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“Doc, could we talk about something else?”

“We can move on for now, Danny. But there will come a time that these things will need to be dealt with. As I told you when we started, Dani’s therapy included the both of you too. Everyone has trauma of one kind or another. It is important for you both to set an example for Dani. For now, let’s talk about your parents.”

“Jesus Christ,” Danny cursed.

I watched the two of them closely. “Is there a problem, Danny?”

“You’re asking questions we can’t answer.”

“Why not?”

Dante stood from the couch; this time Danny didn’t stop him. He walked over to sit with Dani. He smiled at his daughter and reached into the table, picking up a cup of water and pouring it over her hand. Imitating his movements, she did the same and poured the water over Dante’s hand.

Dante wasn’t feminine in nature, but he was clearly the nurturer of the two of them. Taking on the role of what would be the mother in a heterosexual family structure. While Danny took on the role of the father. The protector. His love for Dante was the only thing he wasn’t hiding from me. He wanted to protect Dante at all costs.

“Let’s talk about you, Danny. Tell me about your family.”

“Dante and Dani are my family.”

I smiled. He was avoiding the emotions I suspected were hard for him to allow himself to feel about his own past.

“Tell me about your dad.”

He scoffed, “Isn’t it always the mom shrinks ask about? Blame all your faults on the mother and how she raised you?”

“I suspect your parents raised you in a loving, secure home. So, no, I wouldn’t blame your faults on either of them.”

“What makes you think that?”

“The way you are with Dante and Dani. The way you love them unconditionally. You have taken on Dani without any objection to her not being connected to your DNA. There aren’t many people that will do that as completely as you have. Sure, there are thousands of men and women who become stepparents and love their spouse’s children. But the way you are with Dani, no one would ever suspect she wasn’t yours biologically. I commend that. The way you want to protect them. Bringing Dani to therapy was a bold move for a man who is as dominant as you are. Most men think therapy is a load of crap and think that anyone who needs a shrink is somehow less of a person because of it. Yet, you support them both. You learned those traits from someone.”

Danny smiled then, and I felt like I had finally broken through his gruff exterior.

“My parents were the best. For the longest time, I felt like they didn’t understand me. Like my dad was ashamed of me.”

“Why did you think that?”

“I was different from my brothers.”

“Different how?”

The way he rubbed his hands over his face, I thought for sure he would tell me to fuck off.

“I was the youngest of four boys. I was small and skinny as a teen. Always had my face glued to a book or computer screen. My rebellion was to wear all black, pierce anything I could, and wear colored contacts. Any time my father introduced me to someone new, I wore red ones.”

“You wanted to be seen.”

“Yea, I guess I did.”

“Did you feel unseen by your parents and brothers?”

“No,” he huffed. “My mother wasn’t the type of woman to let anyone be unseen. She loved hard. She adopted my sister when she was eighteen. She always wanted a girl and along came Ari. When my mom found out she didn’t have any family, she didn’t hesitate to pull her into ours.”

“How did you feel about that?”

“I love Ari. We all do.”

“But that was one more sibling to pull your parents from you.”