April

To say that my dad didn’t take the news well was an understatement of epic proportions. Jordan and I had decided to tell him before informing the employees at Draco, so we arranged to meet for lunch at a neutral location—a private room in a nearby restaurant.

Dad had his elbow on the table, pinching the bridge of his nose, his eyes closed. Jordan and I exchanged a long look and my throat closed up in fear. That same flight instinct raced through my veins, making me want to bolt for the door and let Jordan deal with the consequences alone.

“So, let me get this straight—you recorded yourself having sex with him—but you didn’t know it was him.”

I worried my lip between my teeth. “Yeah…”

His hand dropped, eyes opening. He locked eyes with me, and though I really wanted to look away, I held his gaze. “This story gets more and more bizarre. I feel like I’ve stepped into some weird alternate universe, and you…” He shook his head. “What the hell were you thinking, April?”

I shifted in my chair. “We’ve already been over this—where my mind was at when I made those choices. The only difference now is that you know who the other person in the video was.”

Dad’s cheek bulged where he clenched his jaw. He hadn’t so much as looked Jordan’s way since we broke the news. “That is a rather important detail you left out. But”—he flicked a brief look in Jordan’s direction—“he also could have filled me in.”

Jordan straightened in his chair. “April and I both made some big mistakes, David. I’m not going to deny that—”

“You can call me Mr. Weiss,” he bit out. “And really, is there any point in denying it now?”

Jordan hesitated, shaking his head, clearly flummoxed.

Dad’s eyes snapped back to me. “April, I don’t want you to take this the wrong way, but…your choice of boyfriends in the past has not been great. Starting with that idiot who took you out to get that tattoo right up through this last jackass who ended up marrying your mother.”

Ouch. That hurt.

“And don’t think I haven’t heard the office gossip about this one.” He turned back to Jordan, his nostrils flaring. “The parties, the boozing, the women… Every pimply geek at that place reveres you like some kind of womanizing god. I know you’re a natural-born charmer…so it looks like you’ve pulled the wool over my daughter’s eyes for the moment. To say I’m not happy that you’ve set your sights on her is an understatement.”

Jordan took a deep breath, having flushed a little during my dad’s rant. “Mr. Weiss, it’s not like that. I know we’re in a difficult situation, given our work relationship. But I have nothing but the best intentions when it comes to April. I’m not stupid enough to lie to you about this. I know there is a lot riding on it if things go south. But…I love her.”

Dad paused for a beat, scowling at Jordan, appearing completely unmoved by his speech. “I’m going to assume you don’t have any children—that you know of, anyway.” Jordan flinched slightly. “But you do have a sister, right?” He jutted his chin toward Jordan. “How’d you feel about some player taking her for a ride? Hmm? Your little sister, hooking up with someone who’s bedded—I don’t know, dozens? Hundreds? You think I should be happy about that? Would you be happy about that?”

Jordan’s leg bounced up and down in place, and his hands tightened on the tabletop. “No. I wouldn’t be happy at all. But there wouldn’t be a whole lot I could do about it. My sister is an adult. The decision is hers. However, I’d do exactly what you are doing now and warn her away from someone like me. But ultimately…it would be out of my hands.” For the first time since my dad had engaged with him, Jordan looked over at me. My mouth turned up in a small smile of encouragement.

“I care about April. I want to start a future with her. We love each other. My past is my past. I can’t change that. Everyone has done things that they regret. It doesn’t mean I have to stop living at the age of almost twenty-six because I’ve suddenly woken up and realized that the lifestyle I was living no longer does it for me.”

“There’s a saying—a leopard can’t change its spots—”

“Enough, Dad.” I scooted up in my chair and put my hand over his on the table. “It’s my decision. I’m an adult, and I love him. I want him. And I want you—and Rebekah and Sarah and Daniel. I want to be a part of your family. But you need to accept that I want Jordan, too.”