I choke on air. “Forwhat?”
“Men have gone to Hell for less. You took a devote Christian woman’s virtue. That was wrong, and you know that as well as I do.”
I can’t argue. It’s her dad. I’d be pissed if the roles were reversed, but I’m surprised she told him.
“What I did wasn’t wrong, so no, I won’t apologize.”
He chuckles as though he expected that response.
“Atheists,” he grumbles. “Were you trying to punish me? Get revenge?”
“Like I said, that’s your problem. Now, where’s Morgan? Tell me before I make you.”
He waves his hand dismissively. “She’s fine. Obviously, you and I need to talk. What was your plan with my daughter? Have her move in here?” He outstretches his arms and does a circle. “Thisplace?”
Then, his hands drop to his sides. “Morgan knows God, but she doesn’t know squalor. Do you honestly think she’d be happy here?”
I scan the room. It’s a bit dark. Old furniture. Worn carpet. Scuffed coffee table. Small TV.
“Well, she never complained,” I reply, though my voice lacks conviction.
“Mm-hm.” A tiny smirk forms at the corner of his mouth.
“Aye!” says Tommy as he enters the room, smiling at Mr. Montgomery.
“Hello, there,” he says warmly, then faces me. “Has my daughter spent one day caring for a special needs person like your brother?”
Just then, Claire’s exhausted face flashes in my mind. The memory twists my gut. It was after she finished a full day at the center. The look in her eyes said it all:This is too much.
I haven’t considered how Morgan would handle eight to twelve hours at the center.
I hold my arms loosely, trying to appear unbothered by the thought. “Morgan’s been around Tommy.”
“Cared for him?”
“No—”
“Not one day, hm?”
“I get it. You’re trying to say Morgan couldn’t handle—”
“She’s never had a pet. She has a team of people cater to her,” he says. “My daughter knows nothing, yet is risking everything.”
My heart skips a beat. I don’t know what to say. If I’m being real with myself, the thought of Morgan loving me, thenfleeing because she can’t handle Tommy was too painful to consider. But does this mean Morgan told her dad she wants to be with me...
Mr. Montgomery strides close, eye-to-eye. “You care about my daughter, Killborne?”
“Of course,” I spit back.
He places his fingertip firmly to my chest. “Then we wouldn’t be standing here, would we?”
“What?”
He purses his lips, then sighs heavily before opening the door.
My heart drops.
Morgan stands with a large travel bag over her shoulder. She bites her bottom lip and clutches her hands tightly together. Her eyes light up when she sees me.
