Page 96 of Imperial: The Corvidae Family
At her apartment…
Without me…
The thought had me climbing out of bed at three in the morning, grabbing my phone, and dialing my father.
Our pops was cool with almost every aspect of our lives, but he stayed out of our way. He never pressed us for details or forced his opinions, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t always willing to have those talks when we needed them.
The phone barely rang before he answered.
“You good, son?”
His tone was easy, but I picked up on the concern. I smirked because I knew him. It was three in the morning.
“Yeah, I’m straight.”
“What’s on your mind, then?”
I brushed a hand down my face. “Life shit.”
“Life shit or woman shit?”
I grinned. He always knew how to read me and my brothers.
“I don’t know what I’m doing.”
He chuckled. “I thought we had that all cleared up when you started skipping gym and sneaking into the girls' locker room.”
I smiled big as shit. “Nah, I got that part covered. It’s the other shit that comes with that when it’s not just about busting a nut.”
“Baylyn?”
I smiled when he said her name, knowing exactly who I was talking about.
“Yeah. Her.”
I was quiet for a moment, thinking.
“You and Mom work.”
“We do.”
“Which means it’s possible.”
“It’s very possible, son. Damn sure not easy, but possible.”
I ran a hand over my jaw, processing. “How did you make it work?”
I knew the basics. My father lived this life. He had been where I was now… years ago. But he found a way to marry my mother, love her, keep her safe. When she had us, he protected us too. Having people you cared about in this world wasn’t normal.
Carter proved it was possible too. He and McKenna had a happy marriage and their kids. They made it work.
My father’s voice was steady. “I loved all of you more than I loved myself.”
I frowned. Not getting it. “What does that have to do with any of this?”
“It has everything to do with all this, Emir. If you love the people in your life more than you love yourself, you move in ways that will never put them in the line of fire.”
His words settled deep.
