Page 12

12

DARYL

I ’m not sure how long Cady will take to recover from an afternoon of being thoroughly fucked, but she definitely needs more time.

I keep her upright, holding her close and swaying with her under the warm water as I gently bathe her. She moans softly as I gently cleanse her swollen little cunt. Was I too rough? I should have kept myself under harsher control, instead of losing my mind and breeding her hard.

She’s brand new to all of this, but she behaves like a seasoned pro, and it’s fucking with my head. I used to be all too aware that I had all the experience, and she had none, but in the span of a couple of days, she’s shown me an impressive amount of confidence. I aimed to be mindful, and I was hoping she’d feel empowered through the process of her deflowering, but I didn’t expect her to be so fully onboard with everything I love.

Considering what I’ve seen from her so far, she not only shares all of my turn-ons, but she also puts her own spin on them and hands them back to me as gold, like a fucking alchemist. I share my incendiary fantasies, she nods along as if they’re cute, and then she strikes a match that turns them into an inferno. It’s wicked and wild and I fucking love it, but it’s dangerous. Wrapped up in pleasure, I forget myself and charge ahead as if we’re both experienced, when really, I need to give her time to adjust without rushing things.

“I like dancing naked in the rain with you like this,” I murmur against her wet hair as I take us for a slow spin in the shower cubicle.

She lifts her face to meet my gaze for the first time since I scraped her off the hood of her car and carried her upstairs. She gives me a sweet smile and rests her head back against my chest.

“Do you want to go to the barn dance?” I position her to be dipped and then study her face when I have her held out.

She gives me an as-if kind of look. “I can’t. And even if I could, I wouldn’t be able to dance with you, so what would be the point?”

I pull her in close again. “I didn’t ask if you could go. I asked if you wanted to.”

She sighs. “Of course I want to. But that’s not realistic, is it?”

I shrug. “I’ve always found that reality is what you make it. If you want to go, I’ll help you make it happen. Maybe we can steal a dance in some dark, out of the way corner, so everyone else can assume life is continuing as they know it, while we create an adjacent alternate reality all of our own.”

Cady pushes back, supporting herself as she stares at me. Her eyes are huge and round, her lips are slightly parted, and her nipples are taut and proud. “I fucking love the way your mind works, Daryl Winters.”

My face warms from more than the hot water. “You do?”

She nods. “It’s a terrible idea in practice, but I am so in love with the theory, I could…”

I rumble deep in my throat. “You can’t take another fucking right now, Cadence Malone. But I will graciously accept any kisses you may want to give me while I get you dressed and dried.”

She snorts softly and leans back against the wall. “I like the way you want to do all my personal cares yourself.”

I flash her a grin, turn off the water and lift her out of the shower. “I like you letting me. Makes it feel like we both know you deserve to be looked after. And after watching you fight that belief for years on end while you slaved away for others, I feel like that’s progress worth celebrating.”

She gazes up at me, all doe-eyed and cute as fuck, as I wrap a big, cozy towel around her. I kiss the tip of her nose, roughly get myself dry, and then I take my time with her. I’m extra gentle with her downstairs, which she seems to appreciate, and then I dress her into the soft flannel pajamas I found under her pillow.

“I don’t normally get in my jammies this early,” she says, watching my every move with interest.

I reach for her hairdryer and duck my head back out from under the sink. “Well, today, you do.” I plug in the hairdryer and set it next to her hairbrush. “I bred you hard, and now I want you to be as comfortable as possible.” I look her over and want to extend the fantasy by saying the gorgeous woman now carrying my child deserves only the best, and I will pamper her as I see fit, but I know how over the top it would sound. What kind of delusional man excites himself by pretending he’s impregnated his forbidden beloved on the same day he pops her sweet young cherry?

I pull on my jeans and zip my cock into a restrained position before Cady sees it plumping again. What this girl does to me… She’s more potent than Viagra. I may actually have to research medicines that make a cock flaccid, so I can be around her without a fucking bulge in my pants.

