“If you ask me, it turned out perfectly,” he countered.“She gave me a beautiful, kind-hearted, wonderful daughter, and then was decent enough to bow out of our lives peacefully.”
My brows furrowed in confusion.“How do you figure that was a good thing?’
His face softened.“Had she stayed, miserable and unsatisfied, can you imagine what kind of toxic household you would have grown up in?I would have spent all these years trying to make her happy when I couldn’t, and you would have grown up seeing that.Yeah, we both have scars from how she abandoned us, but I’d like to think that us being happy made up for it a bit.”
“I love you, Dad,” I said before I threw my arms around him, holding on tight.“I love you so much.”
“I know you do, honey,” he chuckled as he hugged me back.“And I love you more than you can ever imagine.”
“She didn’t deserve you,” I whispered, tears clogging my throat.
“She didn’t deserve you, either.”I pulled back to wipe my tears, and it was to see a sweet smile on his face.“We’re okay, Rya.We will always be okay.”
Yes, we would be.
Just then, my phone chimed, and when I pulled it from my pocket, I saw that it was Koen.“It’s him.”
“Well, maybe now is a good time to ask him when he’s free because I really want to meet him, Rya,” my father said.“I’d like to make my own assessment of the man.”
Koen:Working late, but only an hour or so.Ur place or mine?
Me:I should b home, so mine works
Koen:Ok...c u then, baby
Me:B4 u go...my dad wants 2 meet u.When’s a good time 4 u?
Koen:Fuck work...I can meet him now
Tears immediately sprung to my eyes as I turned my phone towards my dad.“I told him that you wanted to meet him.
After reading the texts, he said, “I think I’m going to like this young man.”
“I hope you do,” I replied honestly.“Because I already do a whole lot.”
In fact, I was pretty sure that I was in love with Koen Wilder, and for once in my life, that was fine.
