Dad scowls at her. “Not yet.”
“Show me what?” I ask suspiciously.
“I did you a favor with Bodi,” Dad says, pulling out his phone.
“He’s already fucking someone else,” Lourdes says triumphantly.
I scowl. “Seriously?”
“A bunch of the boys on the team went out last night and there are pictures. On social media.” Dad pulls out his phone and hands it to me.
I take it reluctantly, steeling myself, because I don’t know what I’m about to see.
It’s Bodi, with a big grin on his face, West beside him and… a very scantily dressed blonde on his lap. She’s leaning over, breasts practically spilling out of her tiny little dress, like she’s whispering to him.
My heart thunders against my ribs but…this isBodi.
He wouldn’t. Despite all the uncertainty right now, he wouldn’t do that to me.
I thrust the phone back at my dad.
“Whatever this is, it’s not what it looks like. He wouldn’t do this to me.”
“So, you’re still seeing each other.” Dad’s voice is flat.
I don’t respond because we’ve done our best to keep things quiet, to let him think we’re not together. And I kind of blew it.
Dammit.
“I told you she wouldn’t give him up without a fight,” Lourdes says, shaking her head.
“I’m disappointed in you,” Dad says quietly. “But here’s the deal—you cannot continue to date Bodi Michener. Period. End of story. My house, my rules.”
“Or what? You’re going to ground me? Kick me out? What are the repercussions for you continuing to manipulate my life and keep me isolated?”
“Isolated? You’ve been fucking yetanotherone of my players, so how isolated have I kept you?”
“Very. I don’t have a single girlfriend other than my new boss. I don’t drive, I don’t have any money beyond the allowance you give me, and I have no way to make any since I have neither a license nor a car.”
“Welcome to adulting. It’s not my job to set that up for you.”
“Yeah, you’re father of the year, aren’t you?” I snap.
“What did I tell you about your tone? You will respect me in my home!”
I laugh. “Respect is earned. And you haven’t.”
“You’re going to talk to me about respect? You don’t respect yourself. Don’t you see these fuck boys for who they are? What, did you think Bodi was actually in love with you? Because when I gave him an ultimatum, what do you think he chose? Hockey. All day, every day. All it took was making him a healthy scratch for one game and he caved like a deflated souffle. Look at that blonde on his lap.”
That’s a weird analogy, and not how it happened at all, but I keep that to myself.
“Listen to me,” he continues, getting to his feet. “I’ve sacrificed fucking everything to make a good life for you and Lourdes and Lindy. The least you can do is keep your legs closed until you find a respectable man to marry you, so you can stop being a God damn burden.”
I don’t respond because there’s no talking to him when he’s like this.
“Do you hear me?”
“You’re always yelling, so yes, half the block can probably hear you.”
