I interrupted him again. “Do we wait until the case is over before we see each other again? It’s not for another few months and that’s a long time.” I hiccupped, trying to hold back another sob.
One word was all he said. “No.”
I began to cry again.
“Shh.” He rubbed my back. “I won’t stand for it.”
Did he mean my crying? Me being a baby now? I nearly choked on silent sobs I tried to hold back. Then I heard him say something I thought I imagined.
“I’m going to quit.”
My heart stopped. It was as if I’d touched an exposed electric wire. “No. No, Daddy. You can’t. That’s the job you’ve worked your whole life to have.”
“I don’t care.”
“You have to care.” I nearly wailed.
“If I can’t have you, it’s not worth it. I’ll get another job.”
I leaned up to face him. His eyes were wet.
“It’s nice of you to say that, but Daddy, it’s wrong. I have to leave.” Pain stabbed in my chest but I conjured brave Sage again and said, “It’s only a few months. You can’t stop work.”
“For you I’d do anything.”
From the steady, careful tone of his voice, I knew he meant it. But I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I allowed that.
“No, Daddy. No.” More tears fell from my eyes. “What if I refuse to testify?”
His dark eyes flickered. “They subpoenaed you. You’d go to jail.”
“They can’t make me.”
“I’m afraid they can.”
“I’ll just tell the prosecutor I lied. That I didn’t see anything. It’s called recanting, right?”
He nodded.
I realized I wasn’t supposed to talk like that about the case. I didn’t care. “You know what the case is, right?”
“I do. My boss informed me.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about it. It had been a long time since I’d talked to anyone on the case. It happened in my junior year. I’d convinced myself the trial might never happen. People make deals all the time. But I’ll recant. I can do that, right?”
“Could you live with yourself if you did? A guilty man, a rapist, might go free.”
I scrunched up my face and buried it in his neck again. “No, I don’t want that. But I don’t think it’s right that you have to quit your job, either.”
“You need to let Daddy handle this. I’ll survive. I’ll get another job. But I can’t get another Sage. I can’t live without you, baby. You’re too special. Too wonderful.”
I hugged his neck harder. His hand on my back rose to rest against the back of my neck. His fingers gently combed through my hair.
He whispered directly into my ear. “You’re everything to me now, Sage. I’m in love with you.”
I gasped, lifting my head again, staring at him. “Daddy?”
“There. I said it. I’ve been wanting to say that for a while now.”
