Page 96 of The Good Girl

“Don’t let them in. If they don’t have a warrant, they can wait where they are.”

“I look like I was born yesterday?”

I glare at him until he sighs and nods.

“I’m on it.”

I close the door as he leaves and turn back to the bed. Nevaeh looks at me with wide eyes, the sheet pulled up to her chin like some kind of protective barrier. I hate it because it hides her luscious tits. Even though my dick stirs, I know he’ll have to wait.

“Did Circus just say my father is here? Here, like at the clubhouse, here?”

“That’s what the guy said. Whether he is or not, I don’t know. Get dressed, cupcake. Let’s go find out what’s going on.”

She jumps up, her movements jerky and uncoordinated. Her thoughts are undoubtedly on her father and not getting dressed. I stalk over to her and gently grip her arms.

“Take a deep breath for me, cupcake.”

She takes a shaky one before blowing it out.

“Good girl. I know this has thrown you, but I need you to keep it together for a minute and tell me what to expect. You’ve always been pretty close-lipped about your dad. At first,I thought it was the MC you had an issue with. Maybe you were ashamed, but I know that’s not it now. Is it me?”

She shocks the shit out of both of us when she slaps me across the face. It’s not a hard slap, but the shock of it renders us both mute for a moment.

“Don’t you ever say that again. If I should be ashamed of anyone, it’s me. I mean, what the hell do I have to offer you when my own father can’t even love me? I’m ashamed that you’re going to see where I come from. I hate that you’re going to hear the vile words he’ll spew at me. I don’t want to look at the brothers because I know I’ll see pity in their eyes. I’m embarrassed, okay? I was embarrassed that I stayed for as long as I did and tried so hard to get him to love me. I?—”

I yank her to me, wrap my arms around her, and press her face against my chest. Her tears make my skin slick, but I don’t move. I don’t tell her to calm down or offer her false platitudes. Something tells me this has been brewing for a long time, and I just accidentally kicked the hornet’s nest.

Once she’s calmed down a little, I pull back and tip her head up so she can look at me. Her skin is flushed, her eyes puffy and red, and her cheeks streaked with tears, yet she has never looked more beautiful than she does right now.

She always puts on a brave face, and don’t get me wrong—she is brave. But I’ve seen the glimpse she has kept hidden from me, especially over the last week. The moments of vulnerability she’s too scared to show me in case I use them against her. As much as I wanted to force her to talk to me, I knew my usual bulldozer routine could do some permanent damage, so I waited for her to come to me.

I just didn’t realize it would all come to a head like this.

“There is nothing unlovable about you, Nevaeh. I fell head over dick the second I slid inside you. I didn’t know what you looked like, didn’t know what you sounded like beyondthose sexy little moans of yours, but I knew what you felt like. You felt like mine. Like I’d paid my penance, and you were my reward. Every time I learned something new about you, I fell in love all over again. But even without me…even if you’d never walked into my life, you had Amity. She doesn’t love many people. I know that. But you, you own a piece of her heart that she will never take back. You saw what she was like downstairs when she realized you might be a target. She nearly lost her damned mind, and that’s because the thought of losing you would break something inside her. You are not unlovable. You’re unforgettable, and that’s what your father’s problem is. He wants to forget because then the pain will fade away. “

“He doesn’t want to forget. He wants to live in the past. I wish he’d forget. Then, we might finally be able to move on. My sister’s death, though, has left him in some messed-up time loop.”

“He wants to forget you, Nevaeh,” I tell her softly. “Because you’re a direct reminder of all his failings. He wants a do-over so he can get everything right this time, but you’re not playing by his rules. You’re not the puppet he hoped you would be. And even if you were, I still don’t think it would be enough. He’s looking for perfection in broken places.”

She sighs, and I can tell she’s still not convinced that the problem isn’t her. I let her go so we could both get dressed, but I kept my eyes on her. She’s quiet, but she looks steady once more.

Once she’s done, she looks at me and blows out a steadying breath. “I’m ready.”

“No matter what happens today, nothing will change how I feel about you. Nothing he can say or do will ever make me walk away from you. I’m afraid, cupcake, that you’re stuck with me.”

“That might just be the best thing I’ve ever heard.”

I kiss her gently before taking her hand and leading her downstairs. Mac and Toot are there waiting. A few others aremilling around, mostly minding their own business, but I see them look at Nevaeh, checking her over to make sure she’s okay. It makes me feel proud to be the president of this club. I don’t think I realized just how fucked-up my old club was until I came here and saw what a functioning family was supposed to look like.

“We’ll walk you down. G and Circus are keeping an eye on things. I sent Dice and Hoops to get some sleep. They’ve been on duty all night,” Mac tells me. I nod and give Nevaeh’s hand a squeeze.

“You should probably know…Amity is there too.”

“Ah, crap,” Nevaeh curses, making Toot snort.

“Don’t worry, she’s holding her own,” Mac reassures her.

“Oh, it’s not Amity I’m worried about. She’s protective of me. If my father talks crap about me, and he will, Amity will lose her mind. She has bit her tongue for a long time to keep the peace, but she will only let so much slide.”

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