Page 179 of Wish You Were Mine
Hewhat? My brain snagged on the words, not sure I’d heard him right.
I blinked. “Y-you do?” For some reason, even after coming to a truce of sorts last night, I hadn’t expected an actual apology from this seemingly stubborn man.
“Yes.” He nodded, then paused like he was choosing his words carefully. “I probably should have done this a month ago, but...I would like to apologize for the way I reacted when you and Lucy told me about your relationship. I should have stopped to think about it and maybe let the idea sink in first. I should have listened to what the two of you had to say before jumping to my own conclusions and concocting worst-case scenarios in my head.”
Was I actually hearing him right? Or was I having some sort of hallucination right now?
Had I inhaled too many chemicals in the lab today?
But after studying his face a bit longer and seeing something like humility reflected in his sharp brown eyes, I decided that this must actually be happening.
So, letting the words soak in, I swallowed the lump in my throat and said, “I appreciate you telling me that. Really.” And then, offering an olive branch of my own in return, I added, “And I do understand some of where you were coming from. Lucy’s your only daughter and I am several years older than her. You felt blindsided.” I licked my lips and shrugged. “And there was probably a better way we could’ve come to you. We just… Well, it was a tricky situation. Hindsight’s always twenty-twenty, but?—”
“That’s no excuse,” he said, cutting me off. His voice wasn’t sharp—just certain. “I was out of line in calling you a predator and assuming the worst. I had my reasons for being wary…and weboth saw one of those fears play out just last night. But that doesn’t excuse the way I treated you. I’m not proud of it. In fact, I’m embarrassed by it. And I hope you’ll accept my apology.”
For a second, I just sat there, stunned.
I hadn’t expected that. Not from him. Not after the way he’d looked at me that day in Theo’s dining room—like I was the big bad wolf who’d seduced his daughter.
“Thank you, President Archibald,” I said finally, something uncoiling in my chest. “I do accept your apology. And I hope we can move forward without too many hard feelings.”
"That’s my hope, too.” He nodded slowly. “And whether or not I like how this started, it’s clear you care about my daughter’s well-being as much as I do. Which means,” —his gaze held mine— “we’re in this together now.”
This was good, right?
He leaned forward. “Anyway, my wife and I ended up with an extra ticket for Nationals next week. If you’re open to it, we’d really like you to join us in Texas.”
I stared at him for a second, unable to find words.
This man, who not long ago had looked at me like I was the worst thing that could have happened to his daughter, was now offering me a seat beside their family.
“It would mean a lot to us.” He offered a faint, sincere smile. “And more than that…it would be a shame to keep Lucy from sharing that moment with the man she’s clearly in love with.”
“I…would be honored,” I said finally.
And for the first time since we’d started this, it felt like he finally might see me as someone who belonged in his daughter’s life.
59
LUCY
It was Monday evening,and I was nestled into the far corner of the student lounge with my marketing study group, a notebook open in my lap. The energy in the room was the usual mix of caffeine and tired ambition, with the faint hum of vending machines near the back wall.
“I’m thinking bold colors and a tagline likeHydrate Harderfor my final project,” Quincy said, tucking her braids behind her ears as she scrolled through mock-ups on her tablet. “That way, it might look like it could sponsor a championship but still be trendy enough for TikTok.”
“I like that,” I said with a smile, trying to stay invested in the conversation despite being distracted with everything from last night. “That would definitely fit in with the vibe of other sports drinks I’ve seen, while also being fresh and new.”
“You think so?” she asked, her brown eyes brightening.
I nodded.
“You could even do a social campaign around athletes who train late at night,” Beckett, another group member, added. “Like ‘Hydrate Harder After Dark.’ Boom.”
“Okay, Dracula.” Quincy snorted. “But I actually kind of love that.”
The group chuckled, but my attention was soon distracted by the soft buzz of my phone in my lap.
Theo: How’d your chem class go today? Still the same with Owen?
