Page 72 of Crossed By the Stars
I showered and then paced the room.
I finally used the burner phone to call the one person who normally gave me advice when I was in need of it the most.
“Bonjour, Dax,” my father said. His voice was deep with a sea of mixed emotions. I wasn’t sure which ones were the strongest, the happiness or the disappointment.
“Bonjour,Papa,” I returned.
“I’ve been worried about you,” he continued in French, and that clenched my heart in a different way than Jada had been tugging at it all morning.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to make you worry,” I said quietly.
“Where are you?” he asked.
“I can’t tell you. But we’re safe.”
He swore under his breath. “You’re still with her.”
“Yes.”
Silence filled the space between us. Silence that tore at me, but I knew would only grow bigger. I inhaled and told him the truth. “I’ve made a decision,Papa.”
“I know,” he said, cutting me off, voice sad.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you, but even if it wasn’t for Jada, I don’t think life atÉclairis for me. You have people much better at running your company than I will ever be.”
“I am disappointed,” he said, “but not in you, Dax. I could never be disappointed in you. You live your life with grace and honor and loyalty. You care deeply for the people in your life. That can never be a disappointment.”
It brought tears to my eyes. I clenched my teeth, determined not to shed them even though my father would never think less of me for showing them.
“I’d like to continue to be on the board of directors and help advise when needed,” I told him the truth. I still cared about the company he’d built. I didn’t want to see anything happen to it if he stepped away or when?God forbid?he passed away.
“Of course!” he said as if it was never a question. “So, you will continue with the boat business?”
“Yes,” I said, inhaling and exhaling one more time to rip off the last bandage. “But more importantly, I want to continue my life with Jada.”
Silence filled the air, and I filled it.
“I wish you would get to know her. She’s…kind and fierce. Loyal and brave. She’s been wounded by his world since childhood and wants nothing to do with it. She’s been alone for so long,Papa.” My voice cracked, thinking of Jada and the solitary life she’d led surrounded by people, none of whom truly loved her, saw her. Maybe her grandmother. But even she’d closed her eyes when the shit hit the fan, telling Jada to do the same.
After a long moment, he spoke. “You love her.”
It shouldn’t have been a surprise to him as I’d said it multiple times to him in the past.
“I do,” I told him.
He sighed. “But what kind of life would this be for either of you? On the run? In hiding?”
“This will not be forever. It’s just until we find whoever is threatening her.” I spoke with an assuredness I wasn’t sure I could reinforce, but I felt him softening. I felt him leaning into the idea of Jada and me. I needed that because I wanted them both in my world.
“And when this one is gone, there will be another, Dax. I know Tsuyoshi Mori too well. I can’t imagine him just letting her go,” he said bitterly. “I can’t bear the thought of losing you, too. Not like I did Élodie… Not at his hands.”
He choked on his emotions.
“We’re somewhere safe, and I’m doing everything I can to keep us that way. I promise. I’m not being foolish,” I said and then gave a frustrated sigh because I had been foolish in keeping the notes from her. She was right. She might have seen something in them that neither Cillian nor I had noticed. After all, we hadn’t lived in her father’s world. “But I’m not sure how long she’ll let me keep her here.”
To my surprise, he chuckled softly. “What did you do?”
My lips curled upward. “I made a decision that I thought protected her but also kept things from her.”