I reach for a bottle of lotion, flip open the cap and sniff it. My cock strains in my jeans, and I grain inwardly. It smells of her beautiful, smooth skin. I set it on the counter next to the other things and snap my head up at the sound of a door shutting downstairs.

I meet Cady’s bug-eyed gaze. The color drains from her face, and her whole body is tense. It has to be her dad.

“ Cady? ” His tone is loud and admonishing, as if she’s in trouble for not being wherever he thinks she should be.

She looks between the door and me, her expression panicked. I hold up my palms, hoping to calm her. I point at myself and hold a finger to my lips, then I point at her, form a silent beak with my hand, and make it talk.

Her brow wrinkles sweetly, and when I see the spark come back to her eyes, I can tell she’s shaken herself out of freeze-mode. She stands and brushes her hands down her pjs. “I’m in the bathroom,” she calls out, while looking around. She shoos me into the corner behind the door and whispers, “I’ll keep him busy in the living room, while you sneak down to my room and hide.”

I tilt my head. “You don’t want me to sneak out the back and leave?”

She sighs. “You can’t. The stairs?—”

Several creaks announce her father’s approach. I nod that I understand and kick myself for not remembering that information from the walk up here.

“Plus, I want you to stay the night,” she whispers with a cheeky smile. “I like having you as my dirty little secret.”

I grin and give her two thumbs up as her dad’s voice penetrates the door.

“Cady?”

She sighs. “Yeah, Dad. Won’t be long. I’m just out of the shower.”

For a moment, there’s silence, and I wonder if he’s walking away, but when he speaks, it’s clear that he didn’t move a muscle. “At dinnertime?” His tone is sort of scolding, and I kinda want to punch my fist through the door and into his face. There’s no harm in Cady having a fucking shower whenever she wants. “Your mom’s waiting,” he says, as if he couldn’t be down there feeding himself right now instead of standing outside the door pissing his daughter off.

The look on her face suggests she’s not going to hold back whatever venom is about to roll off her tongue either.

“Oh really?” Her tone is short and snippy, and my cock is as excited by that as much as it is by the fire in her eyes and the assertiveness radiating off her in waves of heady pheromones. “Did she tell you that?”

“Young lady…” Vander James Malone stumbles over his words but eventually attempts to reposition himself in the dominant role. “Just what do you think you’re doing, Cadence?”

Her eyes flit to me, and I point at my chest and grin. She covers her mouth to keep her giggle contained, then she swats the air in my direction and gives me a warning look, before reaching for the doorknob.

I stay pressed against the wall as she pokes her head out to greet her father face to face. “Sorry, Daddy. I’m probably moody because I’m on my period and made a terrible mess of my skirt. That’s why I’m in the shower. But if you want to start feeding Mom, I’ll be down to help soon.” She says it all so sweetly, and I just know her dad will be feeling awkward as fuck about now. My heart swells with pride, and my cock is beyond swollen with infatuation. If I wasn’t already overwhelmingly in love with this woman, I’d be well on my way. I cannot wait to spend the night sleeping next to her tiny single bed, like a fucking dog, because my God , am I her loyal follower and willing servant.

It doesn’t surprise me that Cady’s dad leaves early in the morning. Too early to help with the bulk of his wife’s care or the household chores, and far earlier than is required by his job for him to do so. He’s an avoidant asshole who shifted his responsibilities onto a child, and he’s so threatened by her strength while she carries those burdens, that instead of being grateful, he makes her feel like shit.

They argued before he left, and I had to force myself to remain hidden while I absorbed every sick word of it. When Cady mentioned she wanted to attend the barn dance, she was met with resistance in every for. He threw up every barrier he could think of to keep her trapped inside the house, doing his job for him. He gas-lit, shamed, guilted his way through every trick in the narcissists’ playbook, using her kindness as if it’s a weakness and exaggerating everything from financial restraints to societal pressures in order to keep her housebound. He even stooped so low as to demean her body and accuse her of having nothing to talk with people about, because they wouldn’t want to discuss books at a dance. And besides, people expect him to be there, after all the time and effort he’s spent to help make it a success.

