Page 152 of Hard to Judge

Arlo strides toward me with all the confidence a dragon could possess. A smirk pulls at his mouth as he stops in front of me, grips my chin, and places a sweet kiss on my lips, before stepping out of my father’s line of sight and by my other side.

“What is this?” my father spits. The tendons in his neck strain. “What do you mean?”

“I mean this is my family. The family who doesn’t turn their back on me. Not when things get hard. Not when we disagree. Never.” I square my shoulders and gesture to my loves. “This is the family who is there for me through all things. The family I am there for through all things. The family that deserves every piece of me.”

My father scoffs.

While his hug is unfamiliar, that sound brings back so many memories. All of his disappointment in me.

“He is the weak friend who got you in all that trouble at Willoughby Ridge? And you, what? Made him your lover?” He sneers at Arlo.

Arlo mutters with a grin. “You have no idea.”

Otherwise, he and Hailey keep their thoughts to themselves, letting me decide for myself.

I take a step forward, barring them from his sight. “Arlo is my husband and the bravest man I know. He is loyal and loving in a way you’ll never understand. And my wife is strong, intelligent, and caring. Things you know nothing about.”

“Shorui wa motte imasu.” Emi sails into the room carrying a stack of papers.

“What paperwork?” Arlo hisses.

“Concerned for his inheritance?” my father snarls, speaking to Arlo for the first time.

He simply arches a brow, and then slowly shakes his head.

“Good because it’s contingent on him filling out this donor packet, submitting to testing, and if he’s a match, supplying me a kidney.” My old man smirks.

I clamp my lips tight, draw a cleansing breath through my nose, and motion Emi over. She hands me the paperwork and a pen.

Hailey toys with her wedding rings. Something she’s prone to when nervous, which doesn’t happen often.

Arlo throws an arm around her and pulls her to his side while I move to a small desk in the corner and sit.

My pen works furiously over the pages.

I pour every hurt and disappointment he’s ever caused into the margins. I explain how he hurt me and how I overcame them. When I reach the back page, I’ve run out of things to say.

My complimentary close is epic.

Fuck you,

Hotaru Judge

When I stand and approach the bed, my father’s smile is brighter than the moment I stepped into the room.

I hold the papers and extend my hand.

He snatches them. “I knew you’d want my money.” He smirks.

My smirk is bigger.

His jaw unhinges a moment later. Then he’s flipping and scanning page after page. “How can you do this?” he bellows. “A Kido would never do this.”

“It’s a good thing my name is Hotaru Judge.”

“Let me see.” I hold my hand out to Natalia and do the grabby hands.

“Again?” Her grin is smug.