Mr. Denali scoffs. “Yeah, I’ll bet. Now I understand all the sleepovers at Merrill’s.”
Victoria’s cheeks flush pink.
“I’m here now,” I interject. “I’m willing to do whatever you ask to prove that I’m serious about your daughter.”
He eyes me. “Men like you don’t get serious. You have to get married because it’s expected. Then once you lock down a wife and family, you go back to doing whatever the hell you want. And don’t deny that most pro athletes cheat.”
“Not most,” I say defensively. “Some, sure. But some of all men cheat. That’s not just a pro athlete thing. That’s not the man I am.”
Her father laughs. “No? How about that bar fight you got into not two weeks ago?”
I sigh. “A bunch of guys attacked my teammate. Was I supposed to sit there and not do anything?”
“You shouldn’t have been out in the first place.”
“We weren’t at a bar,” I protest. “We were at a restaurant having pizza! It wasn’t like we were drunk or looking for trouble.”
“Yet it always seems to find you.”
I scowl in irritation.
I don’t know how to respond because, in a way, he’s right. What happened in Chicago was a fluke, but it’s not the first time I’ve gotten caught up in something like that.
“Are you going to tell me if you were out to dinner with one of your buddies from the marines and someone attacked them, you’d just sit back and let it happen?”
He hesitates, narrowing his eyes as he looks at me. “I guess it would depend on the situation.”
“Milo’s young,” I say quietly. “And he’s my friend. I wasn’t going to just sit there. I wouldn’t do nothing if someone attacked you or your family either. I protect the people close to me, in whatever way I can.”
“If that was true, why did you get your eighteen-year-old girlfriend pregnant and then turn tail and run when things got complicated?”
“Because you threatened me!” I snap in frustration. “Because there was talk of statutory rape and all kinds of nonsense that could have destroyed not just my career, but my life.”
“If it was my girl that was alone and pregnant, I would have burned down the city to make things right.”
This time I meet his gaze directly. “But she wasn’t pregnant anymore. She lost our baby, and when I tried to reach her, she’d blocked my number. My attorney advised me to keep my distance because you said you were getting a restraining order. And then, even though none of what happened was my fault, I still got sent down to the minors. At that point, I couldn’t even take care of her. I went from making a million dollars to fifty-five thousand.”
He arches his brows. “I guess that was a life lesson.”
“Rod, that’s enough.” Mrs. Denali shakes her head. “That’s ancient history.”
“And I’m trying to keep history from repeating itself. Neither of our daughters have any sense when it comes to men.”
I feel Victoria tense but she doesn’t say anything and I don’t want to make it worse by defending myself even though he basically just insulted me.
“I’d just like a chance to prove myself,” I say instead.
He grunts. “Well, you’re both adults, so technically I can’t stop you, but there are going to be rules.”
“Yes, sir.”
“No more sleepovers. And you’ll have her home at a respectable time.”
“Of course.”
“Then it’s time to eat.” With that, he stands up and heads to the dining room without waiting for the rest of us.
Jesus.