And he does all this with such exceptional skill of manipulation, that it doesn’t seem like he’s doing anything nasty at all — he’s doing her a favor , because he’s the one who upholds the community that supports them. He earns the money. His work helps so many people. He’s mindful of her physical appearance and health because he cares and…

It makes me fucking sick.

By the time he left, Cady’s ability to be her authentic, sexy, little badass self had been drained and dimmed into subservience. She actually said the words: Sorry Daddy. You’re right. Of course, I’ll stay home and take care of Mom. I don’t know what I was thinking. And the worst part of all, is that she meant them.

It wasn’t placation. It wasn’t her saying she’d do one thing while she had every intention to do another. It was total submission. Obedience.

It’s fucking heart-breaking, and I tell her as much — ending with, “He can’t actually stop you, Cady. You’re an adult, and you get to make your own choices. If you want to go to the dance, you can go.”

I was aiming for inspirational, but from the look in her eyes, and her stomping away while yelling how little I fucking know about anything, it’s clear that I only poked the bear. That I can understand, and honestly, I’d rather she targets me with all the unfairness she’s got bottled inside than have her keep it in there festering into more shitty beliefs about being unworthy of having a life of her own.

But my girl is smart. The moment she catches on that I’m trying to help her; she shuts it down. She refuses to hear a word from me — can’t take a lick of reassurance or praise, and she definitely can’t handle being built back up yet. She’s too hurt. Too angry and humiliated. She cuts me off each time I even open my mouth, making it clear she doesn’t want what I’m trying to give.

So, I keep my lips buttoned and follow her lead with the chores. I help her with what I can, but it’s hard to watch her process her feelings when I can see how much rage she’s carrying. Her body’s tense with it, and every movement she makes is as sharp and snappy as her tongue.

She rips the soiled bedding off her mom’s mattress, storms down to the laundry room, and shoves it into the machine. The detergent pods are fired into the front loader like grenades, and she slams the washer door shut so hard, it bounces right back open. This happens again and again, until she screams and kicks a crack in the washer’s door. Only then does she stop. She stares at what she’s done, and her eyes well with tears.

I fold her into my arms. “It’s going to be okay. I’m going to take the door off and put it in the car with the washing. You can take it to Morrinsville with you, and I’ll casual happen upon you at the laundromat there, where I’ll take care of both. While I do that, you can have a nice day out with your mom and tend to those personal matters you need to. Okay?”

She sniffs against my chest and nods. “Thank you,” she says in a whisper. “I’m sorry for Hulk -ing out again. It’s just that every time I try to stand my ground or push back, I end up so frustrated. I hate the pain in his eyes that he can’t give me what I’m asking for, and I hate that my being selfish hurts him, so I give up, and I hate myself for that too. I know how hard our situation is, and I do want to do my part to help, it’s just… I’m so tired. And I want a break. But it’s never the right time, and it sucks, and I didn’t mean to take it out on you, and I’m sorry.”

“It’s all going to be okay, Cady. You’re not selfish, and you’re so much stronger than you’re giving yourself credit for. You deserve a fucking medal for the shit you put up with in the name of loyalty to your family, and that’s honorable. Your dad doesn’t deserve you, and from the way he’s behaving, he knows it. Why else would he be so hellbent on making you out to be someone you’re not? He’s the one who feels guilty and ashamed and ugly, but he can’t handle those feelings, so he projects them onto you. Don’t you ever get to thinking you’re the problem. It’s not you, it’s him.” I give her a squeeze. “Once you’re done getting whatever you need at the pharmacy and whatnot, you’re going to meet me in the mall parking lot, and I’m going to sit with your mom while you buy yourself a nice dress for the barn dance. Shoes too, if you need ‘em.”

She raises her puffy eyes to meet my gaze. “I can’t.”

I kiss her forehead. “Yes, the fuck you can.”

“But…”

“I insist.”

“But…”

I shake my head. “Your dad goes to Morrinsville all the time and buys what he wants, why should you be any different?”

