Page 68 of House of Payne
“Of course. I stop by to see him every day, and we have dinner together. He really misses you.”
A lump rises in my throat. “I miss him, too.”
“Oh, you remember that pitch I was telling you about? I had the meeting the other day, and…”
I don’t hear anything else Noah says.
I spend the rest of the phone call alternating between staring at the clock on the wall and pacing around my room. On my fifth turn, I stop and exhale. Then, I glance out the window and frown at the pulsing lights in the distance.
Suddenly, the time I still have left to pay off my father’s debt seems impossibly long.
I want it all to end, so I can go back to my old life.
By the time Noah hangs up, I’ve got a lump in my throat. I’m rubbing my temples in slow, circular motions when my father’s name lights up my phone screen. I consider letting it go to voicemail, but then I steel myself and answer.
“Hi, Dad.”
“Hi, sweetheart. I was beginning to think you weren’t going to answer.”
I swallow past the lump in my throat. “Yeah, sorry. I was in the middle of something. It’s not important. Anyway, how are you? Noah was just telling me that you guys have dinner together every day.”
“He’s a good man. I appreciate him checking in, but I don’t need a babysitter.”
I frown. “It’s not about babysitting, Dad. I know you like to do thingsyour way, but having Noah there makes me feel better. I thought you loved spending time with him.”
He sighs, and I hear the defeat in his voice. “I do, but it doesn’t make up for you not being here.”
My heart twists. “I know, but it’s only temporary. I’ll be back before you know it.”
“Will you? I’m starting to think I should’ve tried harder to stop you.”
“Dad…”
“What kind of job demands you leave right away without a chance to pack? And what about the kind of money they’re paying you?”
My palms begin to sweat. “Dad, we talked about this already. I…”
“No, we didn’t. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that whenever I bring it up, you change the subject.”
“I told you I signed an NDA,” I reply weakly. “It’s a really competitive job, and there’s a lot of security clearance required, so I’m not even supposed to bring it up now.”
Silence stretches between us.
I clear my throat. “It’s good money, Dad, and I’m fine. Really.”
We both know I’m lying. I just can’t bring myself to tell him what I’ve had to do to get him off the hook.
Even if I could confide in him, it won’t do either of us any good.
“I know you think I’m a paranoid old man, and that you’re old enough to make your own decisions, but I have the right to worry about you, London. I also wouldn’t be a good father if I didn’t point out how strange this all is.”
I clear my throat. “I know, but let’s just be thankful, okay? It could’ve been a lot worse.”
I wish he didn’t make it so hard to talk to him.
Why can’t he just believe me like Noah does?
“I think you should come home. Whatever is going on, we can figure it out together.”
