Page 54 of Roses and Skulls

“Did you see his face?” she chuckles, wiping at her eyes.

Elijah throws his head back. “Yeah, I’m glad he didn’t have his gun on him, or I would be dead right now.”

She smiles at him. “I think he thought…” Her cheeks turn pink, and she looks away from him shyly.

“What?” he asks, teasing her. “What do you think he thought?”

Billie Rose leans forward, her lips entirely too close to his ugly mug. “You’re lucky he didn’t see you a few nights ago when you...”

That’s it. Game over. Dan wraps his arm around my shoulders and literally lifts my ass off the ground, tossing me outside.

I gain my footing and barrel back towards the door. Raffe follows us out, shutting the door firmly behind him.

“Let’s go home,” Raffe says, twirling his finger in the air.

This makes me stop dead in my tracks. “Are you fucking kidding me? No, I’m taking her home, right now.”

Dan folds his arms across his chest, moving in front of the door, blocking it like the fucking wall that he is.

“Didn’t you just hear them?”

He shrugs his shoulder. “They were flirting, so what?”

My fingers grip my hair as I spin around. “Has everyone lost their fucking minds? She is my daughter and there is no way I’m leaving her here all night with him.” I stop and spit on the ground, showing them what I think of the situation.

“Do you remember bringing Jesse here?” Raffe asks, leaning a hand on the side of my truck.

“What does that have to do with…”

“Sometimes, girls need more than their dad,” he says, sticking a knife in my back.

“Listen, Dirk, I’m not trying to twist the knife after everything that’s happened but,” Raffe continues.

“No. Stop. I don’t want to hear it.”

The wind picks up, rattling the chimes that I’ve hung here over the years. I’ve bought every single one she’s made.

The sound deflates me.

“Remember how mad Jesse was at Bill. And you saw how that turned out in the end. Trust your daughter, Dirk.”

“I’ll let Elijah know we’re leaving. They can come back down tomorrow,” Raffe says, turning to go back inside.

“Argh!” I yell at the Heavens. How did all this happen? I had everything under control until that fucking accident.

Chapter Twelve

Billie Rose

Elijah puts his finger over my lips, stopping me from finishing my sentence.

“Your dad is here,” he says quietly.

I stare at him for a second. What? They came up here, together?

My feet propel me out of his lap. Elijah stands slowly, reaching for me. “It’s okay, Billie Rose. He’s not mad at you.”

My heart feels like it’s going to beat out of my chest. Of course, that’s how Elijah found me. He heard the chimes.

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