Cady frowns. “What do you mean?”

What I mean, is that if he spent less on hookers, he could pay his daughter more for the work she does, but I don’t know how to put that more delicately.

“I’ve seen him there a few times, having a night out with his… friend,” I say cautiously. “And while every man deserves to have a good time now and then, he does it regularly, using money that should be in your pocket and time he should spend giving you a break. It’s unfair that he’s created a narrative that makes you feel bad for wanting even a fraction of the freedom he enjoys. You shouldn’t be made to feel guilty for the things you want.”

“Why did you say it like that — friend ?” she asks, sharp as a tack.

I take a deep breath. “It’s going to piss you off.”

She studies my face and then scrunches her nose. “It’s a woman ? He tells me he’s out helping every other neighbor with their shit every other day, so he can go hang out with some secret girlfriend ?” She considers that a moment, and then closes her eyes, and the most compassionate, understanding fucking look comes over her face. “Does he think he’ll hurt my feelings? I know he must be lonely. It’s not like Mom can give him that kind of companionship. He doesn’t have to lie to me about it.”

I stare at her, wondering how she can be so fucking forgiving of such a turd of a man.

She looks at me, and her eyebrows plunge. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I wouldn’t call her a girlfriend so much as a girlfriend experience ,” I say with a wince. It takes a moment while she thinks about what I’ve said, for the penny to drop — but when it does, it hits the ground hard.

“Hookers?” she splutters. “I have to accept a shitty allowance and stick to his tight-assed budgets — have to buy the cheap soap and the shitty shampoo and the no-frills fucking cornflakes, so he can prioritize his spending on hookers ?” She stomps in a circle, punches the air, before stopping still and scrunching her face in disgust. “ Ewww . I just pictured it. Get it out of my head.” She swats at the air and then at me as she growls at me through her teeth. “Why did you tell me that?”

“Because nobody else is going to, and you deserve to know, so please don’t shoot the messenger,” I plead, with my hands raised in defense. “It’s beautiful that you want to see the best in him, but he’s a lying asshole who is ruining your life, and he doesn’t deserve the loyalty you give him. I told you because I’m angry about that. I told you because I want better for you, and I want you to want better for yourself. He doesn’t think twice about having a good time or spending on himself, and neither should you. When was the last time you did something you wanted to? Something just for you.”

She twists her pouty lips to one side, looks me over, and sighs. “Yesterday. When I rode your cock and climaxed so hard I saw stars.”

I snort softly. “I was there, and I was gunning for the same damned thing,” I remind her. “I’m asking what Cadence Malone would want just for herself if she didn’t feel too selfish to make it happen.”

She thinks about it, and after a while, her eyes light up. She swallows visibly, and I nod as I point at her guilty-looking face. “Yes. Whatever you’re thinking about right now. Something you want, that nobody lets you have. Today, you’re going to give it to yourself.”

Her eyebrows quirk. “But I don’t have that kind of…”

“I’ll give you the money.”

Her face flushes pink, and she shakes her head. “It will take me too long to pay you b?—”

“Cady, it’s not a loan, it’s a sharing of resources. I have plenty, you need some, I want to give it to you. You share your resources with me all the time, and this is no different.”

Her forehead wrinkles. “What resources ? I don’t give you anything.”

“Wrong. You give me hope, happiness, and squishy feelings in my chest that let me know I’m not dead,” I explain with a grin.

Her frown deepens. “You give me those things too.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” I say, as said squishy feelings amplify and flutter around inside me. “But remember that I’ve been around for longer than you have. I’ve had time to accumulate wealth and knowledge, and I love to share both, so let me. I’ve already battled and overcome my demons, and it was a hell of a lot easier to do with good friends in my corner. I can be that for you.”

She looks at me intently, as if she intends to penetrate my soul. “Friends like Jason?”

