Page 107 of His Coveted Obsession

I laughed and pulled him into a kiss. “You got it. Anything.”

Three Weeks Later

Ittookmeawhile to return home. Hell, it took me a while to overcome all that hell. It didn’t help that I’d lost my job. There was no way for me to explain my absence for so long. Thanks to Easton, I had money to survive on for a while.

I didn’t come back to move in, but to see my dad. I had to work around a butt load of anxiety. Every time I wanted to reach out, I was hit with my abduction and torment, all because of him. I didn’t hate him, but perhaps I should have. Annie refused to come with me.

Easton kept his eye on him at my request, so Iknew he was alive.

The yard was surprisingly neat. The shrubs that were still alive were growing, and the grass was trying to punch through the weeds. Spring was here, and the trees were a pale green as the leaves came in. The house was still in desperate need of a paint job, but something like that was expensive.

I pulled off the chain around my neck that held the house key, inserted the key into the door, and unlocked it. When I stepped inside, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the scent of lemons and a clean house wasn’t one of them.

What a strange sensation to smell something as simple as lemons to give you a burst of hope.

I shut the door behind me and locked it before I went in search of my father. Easton had said he was home when he dropped me off.

“Dad?”

I heard a gasp coming from the kitchen, followed by the scrape of a chair across the linoleum.

“T-Tommy?”

“I’m here.”

He met me at the front entrance and stood there, looking… good. He was clean, wearing an ironed plaid button-up, and he had a fresh haircut.

His eyes watered and his lips trembled, standing there, clenching his fists. I could instantly see all his regret and torment in those brown eyes of his. You could breathe in the guilt pouring off him.

Without thinking about it, I spread my arms, and he rushed to me, pulling me against him as he sobbed. He squeezed me so tightly I could barelybreathe.

“God, I’m so sorry, Tommy. For everything. I’m a fucking failure as a father. I know those words aren’t enough, but… they’re all I’ve got right now.”

I wasn’t ready yet to forgive him, but this was a start. If I had walked into something worse than what I left, I wasn’t sure we would be able to fix anything ever again. But there was a flicker of hope that my dad could overcome this.

“What they did…” He let me go, sniffed, and wiped his eyes. “Did they… hurt you and Annie?”

“Yes, they did.” I wasn’t going to sugarcoat it for him. The situation could’ve been a lot worse, but I still suffered.

A sob escaped him, and he rushed to cover his face as he mumbled ‘sorry’ over and over.

“They were going to harvest my organs at first, Dad. But the leader thought I was too pretty and was going to sell me to a man in Russia to do with what he wanted. Easton saved our lives. I know you’re sorry. I believe you, but you need to understand the gravity of your actions.”

“Oh god…”

I stepped up to him, put my hand on his elbow, and led him to the kitchen. I pulled out his chair and helped him sit down, then grabbed a glass from the cabinet and filled it with tap water. “Drink,” I said.

Dad chugged it all down with trembling hands as I sat next to him. He set the glass down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

“You came back.”

“I’m not back, and probably never will be.”

“I know… I mean, you’re here.”

“Well, I needed to see if what happened had any effect on you. Seeing you now, I feel hope that some things can be remedied, but I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to forgive this.”

He stared down at the table and nodded. “I understand. It’s more than I hoped for. I don’t deserve your forgiveness, but just knowing you and Annie are okay is… enough.”

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