friends. She’s a sweet kid.

“Hope, why does our neighbor believe I won’t let you read or write an entire genre?”

“Because you told me I couldn’t date until I’m ninety.”

He turns towards the little—comparatively—girl with one hand holding a platter full of brownies and flowers and the other holding a half-eaten brownie. “Try again.”

“Because you won’t let me read romance novels.” She puts her fist on her hip and glares at him.

This might become a battle of wills. If I tiptoe away, will they even remember that I was here?

“Hope.”

She flaps her arms. “Fine, you just won’t let me read books with sex in them. Even though I’m old enough to understand what it is and how babies are made. Which is totally unfair.”

“Your father is right.” I bite my lips to avoid having any other words slip out.

“Now you’re on his side.” She turns to me, shocked.

“He’s on your side. Teenager or not. Birds or bees talk or not. No teenager is really ready for all that. Your father is trying to protect you from things that could scar your heart for life. Enjoy the time you have as a kid, because it’s way too short and once it’s gone, you can’t get that back.”

“But you said I should be able to read romance novels.”

“You should be able to, and there are millions of them out there that focus on the most important part of falling in love.”

“Yeah, and what’s that?”

“Your mind. Learning to really love someone starts here.” I tap my temple. “Then it moves to your heart. As a writer, the most impactful part of any love story is not the sex. It’s the falling in love. The realization that you’ve found the other half of your soul. The person you’re meant to spend the rest of your life with.”

“But they’re just characters in a book.”

“Love is a very real thing.”

She turns to her dad. “Is that how you felt about Mom?”

“It is.” He nods.

Hope stands there processing my words, staring at her father but seeing nothing at all. “I want to learn how to write like that.” Her body shifts so that she’s facing me. “Will you teach me how to writelike that?”

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