His expression turned pained, and he went to speak again, but Daddy pulled me fully behind him.
“Get off my goddamn property, Patel.”
Aarev hesitated, then turned and walked back down the steps.
The moment his car pulled away, Daddy shut the door hard and locked it.
The sound echoed through the house.
I stood there, trembling.
Daddy turned to me immediately, hands on my shoulders, searching my face like he needed to make sure I was real. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”
I promptly burst into tears. “I’m so s-sorry, D-Daddy. I didn’t mean to.”
His expression broke.
He pulled me into his arms, holding me tight—too tight fora second, then loosening when he felt me tense.
“I thought I lost you,” he murmured into my hair. “I walked into this house, and it was empty. I thought—” His voice caught. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”
“I won’t,” I promised, clutching him back. “I won’t. I don’t want to go anywhere without you.”
He exhaled shakily, pressing a kiss to my temple. “Good.” His hand slid up and down my back in slow, comforting strokes. “You’re safe now. Daddy’s got you.”
“Are you mad at me?”
“Oh, baby, no. I’m mad at that asshole. Never at you. I’m sorry if I scared you. I didn’t hurt your arm, did I?”
I closed my eyes and let myself sink into him, the fear ebbing at last. “‘m fine, Daddy.”
Home was so much better.
Home was where he was.
Daddy guided me into the living room, one hand never leaving my back. He sat down on the couch and tugged gently, wordlessly, until I climbed into his lap like it was the most natural place in the world.
It was.
I curled against his chest, knees tucked up, his arm firm around my waist. His heartbeat was still a little too fast beneath my cheek, but it still calmed me since it was his. I focused on that instead of the chaotic buzzing in my head.
He rocked me slightly, his thumb tracing absentminded lines along my side. I cried quietly for a few minutes, the kind of tears that just leaked out no matter how much I tried to swallow them back.
“It’s okay,” he murmured. “I know that was a lot for you. Is the rocking helping?”
I nodded against his chest, sniffling.
Eventually, my breathing evened out, and the shaking eased. My head felt sore, like I’d had a terrible cold.
Father used to chastise me for letting my emotions get the better of me.
But I was starting to think that maybe that was just how I was. Maybe it wasn’t something I needed to fix with prayer and fasting.
Daddy tipped his head down so his forehead rested lightly against mine. His voice was calmer now, but still rough around the edges. “Are you ready to tell me what happened?”
I swallowed. “We… we went to the park,” I said softly, “like he said. There were ducks. And a swan. It was really pretty. I was thinking about how I wanted to go back with you.”
Daddy nodded encouragingly. I paused, then rushed on, as if I didn’t get it out all at once, I wouldn’t be able to say it at all. “At first, it was okay. He asked about therapy. I told him about Mark and how I like him. But then he started asking about how much I go out. If I ever go by myself.” I frowned, my fingers curling into Daddy’s shirt. “I told him I wasn’t comfortable with that yet. That home feels safer.”
