Page 68 of Decoded
Craig
T
he recording device was in my pocket. I would never be ready to hear my best friend confess that he touched my baby girl inappropriately, but I needed to hear it. And I would. For her.
Knowing Anna truly believed I had only ever seen her as a disappointment completely gutted me. I never meant to cut her down, but to push her into being the best I know she can be. Still, my words made an impact on her that she’s going to need time to heal from, and it hurts me to know that I’ve hurt her all these years. I believe in my daughter and tonight I’m going to prove that.
Standing at the grill, flipping some sirloins, I hear my best friend before I see him. “Mmm, smells good out here. This retirement thing is working out really well. You should grill for me more often.” He slaps my shoulder as he comes to stand beside me.
“I really do enjoy it. Kara claims it’s become my whole personality, but I had to remind her I still golf.” I smile atDaniel, but it doesn’t feel right. It feels forced and it must look it, because his eyebrows bunch up as he looks at me.
“Everything okay, Craig?”
No, everything isn’t okay. You assaulted my daughter, you asshole.
I step back from the grill and shove my hands in my pockets, secretly pressing the button to have my phone start recording. I shake my head and let out a fake, heavy sigh. “I’m just worried about Anna. She doesn’t seem like herself.”
Daniel shrugs his shoulders, “But hey, she’s back home. That’s great news.”
“She is, but at what cost? I think that guy did a real number on her. Still can’t believe she got married in Vegas.” When my friend doesn’t reply, I continue, “He’s just not the type of man I thought she’d end up with, you know? I imagined her sticking around the city with someone more mature. Someone who would come over for cookouts and go to the club to play a round of golf with me.”
“Aww, buddy, sounds like you wanted Anna to marry me,” Daniel jokes.
“You know, it wouldn’t be the worst thing. It might be kind of nice for my best friend to become my son-in-law,” I tease him, but his face looks like he’s sincerely considering it.
“I’d do it, you know. I’d marry Anna.”
I swallow down the glass stuck in my throat at what I’m about to say. It would hurt her, but I’m only saying it to help her. I hope when she hears the recording, Anna knows I don’t mean any of what I’m about to say. “Oh, you don’t mean that. First of all, she’s too young for you.”
Daniel scoffs.
“And you can’t be attracted to her. I’ve told her for years she needs to try and lose weight, but she just won’t listen. I’m afraid she’s at the point she doesn’t care, and you don’t want somewoman who has just let herself go. You want someone who can still get your dick hard.”
“Oh, she gets my dick very hard.” I catch him adjusting himself and I have to conceal my face when I can taste the bile creeping up.
I clear my throat before speaking, “I didn’t realize you were attracted to my daughter.”
He lets out a chuckle, “Now you can’t go getting mad at me about being attracted to your daughter after you go and say you wish she was married to me. But yeah, I like her curves. I like the way she feels.”
“Wait a minute,” I need a little more, “has something already happened between the two of you?”
He smirks at me, like the question amused him. “She didn’t say anything to you?”
I shake my head. “No.”
“Then maybe it’s best you don’t know about what I did to her in my office.” He winks at me like we’re talking about anyone other than my only child. I don’t want to know. Ireallydon’t want to know. But I ask. I ask because my daughter deserves justice.
“So, the two of you have kissed?” His smile is pure evil, and I don’t know how I’ve never witnessed it before.
“You could say I know what her lips taste like.”
He licks his own lips and I think I’m going to be sick.
I suck a deep breath in and blow it out. “Wow. I had no idea she felt that way about you.”
“Oh, she may not yet, but I have ways of making her come around.”
My hands create fists and I’m mere seconds away from laying my best friend out. I had no idea he was a predator. I had no idea he was hurting my daughter.
