Page 8 of Who's Your Daddy?

He waits for a response, and when I remain silent, he probes further. “Did your plan at least work? Did you get the reaction you were hoping for?”

“No. Not really, but thank you for your...contribution.”

“Glad to be of service.” The crushing disappointment I feel must be showing through the cracks of my very flimsy armor because his amusement is short-lived. “Hey, are you alright? Your dad was kinda brutal earlier. Looks like he struck a nerve.”

“I’m fine.” Once again, I sidestep the truth because I don’t owe him any explanations. “Look, I know I was rude earlier. You absolutely deserved it, but...I’m sorry for dragging you into my mess. Let’s just call it even, okay?”

He nods. “Okay.”

“I’d like to say it was nice to meet you...but we both know that I’d be lying.”

“Maybe you should say that you didn’t enjoy kissing me, but...oh, yeah, we both know you’d be lying about that, too.”

A wink accompanies that statement to drive the point home. And it works. As much as it pains me to admit it, I deserved that. I honestly want to smack that smug look off his face, but he’s right.

I can’t even argue that point, so I don’t. Instead, I let out an annoyed humph to bring the conversation to an end. “Goodbye.”

I turn and walk toward the exit.

3. Lia

Gravel crunches beneathmy sneakers as I make my way through the parking lot. The thought of returning to my dingy motel room fills me with dread. I summon all my strength to keep the tears of hurt and humiliation at bay.

It’s okay,I tell myself.You don’t need him. You’re gonna be just fine. You’re gonna get a job and make a success of yourself. Even with all the odds stacked against you, you will persevere. There will be no more tears shed for Robert Teddrick. You’re gonna forget about that asshole and?

“Hey, do you wanna grab a coffee or something, dollface?”

This is the second time the player of fields has interrupted my internal ramblings. I glance to my right to see him walking beside me. It makes me wonder if he’d been there the whole time.

“What? No! Why would I want to go for coffee with you?”

“Because you look like a person whose world has just been crushed, and I think you could use a pick-me-up.”

That sounds like a tiny shred of human decency, a small sign that I may have misjudged him. I stop and turn to face him. “Why do you care? You met me not even ten minutes ago.”

“Woah. Let’s not throw around loaded words like that. I don’t...care. I was supposed to be at the gym right now, but my friends bailed on me. You seem like you’re going to spend the rest of the afternoon analyzing all your bad decisions. Both of us have nothing better to do, so let’s just go grab a cup of coffee. There’s a café across the street.”

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