Page 48 of It's About Time
Jesus Christ. Now is not the time for my dick to wake up.
“Shut the door.”
Bracing myself for this conversation, I take a deep breath and then sit in one of the chairs opposite my dad at his desk.
My father’s passive expression should alarm me, but at this point, his harsh demeanor leaves me unfazed.
Henry Thorne II has always ruled with an iron fist, which is part of the reason that even when the man makes mistakes, you’re not allowed to mention them past that point in time. Ironic, given that he uses that very reasoning against me and anyone else, like with my ex-fiancée.
“When did you plan on telling me you’re engaged again?”
“It’s new, so…”
“This isn’t the type of information you should keep from me.”
“Well, forgive me, but I never assumed you’d hire my ex to work for you, and you kept that from me, so...”
“Tori reached out to me, and I remembered how happy she made you before, so I thought...”
“Key word there isbefore, Dad. But did you honestly think I would take her back after what she did?”
My father arches a brow at me. “Plenty of people find forgiveness.”
I know he’s referencing my mother and the fact that she’s forgiven him for his affair, but I’m not my mom. “Yeah, well I found forgiveness for myself, not for her. So you can tell Tori that she needs to find someplace else to start over.”
My father strokes his chin. “She’s doing a good job and needs the money, so I’m not going to toss her out just yet.”
That makes me pause. “I’ve never known you to care that much about another person’s situation before.”
His eyes narrow. “She isn’t just some person, Elliot. She was about to be my daughter-in-law.”
“Andshe’sthe one who decided against that, remember? She was also seeing her boss behind my back, in case you forgot that detail.”
“If you would talk to her, you’d realize the truth about that entire situation.”
I can’t deny that his words pique my interest, but I’m also reluctant to hear any excuse that woman has—because no matter whathertruth is,mytruth is that I have no interest in welcoming her back into my life.
AndDilynne is right—having her as an excuse makes that fact much easier to stand on.
“Why does it matter? It’s not going to change anything.”
He hums. “Maybe not, but at least you can move on properly.”
“I already have. I was a shell of a person eleven months ago, and now I’m thriving again. Much of that is credited to Dilynne.” The funny thing is, that’s the truth.
He nods. “Ah, yes, the grease monkey.”
Fury rushes through my veins. “Don’t fucking call her that.”
“Well, she’s certainly not a traditional woman in any sense of the word.”
No, she’s not.
She’s infuriating, witty, and my body doesn’t seem to remember that she’s a pain in my ass, as evidenced by the reaction she got out of me when her hand slipped under my fucking shirt.
God, her touch was warm, smooth, and I wanted fucking more. I wanted to feel her nails all over my fucking chest and abs, all the way down to my...
“No, she’s definitely her own person,” I say, focusing on the conversation and not my fantasies. “But that doesn’t mean you have the right to demean her like that. You don’t even know her.” That’s when it really hits me too—because even though I’ve known Dilynne and Henley since I was fourteen, my parents have never really made an effort to know my friends.
