Chapter Thirty-Five
Axe held his daughter’s hand as he walked her up the driveway of Leanna’s parents’ home. They’d had a good, quiet dinner at a hamburger joint, and he wished he could take her home to live with him.
“Do you like it here?” he asked as they looked up at the second-story window of her shared bedroom.
“I like it,” Soledad said simply.
She wasn’t a girl who talked a lot, preferring to stay in the background and watch—much like him.
He couldn’t blame her for being watchful and wary. Her life had been so unsettled, moved from home to home so that Cano could keep one step ahead of Axe’s father.
“What do you like about it?” Axe asked.
“It feels like home.”
“How?”
Soledad let go of his hand and hugged herself, blinking. “Like I have a sister, a mother, and a grandma.”
“What about a father?” Axe wanted to kick himself as soon as the words were out. What kind of man was he to begrudge his daughter happiness and the feeling of family?
Soledad shrugged. “I know you’re my father.”
Left unsaid was that she didn’t feel it.
“Yeah, and I was hoping you can come live with me.”
Soledad’s large eyes turned on him with an expression akin to horror.
“Not that I’d force you or anything,” Axe quickly added. “You stay here as long as you like. But if things change…”
“You mean if Leanna kicks me out?”
Axe reached to hug the girl, then stopped. “Oh, no, no, no. She would never want you to leave. Besides, you and Carmelita are tight like sisters.”
Soledad nodded. “She sticks up for me.”
“Right, so you have a good thing going. Let’s go in and see what’s up.” He knocked on the door.
Leanna’s mother answered. “I’m glad you’re back. We still have a batch of enchiladas fresh from the oven. Would you like some?”
“We already ate,” Axe said, but Soledad cut in. “Dad, you should try some. I helped shred the cheese.”
Her calling him “Dad” had his heart beating in triple time.
“Well then, if you shredded the cheese, then I definitely have to eat some.” He guided her inside and wanted so much to give her a kiss. But he held back because she had to initiate it. That was his rule for himself. He was virtually a stranger, and her calling him “Dad” was enough for now.
Carmelita got up from the kitchen table and waved Soledad over. “Guess who texted and said he wanted me to save him a cupcake after work?”
The two girls giggled looking at Carmelita’s phone. Axe smiled at Leanna’s mother, who averted her eyes and said, “Please, sit. Would you like coffee or tea with the enchiladas?”
She seemed nervous and ill at ease.
Had Leanna confided in her mother?
The enchiladas smelled delicious, but Axe lost his appetite. The way Leanna’s mother scurried around the kitchen, keeping her distance, made him wonder if she believed he’d hurt her daughter.
Didn’t she know Leanna had returned the ring on her own?
