“I love her,” Blue said. The words spilled from his mouth. It wasn’t a lie, but the complete and total truth, which also shocked him. He’d never been in love before, but that was exactly how he felt.
Her father paused. “In love?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve never seen or heard of you since yesterday. You expect me to believe that you’re in love with my daughter?”
“I know. I … I can’t explain it. I know what I feel when I’m around her. It makes no sense, I get that. On paper, with everything you know about me, you wouldn’t want me near your daughter. I’m not using her. I swear.” Damn it, he was sweating.
He was normally so calm and collected.
Her father continued to stare at her. He felt the assessment through to his bones.
Licking his lips, he tried to remain calm, but that was proving to be a little … difficult.
“No more cutting class. Laylah has a bright future ahead of her, and I don’t want some boy to interfere with that.”
“Yes, sir.” It was the first time he’d been considered some boy. Rather than argue, he offered a smile.
“Right, I think we’re done here.”
“We are?”
“Yes. Leave all in one piece before I change my mind.”
Blue nodded.
“Blue?”
He stopped and saw her father held his hand out for a shake. He moved toward him and shook his hand, aware of the tightness of the hold.
“If you hurt my daughter, you better make a run for it, because teenager or not, I will come for you. Got it?”
“I got it.”
“Good.”
The handshake was over.
He left the office with her father close behind him.
Laylah was in the kitchen, waiting.
“You can see your boyfriend out, Laylah, then you’re grounded until I say otherwise,” her father said.
She winced.
They left through the front door and Laylah closed it behind her, following him to his waiting car. She glanced up and down the street. “Well, I can say cutting class leaves a lot to be desired.”
He stepped up to her, kissing her. “I didn’t mean to get you grounded.”
“Another first.”
He groaned. “How about you leave your window open and I come and visit you tonight?”
“Are you serious?” she asked.
“Why not? It’ll be fun.”
“You’ll fall and break your neck.”
“You’ve got to learn to have some faith. It’s going to take more than that to get rid of me. If you want me to come to your room tonight, leave your window open. If not, and I see it closed, I’ll know you don’t want me to come.”
She laughed. “This is so … weird.”
The one time she’d caught her parents had been lasered into her retinas from the image alone. They were still very much in love and often acted like teenagers.
She paused. She’d read the same paragraph six times in her textbook. Her parents acted more like teenagers than she did. She could imagine her father climbing into her mother’s bedroom window when they were younger.
Laylah glanced at the window.
Time ticked on by.
She got to her feet, intending to close the window when she heard some scuffling noise. In the next second, Blue’s head appeared and she rushed over to him, helping him fall into her room.