Teddy rubs the back of his head. “I think so. What the hell happened?”
“Part of the ceiling fell. Looks like you have a water leak,” Justin says.
Blood trickles down his temple. “You’re bleeding, let me get something to clean you up. Do you have a first aid kit?” I ask.
“Cabinet above the fridge.”
My heart sinks when I retrieve it. There’s hardly anything in there. Nothing for a cut and even if there was, he wouldn’t be able to take care of it himself. Running a cloth under the cold tap, I make my way back into the living room and begin to clean the cuts and scratches on his face and head.
“I want to talk to you about something,” I say quietly.
He pats my knee. “You can talk to me about anything.”
“Justin and I would like you to come stay with us in Texas.”
Silence looms as he rolls the idea over in his mind. “What for?”
Folding the cloth over, I wipe more sheetrock dust from his face. “Well, for starters, so we can keep an eye on you and make sure you’re safe.”
His hand reaches for mine, pulling it to his heart. “I have missed you so much, my beautiful girl, but I cannot burden you in that way.”
“You wouldn’t be a burden. You could never be. I want to take care of you. And then we could be together. A family. We’ve lost so much time and you’re the only father I’ve ever known.”
“Blood or not, you’ve always been my daughter, Selena.”
I wrap my arms around his shoulders, hugging him tight.
“I don’t know about permanently,” he says, releasing me. “I could never give this place up. It holds too many memories and Vivian is here, but how about I come down and stay for a while? I need to make some repairs here anyway, and I will admit that I do need help with that.”
Leaning down, I hug him once more, my heart overflowing with relief and joy. “I would love that.”
After I get him cleaned up, I lead him to the kitchen to sit at the table, then I put on a pot of coffee before going back in the living room to Justin.
“You talk to him?”
I nod. “He’s willing to come visit for a while and admits he needs help making repairs.”
“That’s a start.”
He pulls me in his arms, kissing the top of my head. I let go of a relieved sigh. “I’m just glad we were here when that happened.”
“Me too.”
“How long until we have to leave?”
“We can stay a few more days. I need to run into town though. Buy some shit to secure this house.”
“I’ll be fine here with Teddy.”
“You should know me better than that by now. Where I go, you go.”
“You can’t protect me every second of every day.”
He raises a brow, eyes hard and fierce. The look sends a tingle down my spine. “Wanna bet?”
Cradling his scruffy cheek, I raise up on my tiptoes to kiss his lips. “My noble protector.”
One strong arm bands around my waist. “I don’t know about noble. I do recall stealing your virtue.”
