Page 78 of Talon

“Are you sure you have time? You’re not busy with club stuff?”

“Nope. You’re my top priority. The others understand. Besides, if you’re worried about him, then I am, too.”

“You don’t know how much this means to me.”

“Family’s important. If something’s going on with your dad, we’ll get to the bottom of it. He’s probably just having fun with his new wife, but we can go see him if you want. You said they’d be back from their honeymoon by now, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’m sure they’re just hiding out in their love nest at home.” Jess makes a disgusted face.“You don’t like his new wife, do you?”

“She’s really bitchy. She’s been trying to keep us apart ever since she met my father. We’ve never liked each other, and I don’t see that changing any time soon. I just want to make sure my dad’s okay, then we can leave. We don’t have to stay for lunch or anything. In fact, we should eat here before we go. I don’t want Nina to think we’re ungrateful.”

“Okay. Lunch, then we’ll go to your dad’s place. Don’t worry too much. I’m sure he’ll have an explanation for why he hasn’t called you. Sometimes love makes a person forget about the other people in their life. It’s not a good thing, but it happens.”

“Do you think he’s forgotten about me?” Her face falls.

“No. God, I love putting my foot in my mouth, don’t I? I meant that he’s probably just caught up in being a newlywed man again. We’ll go and make sure he’s fine, and then maybe you can find a day to meet him for dinner.”

“That’s a good idea.”

“When I don’t have my head up my ass, I have a lot of good ideas.” I grin, raking my gaze down her body.

“I bet you do.” She blushes.

“Let’s go. The sooner we can check on him, the sooner we can get back in bed.”

“You’re so horny.” She playfully swats my chest.

“It only happens when you’re around. I swear.” I hold my hand over my heart and smile at her. She melts against me, kissing me with so much passion I wish we didn’t have to leave the clubhouse. But we’ve got to go. I know she won’t really be into it until she knows her dad’s okay. I want to get that handled before I think about taking her back to bed again. He’s probably fine, but she’ll feel better after she knows for sure. This shouldn’t take long. We’ll be back in bed, naked and ready for more soon enough.

Chapter 22: Jessica

As Talon revs the engine of his motorcycle, I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head against his back. The wind whips through my hair as we ride toward my dad’s house, and that feeling of freedom I always get when we go riding hits me hard. I wonder what it would be like to go on a cross-country road trip with him. Just the two of us, exploring new places and experiencing life together.

Maybe we could go back to New Orleans, and he could show me his old neighborhood. I don’t know if the memories would be too rough, but I’d like to see where he came from. His past is helping me to understand who he is now. He endured so much, but he’s still trying to do the right thing. Even now, I know he’d rather be back in bed, and yet he’s here, doing this for me because he knows how much it means to me.

When we pull into the affluent neighborhood where my dad lives, I feel a familiar mix of awe and discomfort. These enormous mansions seem so far removed from Talon’s world. He’s nothing like my father. I don’t know what my dad’s going to think when he meets Talon, or how I’m going to explain our relationship to him, but I don’t have time to worry about that now. I’m more concerned with why my dad hasn’t called me since his honeymoon. The lack of contact doesn’t make any sense.

As Talon parks in front of the grandiose house, he looks up at it and whistles softly.“Damn. I’ve never seen a place this big before.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty impressive,” I admit, feeling a hint of pride mixed with embarrassment.“My dad’s done well for himself.”

Talon removes his helmet and runs a hand through his tousled hair.“What does your father do for work?”

“He owns several businesses. My mom used to say he was married to his job because he was always working. He missed a lot of my school activities when I was growing up. I know he tried his best to get to my dance recitals, but he couldn’t always make it.”

“That’s tough. I’m sorry you missed out on having him there.”

“I don’t fault him for it. He was busy trying to provide a good life for us. I understand why now, but back then, I was a little hurt by it. After Mom died, he went out of his way to make up for all the times he missed. Then Allison came into our lives. Everything changed after that.”

“How so?”

“It’s hard to explain, but it became harder and harder for my dad to find time to see me. I think she was behind it. She was jealous of how close my dad and I were. I never really liked her, and she felt the same about me. We were oil and water. We never mixed.”

“Some people are like that.”

“Yeah.” I sigh and get off the bike.

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