I nod. “That man has literally saved my life more than once, and he’s not the only one, but he definitely taught me a thing or six about how to be strong and resilient. I had a shitty family too, but I was blessed with a damned good team of guys behind me. They caught me every time I fell, they patched me up, and they sent me back out to try again. It didn’t matter what I did, they loved me unconditionally.”

I stroke her cheek and sweep her hair away from her pretty face. “You haven’t had that, Cady. The love you’ve been shown has come with conditions, and you’ve been intentionally isolated by someone who benefits greatly from keeping you in the battered underdog position. Please know that you have a loyal and protective Cane Corso standing right here, with an abundance of big dog energy, who is ready to back you up any time you need to fight for what you want. All you need to do is give the command. You’re not alone anymore. I love you, without expectation, and I have been very clear about that. What I’m suggesting isn’t charity, it’s an investment, because I want to see you reach your potential. You’re worthy of help, I want to give it to you, and I have the means to do so, but it’s up to you if you want to accept what I’m offering.”

She doesn’t answer and still looks uncomfortable with the idea of taking money from me, so I raise my hands in surrender and shrug. “Whatever you want to do is fine but try to understand how much I would love to see you strut into that dance, looking confident and gorgeous. The men will all rush to hide their hard dicks while they’re wishing they had the balls to ask you out, and I’ll stand in the shadows — proud and erect — knowing how fucking perfect you feel around my cock.”

Her lips twitch in a hint of a smile, and I kiss the top of her head. “And maybe I’ll be able to meet you out back for a covert quickie in the nearest haystack.”

She slaps my chest and sighs. “Thank you. For being you.”

“For being the lucky son of a bitch who gets to love you?” I kiss her again. “I wouldn’t want to be anybody else.”

I watch Cady check the clock. She’s wriggling in her chair, so I know there’s a plug in her ass. She’ll be wetter than a mermaid’s back pocket, and I’m thirsty as fuck for her, chomping at the bit to play, but I’m also very aware that I need to have a serious chat with her today.

Her confidence has grown exponentially over the past couple of weeks, which is a marvel to watch, but I can see she’s getting close to seizing the reins of her own life, and that comes with consequences. I want her to feel secure about any choices she wants to make, and I need to check she’s thought though everything she needs to before she dons the eye-bulging, cock-swelling, fantasmic little dress she plans to wear to this weekend’s barn dance.

She’s no dummy, so I’m sure she understands the gravity of a power move like that, but I’m not sure she knows what to expect when it comes to the aftermath. And while I don’t want to scare her into reconsidering the idea she’s worked so bravely toward, I don’t want her walking into the inevitable shitstorm blind.

She issues her last book for the day, and shoos Cameron Douglas out the door, locking it loudly behind him, before she marches straight for me and the back room.

“I’m ready,” she says, already stripped half-naked when she gets in the door.

I grin at her bare, jiggling tits as she shimmies her skirt to the floor. “I can see that.”

She shakes her head and tugs my T-shirt upward, shoving at it until I pull it over my head for her. “I didn’t mean — ” She tilts her head from side to side. “Well, obviously, I’m ready for cock.” She hooks her fingers over the waistband of my jeans and pulls me closer, so she can unbutton them. “I’m wearing the next size up, and it’s got me feeling a certain way, so pull your jeans down, sit your ass on that chair and let me ride you.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Unable to resist such beautiful commands, I do as I’m told, and she climbs aboard.

We both moan when she slides her hot, soaking hole down my cock. The plug has her tight and firm around my shaft, and she feels so good, I want to come within seconds. I strain my lower abs and try to stave it off, but holding back is only made more difficult when she starts fucking me like an absolute fiend. She bumps and grinds against me, hitting all the good spots for herself, and I love it. She pumps her hips, taking my cock, rubs her clit at me, and every so often she scoots herself forward to stimulate the bulb in her ass.

“ Fuck , Cady. What’s gotten into you today?”

“Besides you?” She giggles and rides me faster. Her tits are bouncing like crazy, she’s flipping her hair like a wild woman, and her arousal is soaking my lap. “I’m excited.”

“No shit.” I grit my teeth and grip the chair beneath me. “Me too. You’re gonna make me come.”

