Page 8 of Daddy Vibes (The Anti-Bachelorette 2)

Chapter 4

Eric

I am sitting in the back of Alaric’s truck on our way to the banquet. I feel strange back here. Usually I always sit up front with him, but Emory was being all touchy-feely and wanted to sit up by him.

I still feel a little strange with him dating Emory, but at the same time I couldn’t ask for anyone better for her. Alaric has been my best friend for so many years. I trust him with my life, and so in turn, I trust him with my daughter. I know he’d put his life on the line to protect her even if they’ve only been dating a short while. It’s just the kind of man he is.

I lean my head against the cool window and stare out at traffic as we drive. I feel nervous about tonight. About seeing Angela. I feel like such a dick. I should have called her this weekend after she left before we had a chance to talk about anything that happened between us, but I just kept chickening out. I was able to use the excuse that she was drunk the night everything went down, but that next morning I had nothing to hide behind. I didn’t know what to say to her when I don’t even understand how I feel myself.

“Dad.” I snap out of my thoughts and look toward the front at Emory. “Hm?”

She just laughs. “Pretty deep in thought back there.” She turns to Alaric. “He’s thinking about Angela and how much of a dick he was to her.”

Even though that’s exactly what I was thinking, I still deny it. “I wasn’t a dick to her.”

Emory rolls her eyes. “You literally weren’t even home when she woke up.”

I cringe because I know she’s right. She’s already yelled at me for it too. Multiple times. She came storming over after me and Alaric talked and she figured out I was home. She kept going back and forth between telling me I wimped out and that I was an ass to her best friend.

I try to sound convincing. “For the last time, she said she understood. She was fine.”

Emory lets out a fake laugh. “Ha! Yeah okay. Then how come she slept in your bed with your T-shirt? And better yet, how come you got too scared to face her in the morning so you just left her there all alone?”

I momentarily think about what she said, but now all I can think about is the way she looked wearing my T-shirt. That seductive smile she was giving. Fuck I’m an idiot. Why did I turn her away? Oh, I know why. Because I’d want to continue having her sleep in my T-shirts, warming my bed, making me laugh with her corny jokes. That just can’t happen. I’m destined to just be miserable wishing I could have her. “I’ll talk to her.”

Alaric gives me a sympathetic smile. Emory turns back to me. “Don’t worry about it. She’s bringing a date.”

This catches my attention. “What do you mean?”

Emory just laughs. “What do you mean, what do I mean? She’s bringing a date tonight, so you don’t have to worry about talking to her. Says he’s super hot too. Irish with a sexy as hell accent. You blew your chance. Now don’t go bothering her tonight.”

I clench my hands together. Fuck. I shouldn’t care. I don’t care. Angela has always had a lot of dates and different guys coming around. Nothing is different now. I shouldn’t care any more now just because I know what it feels like to have her wrapped in my arms. How her lips feel against mine. The sounds she makes when I grab her just right. I shake my head. I need to stop thinking about her. “Oh okay, good.”

Alaric glances back at me. “Good?”

I just shrug. “Yes. Good.”

“Okay, if you say so.” He gives Emory a knowing smile, but I just ignore them both. He turns back though. “You should still talk to her though. Clear the air so it’s not awkward between everyone.”

I let out a sigh. “Yeah, I’ll call her this week or something.”

???

I’ve mingled with a bunch of the different people in construction that I know for the past hour. I head over to the bar to grab a drink and a breather. I usually like hanging out with these people, but tonight, I’m just not in the mood. I lean against the bar and take a sip of my drink. That’s when I see her.

I literally feel like my breath was knocked away. My eyes can’t look away. She has on a white halter dress that contrasts against her tan skin. It makes the colors from her tattoos on her arm stand out even more. Her dark hair flows softly over her exposed shoulders. She’s stunning. I know I should look away before she spots me staring, but I just can’t.

It doesn’t take long while her eyes are scanning the crowd to lock onto mine. She has to know I was staring at her. Her face doesn’t give anything away and remains completely neutral, but her eyes never leave mine. Not until a man walks up and places his hand on her back. She looks over at him and smiles, and I swear I almost throw my glass on the ground. Fuck, I want her to smile at me like that.

I know I should look away now, but I can’t. My eyes are locked onto them as they walk over to their table where her parents are sitting. They say their hellos and she introduces them to her date. After she sits down, she glances back over my way again. I don’t think she thought I’d still be staring at her, but I don’t look away when she finds me again. She quickly looks away and goes back to talking to her date.

That’s when my eyes fall over to him. If she’s not with me, he better be fucking fantastic. At first glance, he seems like a good fit for her. He’s much younger than me, so that’s a plus, and he’s a good looking guy. Maybe too good looking. Yeah, actually I don’t like the way he is looking at her. I don’t trust him. He’s too much of a smooth talker. I can tell even from all the way over here.

I am interrupted from my thoughts by Alaric approaching me. “You know it’s not healthy to just stare at her the whole night.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose and sigh. I take a big gulp of my drink. “I know. I wasn’t planning on it. I just needed to make sure this guy she brought is okay.”

Alaric grins at me. “Oh yeah? And is he?”

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