Page 71 of Deviant Reign (Knight's Ridge Empire 6)

Why didn’t he knock? Why didn’t he try to convince me to let him in?

“Knocks a guy on his arse and still gets gifts. You’ve got him wrapped right around your little finger, huh?” Dad says lightly, studying my over-the-top reaction to a stupid t-shirt.

“I-I—” I stutter but give up trying to even start explaining how I feel.

“Life’s complicated, Emmie. Love is even worse. Take your time to figure all this out. You don’t need to make rash decisions. We have time to work out a way to get you out of all of this, if that’s what you want?”

“And if I don’t?” I ask, feeling weird even hearing the question fall from my lips.

“That’s for you to decide, kiddo. This is your life, your future. All I can do is advise you the best I can, but only you know what’s truly in your heart.”

I stare at my dad, tears balancing dangerously on my lashes. “Who are you and what did Piper do to my hard-arse father?”

“Em,” he breathes, dropping down on the edge of my bed and taking my cheeks in his hands. “I loved Piper more than life when I was not much older than you. Things might not have worked out for us back then, but I never forgot or let go of that feeling. And no one else would ever have filled the hole she left behind.

“I guess… What I’m trying to say is that I get it. People might say you’re too young to understand, to feel as strongly as adults do, but I know all of that is bullshit. I fell in love young, and I know just how real, how raw, how painful that can be.”

When my tears finally drop, Dad swipes them away with his thumbs.

“Trust your heart, Emmie. No one else’s opinion on this matters. Not mine, or Damien’s, or your friends. Only the two of you know what it’s really like, and only the two of you can decide where it goes from here.

“You want to walk away, I’ll be right by your side and find you the best lawyer in the country to get you out of this. You want to stay, see what can come of it, well then, I’ll be right here too.”

The sob that rips from my throat is anything but attractive, but his words cut me open in the best possible way.

To have his unwavering support means more to me than I could ever begin to explain.

“I might think he’s an entitled prick,” Dad mutters, making me laugh. “But I’ve seen the way he looks at you. He cares, Em. Really fucking cares.” His lips part to say more, but he decides against it. “I can’t ask for any more than that for my little girl.”

He pulls me into his arms and holds me once again as I cry, my tears soaking his shirt through.

I have no clue how long we sit there, but when he finally pulls back and presses a kiss to my head, exhaustion hits me.

“Get some sleep kiddo. You’ve got some big decisions to make. Starting with tomorrow.”

With another kiss, he stands and leaves me alone with just a little bit of Theo.

Gathering the shirt in my hands, I bring it to my nose and breathe him in deep.

I knew the second it fell in my lap and his scent hit me that he’s been wearing this. He’s been wearing it so he could give it back, knowing it would smell like him. If only he understood just how much that meant to me.