“Good,” she says, thrusting at me hard. “Paint my walls and leave me dripping. Seed me, cowboy.”

“ Cady .” My head falls back, as I roar my release. I buck beneath her, filling her cunt with hot jets of cum until it’s squirts out of her with every move she makes. She flings her arms around my neck and clings to me as she sends herself into a series of strong, electric spasms, until she’s limp and breathing hard.

Still trying to catch a breath myself, I push my fingers into her hair and curl them possessively around her silky tresses. “What the fuck was that?” I gasp, sensitive to her quivering aftershocks. I blink several times to help clear my blurred vision. “I can hardly see, I came so hard.”

She moans and slowly rocks her hips. “ Mmm . I needed that.”

“So it seemed. Are you okay?”

“More than,” she says in a lazy drawl, as she pushes herself back to meet my gaze. “I’ve decided to leave town.”

I search her eyes and nod. “Okay. Which follow-up question do I ask first? When? Where? With whom? I can already understand the why .”

“As soon as I build up the courage to tell Dad,” she says proudly. “Well, not straight away. I can give him a week or two to arrange replacement care for Mom. I’m not a monster.” She gazes into the distance and smiles. “I’m hoping to do it the night of the barn dance, if I don’t chicken out. As for where…? Anywhere but here. There are countless places I want to go and see. I’ll pack light, drive to the nearest airport, buy the cheapest flight out, and start there. My savings aren’t huge, so I’ll get a job first thing, and then reassess. And as for with whom…”

She lowers her head and looks at me all shy, as she flutters her lashes. “You want to come with me?”

My cock strains inside her. “Fuck yes. But only if you don’t try to get a job straight away, and instead, you let me pay for everything while you rest this sexy, fuckable ass.” I slap her rear, and she clenches her pussy around my cock with a moan. “You need a holiday. In fact, you can be on holiday for the rest of your life if you want. I can afford it. Easily. But if you find something you really want to do, I’m not going to stop you from going for it,” I assure her, when I realize I’m getting too excited. “If you want to go to college or train for something, I’ll pay for that too. You do remember that I grant scholarships to promising young students of life, right?”

Cady inhales deeply and holds it. “I don’t know. I don’t want it to look like I’m using you for your money. I don’t need you to be my sugar daddy. I can earn my keep.”

“I didn’t say you couldn’t. I just want you to be comfortable, but I’ll happily throw all the money away if having it makes you un comfortable. As for what anyone else thinks? As long as things are good between you and me, everyone else can fuck themselves. Agreed?”

She nods.

I give her a sideways look. “Are you sure about this? Leaving town? You’ve thought it all through?”

She nods again. Hesitantly. “I think so. I mean, Dad can probably afford care for Mom if he stops splurging on hookers, right?” She groans and drags her hand down her face. “I shouldn’t have to say shit like that.” She sucks in a breath and nods. “Yes, I’m sure. I know Dad won’t be happy about it, but his happiness doesn’t get to be more important than mine, right? And what can he really do? I’m allowed to leave home. I’m twenty-six.” She rolls her eyes and groans. “God, why have I waited this long already?”

“Because you’ve been financially, psychologically, and emotionally abused by a master of manipulation, and it takes time to build the strength and courage you need to leave a situation like this. It takes time to realize your worth and choose better for yourself when someone who was meant to love you, spent a lot of time making sure you felt exhausted and worthless.” I cup her face in my hands and kiss her pout. “My dad was similar to yours in many ways, and if you’re open to it, I was hoping to share some things I learned from my experience, so you can feel more prepared for what will happen when you tell him your exciting news. Is that okay?”

She looks deep into my eyes and then shifts her gaze between the old scar along my hairline, and the state of my busted-ass nose. Her eyes begin filling with tears. “How similar?”

I shake my head. “I’m not trying to scare you, Babe. Vander’s not going to lash out at you physically — and even if he did, I’d be right there to prevent it by putting him on the floor. He’s not the violent type, but whether he means to do it or not, he’s still an abusive asshole. He and his demons created the current system to cope with the tragedy that befell your family, and that system comes under threat the moment you tell him you’re going to leave. You understand?”

