Page 42 of Rooster

Beckett nodded, then finished his drink and stood. He wobbled a bit as he started for the door. Just before walking out, he turned to us and slurred, “You’re good guys... damn good guys.”

And with that, he disappeared down the hall. We’d all had our fill for the night, and after a brief goodbye, the rest of us dispersed and made our way home. The following day, I got up early and was about to head to the construction site when I got a message from Savage asking me and Torch to come by his place.

Back in the day, I would’ve questioned him or even given him hell about asking me to come over at such an early hour. But things had changed, and he was now my VP. You don’t question your VP and you certainly don’t give him hell, so I messaged Torch and told him to meet me there.

When I pulled up, I was surprised to find Londyn’s dad standing outside with Savage, but I wasn’t surprised to see that they seemed to be in the midst of a heated discussion. The two weren’t exactly on the best of terms.

Back when they were both a good bit younger, Londyn’s father managed to convince Savage to break things off with his daughter. Of course, her father never told her what he’d done. He didn’t approve of their relationship, and even when he saw how heartbroken she was over the breakup, he held on to his beliefs and his secret.

And he kept holding onto them even after she had Savage’s son. Five years had come and gone before the truth had come out, and they found their way back to each other. Since then, they’d been inseparable. Londyn and Dalton moved in with Savage, and they were becoming the family they were always meant to be.

But neither of them had forgotten the part Londyn’s dad had played in their initial breakup. It had been months, but they were still pretty unsettled about the whole thing. Londyn had kept her distance from her father, and until today, Savage had done the same.

And from the looks of it, things weren’t going so well.

Savage was standing just inches from Londyn’s dad, his jaw clenched and shoulders tense, and he looked like he was about to punch the guy in the throat. The vein in his neck pulsed as he shouted, “You stole five years from me! There’s no getting that back.”

“I thought I was doing the right thing!”

“How could keeping my son away from me be the right thing?” Their eyes locked for a moment before he said, “Oh, yeah. That’s right. Because I’m a dangerous criminal, and your daughter and grandson should steer clear of me. Isn’t that right?”

“We’re going in circles here.”

The tension between them were running high and only grew more intense as I listened to Savage shout, “Because you’ve yet to admit that you were wrong!”

“I was wrong, and I’m sorry. How many times do I have to say it?”

“Until you actually mean it!” Savage snapped. “And then, only then, you say it to your daughter.”

“She won’t talk to me. I’ve tried calling, and I’ve even sent flowers, but she won’t let me in.”

“Because she trusted you, and you lied to her over and over again.”

“I know neither of you get why I did what I did, but you just wait and see how you feel when you have a little girl of your own. You hold her, love her, and do everything you can to protect her. Then, and only then, will you truly understand why I did what I did.”

Londyn was standing at the window, her eyes filled with concern, as she watched their exchange. I thought Londyn’s father was starting to make some leeway until Savage said, “Daughter or not, I don’t think I’ll ever get it.”

“So, we’re never going to get past this?”

“I can’t answer that.” Savage glanced over at Londyn and sighed. “That’ll be up to her.”

“So, what am I supposed to do?”

“You back off and give her some time to sort this thing out on her own.”

“But it’s been months... I miss her. I miss Dalton, too.”

“I don’t know what to tell ya. There’s no easy fix for what you did, so you’re just gonna have to be patient and pray that she comes around.”

He nodded, then said, “I appreciate you talking to me today, even if it didn’t change anything.”

“Maybe it did. Only time will tell.”

Londyn’s father looked over to the window and gazed longingly at his daughter. He gave her a quick wave, then turned and headed for his truck. Before he got in, he turned back to Savage and said, “I’m not giving up on her.”

Without giving Savage a chance to respond, he got in his truck and pulled out of the drive. In all the excitement, I hadn’t noticed that Torch had come up until he said, “Holy shit, brother.”

“Yeah, sorry about that.” Savage shook his head with a sigh. “I had no idea that he was coming by here.”

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