Page 207 of So This Is War
His brows shoot up before he starts shaking his head. “There is no way you love him. You’re too young to understand what love is.”
“Too young? Dad, I’m twenty-two. I’m old enough to make my own decisions, date whoever I want, and live with whoever I want.”
He shakes his head and laughs, which in return dials up my anger. “You have no idea what real life is, kid. You’ve been blessed to have a successful father who has provided for you your entire life. You are clueless as to what the real world really is.”
“Really? How would you know?” I ask. “You rarely talk to me anymore. You’re so busy with your own job that you’ve failed to realize that I’ve been trying to have a relationship with you, but you refuse to acknowledge it. I’ve called, texted, and attempted to show you thatdespitethe dictator role you’ve taken up rather than a fatherly one, I still love you, and I still want to have a bond with you. But you can’t see that. You’re so blinded by your own hurt that you’ve switched off your ability to show affection to your own daughter. God, you won’t even accept itfromyour daughter.” I move toward the door. “And you know what? I’m done trying. I’m done with all of this. Send me the bill for my tuition. I’ll pay it off with my own money that I’m earning from an art job I just secured. Every month, send me a bill, and I’ll payit immediately. Other than that, don’t bother communicating with me. Your chance at having a relationship with me is done.”
And with that, I walk out of his office where I find Levi leaning against the opposite wall. I walk up to him and place my hand on his chest. Whispering, I say, “I love you. Nothing is changing that. It’s you and me, okay?”
He nods, but I can feel his nerves rattle him.
“Say it, say you love me,” I plead.
“I love you, baby.” He cups my cheek.
“And nothing is splitting us up. . .”
He wets his lips. “Nothing is splitting us up. I promise.”
And then he lowers his mouth to mine and presses a very soft kiss. As he pulls away, I hear a throat clear. When I look to the side, I see Andie, the GM, looking at us.
Oh no, that can’t be good.
“Posey,” she says. “I think we should have a conversation with Will.”
Levi nods, offers me one more kiss, and moves toward the office. He glances over his shoulder and says, “Have Sandie pick you up. I’ll see you at home.”
“I want to wait.”
He shakes his head. “Please, Wylie, meet me at home.”
From the sincerity and pleading in his expression, I know he’s serious, so I nod and move away from the office. I then text Sandie and ask her to come pick me up.
I wait outside, my anger and my nerves coming to a crashing point, making me feel all kinds of nauseous.What’s going to happen to Levi?Is he going to get in trouble? Will he be traded?
The thought of him being traded really makes me want to throw up. But could they trade him over this? Andie didn’t look too pleased, but then again, she was called into the office late at night, probably not wanting to deal with this. Either way, I don’tthink it will be good for him, and he’s going to take the fall. I know he will. That’s the kind of man he is.
If he wasn’t one of my dad’s players, I’d be in there with him, standing up to my father with him, but I know this situation runs deeper than that. This very well could be a conflict of interest. I have no idea.
Ugh, what was I thinking?
My dad was right about one thing. I wasn’t thinking. I was just so happy, so excited. I wanted to celebrate. I wanted to be with Levi and show him how much I appreciate his support. And I was positive there was no one else here. Looks like my dad parked somewhere else.
Thankfully, Sandie doesn’t take too long to pick me up since she was already out and about from dropping me off.
I meet her outside the players’ parking lot since she doesn’t have access like I do, and when she pulls up, I hop into her car, turn to her, and burst into tears.
“Come here,” she says as she pulls me into a hug. “What’s going on? Did he break up with you? Because if he did, I will make sure he feels the brunt of my wrath.”
“No.” I shake my head as I pull away. I didn’t tell her anything, just asked her to pick me up as soon as possible. “My dad caught us,” I say. “It was stupid, and I shouldn’t have done it, but when I saw him, I just needed him so?—”
“Oh God.” Sandie winces. “He saw you guys doing it?”
I nod, tears falling down my face. “In the locker room. He lost it completely and said some really awful things to me.”
“Who? Levi?”
“No, my dad. Levi has been . . . God, he’s been amazing. I know he’s taking the fall for all of this right now, and I can’t stomach it. He told me to meet him at home.”