She furrows her brow. “I think so? I mean, I know he’s not going to like the idea.”

“It’s going to be worse than that, Cady,” I inform her. How to explain evil to someone so pure-hearted and sweet? Someone who has caught glimpses of an illusion, but struggled to believe the truth, because how could someone who loved her be so cruel?

“I’ll explain as best I can from what I know,” I say carefully. “Instead of dealing with the trauma of losing his wife, your dad — stupidly — decided he’d shove that emotional and physical workload onto you, so he could carry on without having to grieve or heal. And now, all these years later, he’s still completely dependent on you staying exactly where you are, nicely trapped under all the burdens he refuses to carry. His life can’t go on as it does without you playing you part — the part he forced you into at the ripe old age of twelve. You’re with me?”

Cady nods slowly, her eyes wide and haunted. She’s starting to get it.

“Babe, you’re the linchpin of the lies he created to survive. You’re the truth that’s always been waiting to defeat his masks and stories. And when you’re gone, he’ll have deal with every overwhelming emotion and selfish decision he’s been avoiding for years. The thought alone will terrify him. If he’d just acknowledged your worth and treated you right, it wouldn’t have been a problem, but we all know he didn’t.”

Cady sighs. “He’s not a bad man. He does love me, and I know he has it in him to be better. He wasn’t always like this.”

I nod along, having told myself the same words once upon a time — after every bruise, broken bone, and broken nose. After every poisoned drink, betrayed heart, and incident of stolen winnings.

“I know, babe. People respond differently to the things that happen to them. For example, you chose the opposite path to your father’s. You lost your mom, and when you were confronted with a deficit of love, you doubled-down on how much you could give. You have so much empathy and compassion, it’s easy for you to see and believe in anyone’s potential, and that’s a beautiful thing. But not everyone deserves the countless chances your kind heart has been willing to give. Some people are self-absorbed energy vampires, and they’ll bleed you dry without a second thought if it serves them. Maybe they’ll throw you a breadcrumb of love here and there, to keep from losing their supply completely, but they’re parasites. When someone shows you who they are by the way they treat you, believe them.

“The second you tell him you’re leaving, your dad’s demons will be whispering in his ear about how to fix the situation, but they’re demons, so they’ll never suggest the right solution — which is to take accountability for his behavior and change it. He’s worked tirelessly to fool everyone into thinking he’s the hero and you’re just a sidekick, and he’s done it so long, he actually believes his own story. There’s no way he’ll be ready to admit you’re the star. That would make him the villain, and once that truth is exposed, his cushy, ego-fueled life is over. He won’t want you going anywhere, and he’ll do everything in his power to keep you under his control, Cady. The abuse will escalate. Ask me how I know.”

She places her hand over my heart. “I’m so sorry you know.”

“I’m not,” I say squarely, doing my best to model calm and remind her that I not only survived the road I traveled to heal, I also thrived on the other side. That way she’ll believe she can make the journey too. “It was a shitty experience to have, but I’m stronger for it. I’m so secure in myself now, nobody could ever destabilize me again. I needed to learn that not everybody deserves my love, and once I truly saw my father for the limited, wounded man he was, I understood that sacrificing myself wasn’t ever going to help him, it only enabled him to stay blind to the hard truths about himself that he needed to face. He never knew what he had until he lost it, and if I hadn’t walked away when I did, one or both of us would be dead. I could never let myself be sorry for what I’ve been through, if I can use the wisdom I gained, to help you break free from the same vicious cycle. You don’t belong in a cage, Cady. You deserve the world, and I’ll do everything in my power to help you get it.”

She presses her forehead to mine a moment and then kisses me so sweetly it makes my heart ache. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Daryl Winters. Thank you for loving me like nobody else.”

I nuzzle against her, feeling such intense affection, I can hardly breathe. “Likewise, Cadence Malone.”