Page 2 of Obsessed Daddy
“You’re right,” I sigh. “I’m sorry this is so complicated. I’ll see what pictures I can get, but I don’t think you’re actually going to get more money off him.”
“No, but if he’s planning to rent the places and use my designs, I’ll post all the dirt I have on him. No one will want to rent from him after they see what I’ve got to say. Trust me.”
This whole situation is escalating, and I don’t want to be a part of it anymore, but I know my sister. She won’t let this go, and she’ll for sure bully the hell out of me until I get the pictures she’s asking for.
“Anyway,” June continues, “text me when you leave, and we’ll talk about what you’ve found. I’ve gotta run to this meeting.” The line disconnects before I can reply, and I’m brought back to when I was thirteen. She invited me to see her at college so she could make me sneak into the boy’s dorm and steal her ex’s lucky underwear before a big football game. I wish I hadn’t done it, but I always thought June was the coolest person on Earth, and I would do anything to get her approval.
She’s smart, works hard, always has an answer for everything, and she’s gorgeous. Long blonde hair, big blue eyes, perfect skin, the prettiest smile, and a body that says she loves working out. I’ve always admired her, and on more than one occasion, I’ve wished I was her.
I mean, why did she get blessed with all of Mom’s pretty, smart, perfect genes while I got Dad’s ‘character-building’ features?
I sit back in my chair and force myself to stare out at the lake instead of studying the giant who was also blessed with perfect DNA. I bet he and my sister would’ve made genetically perfect children, though I’m not sure what their personalities would’ve been like, considering every member of my family is on the verge of permanent gremlin status.
I drag in a deep pine-scented breath and stand from the beach chair, stretching out my legs, refusing to look back at the giant man who’ll most definitely get my clit throbbing again. If June wants to spy on him, she can do it herself. It’s summer break, teaching preschool is tough, and for the first time in my life, I’m going to ignore my sister’s demands and do something for myself.
In fact, I should go out on a canoe that’s sitting on the shoreline. I should float into the middle of the lake, take in the scenery, and let the wind take me where it will. What better way to assert my independence than by doing something I’ve never done before?
The dark green canoe sits marooned ten feet from my beach chair, and while I’m sure it belongs to someone, I decide to play dumb and let ignorance be my shield. The whole confused woodland creature act works for my sister, so maybe it’ll work for me just this once.
Lucky for her, she does have pretty privilege, but that can’t be all there is to it. I mean, maybe thisisa community canoe. Who knows?
See, playing dumb is already working.
I curl my fingers around the rim of the boat, the metal slick with the sheen of spray paint as I drag it into the cool water until it’s floating. Here comes the part that makes my stomach flip. The part where I steady it with one hand and climb into its wobbling center. I’ve lived in the mountains my entire life, and I’ve spent many, many, many days at the lake, but I’m still terrified of what lives in the depths.
I mean, this lake in particular is approximately thirty thousand years old, and people say it’s nearly four hundred feet deep. Not only that, but folks like to joke about the lake monster that lives in it. Apparently, the Deepling is fourteen feet long, hasthe head of a giant flamingo, and the body of a massive, scaled serpent.
Chest pounding, I dig the oar into the sand and push away from the beach, doing my best imitation of what I’ve seen other people do in canoes before. Their butts are on the middle bench, and they move the paddle back and forth on either side, pushing and pulling the water.
Easy does it.
This is so easy!
Almost as easy as keeping my eyes off the giant stalking back outside to cut more wood.
Was he always this big?
I squeeze my thighs together as my clit sends an aching sign of desperation through my core. I need to get a grip. I’m out here in the big, icy lake, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and a rustic pine forest. Plenty of folks would pay good money to be sitting where I’m sitting. I need to focus on the beautiful nature all around me, and not Clint.
I need to focus on my own life, not the side quests my sister sends me on.
Dragging in a deep breath of resin and snowmelt, I kick my legs up onto the bench in front of me, an attempt to unwind.
Nature, however, has other plans.
The canoe tips like it’s rolling its eyes, and I go splashing into the icy lake, another virgin sacrifice to the Deepling.
Water rushes over my head, cold and clear, and the tiny detail I’d overlooked when I climbed into this thing shouts for all to hear.
“I don’t know how to swim! I don’t know how to swim!”
My arms pinwheel and I continue to scream as I imitate the doggy paddle to the best of my ability, all while keeping an eye out for the serpent flamingo who’s most definitely comingfor me now. Heck, I’m pretty sure I see it’s dark, shimmering scales slithering closer and closer.
“Hold on,” a man hollers from the shore. My gaze flicks away from the deep toward my sister’s ex, who’s currently unbuckling his jeans as he runs.
Why is he unbuckling his jeans?
Maybe I’ve already been bitten by the Deepling and this is some kind of venom dream I’m having deep in his underwater cave.
