Page 142 of Dangerous Contract: Part 1

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“Da-Dad?” Monique stammered, surprised and confused to see her father in the middle of her living room. “What are you doing here?”

His face was gaunt and haggard, a far cry from how he’d looked the last time she’d seen him. His eyes held a dangerous gleam, making her heart race even faster. He said nothing, just locked his gaze on her, making it impossible to look away.

“Dad, what the hell are you doing in my house?” she demanded, her fear slowly morphing into anger.

“Monique,” he began, his voice low, his gaze softening. “Hey, sweetie. There’s something important we need to talk about.”

“First, tell me how you got into my house.” He couldn’t have come through the front door. Her friends would’ve seen him, and they would’ve come inside to make sure she was okay.

“Oh, that,” he mumbled, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck. That was something he did when he was nervous. “I came in through the back door.”

“It’s locked.”

“Your mom has a key, remember?”

“I took that key from her when she started coming over and letting herself in, only to lecture me on how horrible of a wife I’d been to the man who cheated on me, the man who left me.”

“She got a key made before you took it back.”

There was a tick in her dad’s jaw. Monique cocked her head to the side, finding it hard to read him. Forget reading him. She just wanted him gone. Since her divorce, being around her dad made her uncomfortable.

He was always pestering her to get Trevor back, even if she had to beg him to come back. To him, Trevor was more important than her. That hadn’t sat right with her, which was why she was avoiding her family.

“Just leave, dad.”

“I said we needed to talk, Monique!”

“Talk?” She scoffed, disbelief coursing through her veins. “You break into my house, and now you want to talk? We talked right after the divorce. When you should’ve been comforting me or at least trying to be kind to me, you belittled me and made me feel like a failure. Since that’s how you feel, we have nothing more to say to each other. It’s clear that you don’t want a daughter like me in your life. So, stay out of mine.”

“Believe me, if there was another way...” His words trailed off as he stepped toward her, but she instinctively stepped back, her mind reeling with confusion and suspicion.

“Stay away from me,” she warned, her body tense and ready to flee if necessary.

What could possibly be so important that her own father would resort to this? Was he doing this because of Trevor? Was he going to try and force her to get back with her ex? Fuck that! Monique had nothing to say to her bastard of an ex. The mere thought of engaging with him made her stomach churn.

“Monique, please, just listen to what I have to say,” he pleaded, his tone desperate.

“Get out!” she screamed, her voice cracking under the strain of her emotions. “I don’t want to hear anything you have to say!”

Her father’s expression turned cold, and he took another step forward, ignoring her protests. His determination only fueled her fear, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong.

I should’ve stayed at the casino. Why didn’t I stay at the casino? Ugh!

“Monique,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “This is important. You need to listen.”

Her thoughts raced as she backed away from him, trying to make sense of the situation. No, forget the situation. Forget what he wanted. What she wanted was to get away from him. Monique took a step left toward the door.

“Fine!” her father spat loudly, making her flinch. “You want to know why I’m here? I’ve been trying to call you for weeks, but you never answer.”

Monique crossed her arms, her frustration boiling over as she glared at him.

“Why would I answer when all you ever do is try to convince me to get back with Trevor? I’m done with him, and I’m done with you meddling in my life!”

Her father stared at her, his eyes filled with anger and desperation. “This isn’t about Trevor,” he said through clenched teeth. “Well, not entirely.”

“Then what is it about?” Monique demanded.

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