“I shouldn’t have, sunshine. I’m sorry but you have to understand that I’m protecting you.”
“Protecting me from what, Dad?! What the hell is—?”
A loud bang on his side of the line tells me he slammed his fist against the counter. He rarely loses his temper, so it silences me in a flash.
“I’m sorry I can’t explain,” he seethes, barely holding off from yelling. “It’s for your own good, Hailey. Focus on getting better while I deal with things here, okay?” There’s a finality laced with frustration and desperation in those words. “Now...” He clears his throat, marshaling his emotions. “Tell me about college. Have you made friends?”
I blink at the wall. My mind’s whirring, racing through possibilities. With no memories, there’s little I can decipher, but I can tell from Dad’s emotional reaction... something is wrong.
Either that, or Dad’s going through PTSD.
First, he lost his wife, now he’s almost lost his daughter. Given his line of work, the gore he witnesses daily, the men he puts behind bars, I wouldn’t blame him if the pressure finally started to bend him.
“Hailey,” Dad urges quietly. “Leave the worrying to me. You’re safe. Take your time to heal, okay?”
I nod, even though he can’t see it. “Okay.” I empty my lungs, waving the white flag for now. “I made a few friends. Everyone’s nice,” I mumble what he wants to hear.
Considering I was a misfit throughout high school, and he always said I should put myself out there, this should make him happy, but he doesn’t comment.
Either he’s done with this conversation and can’t get me off the phone fast enough, or sometime over the last two years I stopped being such a loner.
I drop to my knees, tipping my suitcases upside down, searching for a journal. I’ve only unpacked half my things thus far, not that keen on making myself at home here. The other half of my belongings is—or rather was—in my luggage.
Now it’s in a heap on the floor.
“I’m okay, Dad. Don’t worry.”
“How about boys?” He aims for a casual tone but fails. “Anyone interesting?”
Nash immediately springs to mind, though I have a feeling Dad’s just fishing to decide whether he needs to run more in-depth checks on anybody, rather than actually believing I might be dating so soon after my arrival.
Knowing Dad, he investigated every student and professor at Lakeside before sending me here.
And since Iamhere... it means I’m safe.
Even with the foreboding persona that is Nash.
His penetrating, dark gaze flashes on the back of my eyelids. His commanding aura, the way he looks, smells, and how my heart skipped a beat when he pulled me into his strong arms...
He’s definitely interesting.
A little scary, too. Maybe more than a little.
Eighteen-year-old Hailey would’ve told Dad everything, but this girl doesn’t feel like sharing while he’s refusing to help me get my memories back.
“Not at the moment.” I sink back onto the bed. “I’ll let you know if that changes anytime soon.”
“Good, good... and remember to tell me if anything feels off, okay? If something or someone seems out of the ordinary.”
He’s said that every time we’ve spoken since I arrived. Even if I hadn’t discovered I wasn’t driving the car, his constant questions aboutsuspiciousthings would’ve made me wonder what the hell he’s hiding.
“I will,” I promise, Nash’s image looming larger in my thoughts. “I should head down for breakfast. Love you, Dad.”
“Love you too, sunshine. Take care.”
???
Over breakfast I ask every person I’m on a first-name basis with if they have a notebook I could use or a car to take me to town.
