How could he have done it to Valentin? How could Max hate him so much? What had Valentin ever done to him?
There weren't good answers for any of Valentin's questions. Even if he met with Max, he doubted he'd get answers that would heal the rift between them.
"You don't have to decide tonight," Father said.
Valentin took several more breaths to steady himself before he broke away.
"How was your date? Things with the matchmaker working out?"
Valentin laughed, but there was a bit of hysteria in it. "The date was passable. Crystal is..."
"More than passable, I guess?" Father asked when Valentin trailed off.
"Amazing. Intuitive. Caring. I think I'm falling for her. I thought I was…"
He pressed both palms against his eye sockets.
"How can I be falling for her if I'm still so messed up over what Max did to me?"
Father sighed. "You pulled away from everybody after what happened. You've been coming back to life these past few weeks. I'm guessing it's because of her."
Coming back to life. Like a limb that had been cut off from blood flow and lost circulation. Now life-giving blood was rushing back through each blood vessel. And it was painful. Doubly so with the wound Max had left still open and bleeding.
"I don't know what to do, Dad" he admitted. The term slipped out.
Father straightened infinitesimally. "Been a long time since you called me that. Or asked me for advice."
Had it? He'd been an arrogant fool up until things had happened with Annika and Max, and then his world had gone into a tailspin.
Dad smiled at him. "You remind me of your mother when we first met. She'd put up these walls to keep everyone out."
So had he. He'd done it gleefully, been happy to have an excuse not to put himself out there again. So he couldn't get hurt.
But he'd been withering away inside. Dying slowly without real companionship.
Until Crystal had obliterated his walls with that very first meeting.
"You want my advice?” Dad asked. “Here it is. You grab hold of that girl and don't let go."
