Page 94 of Waiting Forever
“Borrowed.”
Dad grins. “Son, I was you at one time but worse. I learned how to defend myself against the bad part of town and then trained on how to defend myself in combat. I knew you would react with the same desire for vengeance as me and Bryce. Kensi’s like a young sister to you.”
I try not to cringe at his use of the word sister.
“You’ve been protecting her for years,” Dad goes on. “The only reason why you got caught is Reese tripped over a cord when he was returning the drone. The kid is as smart as they come but as clumsy as a drunk with his shoelaces tied together. He held out for about fifteen minutes of my interrogation until I accused him of stealing and suggested firing him. I wasn’t going to do it, of course, but he needed to crack, and I know how to fight dirty.”
I shake my head. Dammit, Reese.
“Now, don’t go and be angry with him, too. I’m not here firing you, am I?”
I tsk. “You wouldn’t.”
He gives me a challenging stare, one I know he used when interrogating enemies from stories about his past. That stare is immobilizing, a warning that behind his calm façade lurks a lethal killer with Jedi mind powers that can force you to spill your guts with the hope that you’ll get to live.
“All right.” I break eye contact and stare over the balcony. “Point taken.”
“You’re lucky I’m not charging you for that covert mission. You used some of my best men. Although, from what I hear, they were more than happy to do it. Kensi is family to them, too. I didn’t see the video, only heard about it, and that was enough. I never want to see it. I don’t trust myself enough not to bulldoze the gate to that little arrogant shit’s place and beat him and his dad’s ass.” Dad takes a minute to calm his heated breathing. He catches my gaze. “Did you fuck him up good?”
I nod. “Yeah. Wish I could have done more, but I couldn’t kill him, so…”
Dad nods, that contemplative look back on his face. We sit in silence for a while, both of us lost in our thoughts. He’s being much cooler than I expected, but it’s only because he doesn’t suspect I went after Prescott as revenge for my girlfriend. The label doesn’t hold enough weight. I want Kensi to be more because she is more. I’m about to test the water regarding our relationship when Dad speaks up.
“Mom told me you and your girl broke it off.”
My girl? Not Harper. She was nevermy girl, but he can’t mean Kensi. “Yeah. It was a while ago.”
A horn blares from below.
“I would ask if she were special, but since you never introduced us—hell, I don’t even know her name—I know the answer. Still, it lasted a while. Long for you.”
Clearly, he’s been talking to Mom. I bet she caught him up on the way over here, maybe as a diversion to what she thinks is really going on. “Too long,” I murmur. “If Sebastian hadn’t died and Riley hadn’t disappeared, I doubt we would have stayed together. She likes to party as much as I do—or did.”
Dad rests his arm on the round table, his hand dangling over the edge. He rubs his finger and thumb together they he does when he’s pondering a question. “How’s Kensi doing with the new living arrangements?”
“She’s happy. It’s not far from campus, and she loves downtown. She loves this balcony the most—would live out here if she could.”
He glances at me before looking out toward the lake again. “Sounds like you two are getting along really well.”
I shrug. “Why wouldn’t we?” Fuck.The old man’s prying. Be cool.
“You two had grown distant for years. You weren’t even coming around. I was starting to wonder if you two had a falling-out.”
He suspects. As long as I don’t admit anything, that’s all he can do. “College kept me busy. I was a popular guy. The ladies loved me,” I throw out with a smirk.
He snorts. “Just like your old man.” He taps the table and stands. “We better get in there and rescue Kensi.”
I join him at the sliding glass door. Maybe I was wrong—or good enough to make him think there’s nothing going on.
He hesitates before going inside. “That girl’s special, going through what she did and putting her family’s best interest above herself. They want to bring her out there. Her mom has a college in mind that could be an easy transfer. She’s going to tell her about it when she visits during Christmas.” His eyes meet mine.
Can he sense the fear behind my stare? It pricks at me, like fire ants crawling over my skin. Kensi can’t leave. We just started and I’m nowhere near finished. I’ll never be finished.
“I think it’d be in her best interest,” Dad says and my heart drops thirty-three floors to the street below. “She needs to be surrounded by loved ones.” I open my mouth, but he raises his hand. “I know you love her, too. But she needs to get away from all this so she can start over and start anew. Her parents think it’s the only way she’ll open herself up again to dating and trusting there are good guys in the world.”
“There are good guyshere,” I blurt, my anger and fear getting the best of me.
Dad’s eyes narrow in warning.
