Page 9 of House of Payne

Before Noah can reassure me, the kitchen door opens, and I turn to see Dad stroll out with two plates of food in his hands and a huge grin on his face.

So, he didn’t see my text.

“Who’s ready for some celebration food?!” he calls out before he realizes how eerie the air is. He notices we’re nowhere to be seen and turns his attention to the men in the doorway. I’m shocked by the way his smile disappears as grim recognition floods his face.

How do you know them, Dad?

And more importantly, what has he done to warrant a visit from men who looked like they strolled right out of a gangster flick?

“Barrett.” The man in the middle says his name with a smile although it lacks any amusement. “Aren’t you happy to see me?Andyou brought us food? Great. I’m starving.” He takes the food from my dad’s hands and hands one plate to each of the men beside him. “How about we take a seat, and have a little chat?”

The way he talks screams danger.

I want to get up and go to my dad, but Noah grabs my thigh to keep me seated, slowly shaking his head. I try to pull away from him, but he isn’t having it, mouthing, “I just want you to keep safe.”

As much as I hate sitting there and leaving my dad to fend for himself, Noah is right.

I can’t help my dad if I’m in danger with him, and I’m grateful to Noah for keeping a clear head.

I let out a deep breath, moving toward the window and looking at them from the small opening between the seat and the wall so as not to make it obvious I’m eavesdropping. Whatever they need to talk about looks serious, and I consider that maybe Noah is right. I don’t need to get involved for now, but if they lay a finger on him, I’m going to lose it.

Neither Noah nor anyone else will be able to stop me.

“I doubt you’ve failed to notice how late you’ve been on your payments.” The man cocks his head and reaches behind him, and one of his thugs hands him a black folder. Although they don’t indicate what’s inside, I have a pretty good idea what’s going on.

My only confusion is regarding who Dad would have borrowed money from without telling anyone? He tells me everything. At least I thought he did.

“Carlisle, all I need is…” My dad gives the man a name, but Carlisle interrupts him.

“You took out a loan for a quarter of a million dollars, correct?”

My eyes widen. Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars? Why did he need so much? That’s not like him. He’s always been about working hard to earn what you get rather than taking the easy way out.

“Yes,” Dad grits out.

“Then you admit that we haven’t seen a payment from you in six months?”

Six months? Dad, what have you done? What have you gotten yourself into?

A swallow this time. “Yes.”

“And why is that?” Carlisle closes the folder and hands it back to the man next to him. “We do not run a charity establishment.”

“It’s just that…” Dad stutters a bit. “It’s been hard lately because of the lack of business. Sales have plummeted so badly in the past six months that I’ve barely broken even. I intend to pay you back, I do, but maybe we can negotiate terms because as you can see, fewer and fewer customers come in every day. The diner is usually empty.”

“Okay,” Carlisle nods. “The economy is hard, and that’s something we have to take into account. As a business, we think about all these circumstances.” He turns his back to Dad and makes a face to his men.

“Thank you. Thank you.”

My dad is cut off as Carlisle swiftly turns, landing his palm againstDad’s cheek, the sound of the slap echoing through the quiet diner.

No, he fucking didn’t.

I see red as Dad stumbles backward, clutching his cheek.

My chest is heaving, and I start fighting Noah hard to be let loose. I want to give this man a taste of his own medicine, but Noah isn’t budging. We’re making so much noise that we draw the eyes of one of the men. Noah moves and slides into the booth beside me with a wild look in his eye. My heart is pounding.

“What do you think you’re going to do, Lo?” he growls quietly. “If we let them know we’re related to your dad, things could be even worse for him. What’s the best thing we can do for him?”