“Now you listen here…” The deep voice trails off as they come to a stop in the lounge doorway and our eyes connect.
Oh fuck me.
No way. It can’t be.
The tension instantly intensifies. The silence deafening as I pray that I’m about to wake up and see that this has all been one big nightmare.
But as seconds tick by, I realise that this isn’t a dream, and this is my reality.
Caleb Carter is stood in front of me, and I now know that he is Danny’s father. Danny’s father. Shit, shit, shit.
I’m rendered speechless as I continue to gawp at the man who nearly destroyed me.
What universe am I actually in?
This is… insane. No, no, it’s fucked up on so many levels.
Oh my God.
I can’t breathe.
The man who stole my heart three years ago and then broke it four weeks later is my boyfriend’s father.
He’s my boyfriend’s father.
Fucking hell.
Why don’t they have the same last name? I would have fucking twigged if they did. Christ alive, I should have asked more questions. The one time I don’t and look at what has occurred.
What do I do?
What do I say?
But it appears that I don’t need to say anything as Caleb speaks. “I didn’t mean to interrupt when you have company.”
Danny scoffs whilst I feel like my whole world has just imploded.
“You don’t usually care about me having company when you just randomly show up and demand that I stop ignoring you,” Danny spits, but I can’t process anything other than seeing Caleb again, and especially in this manner. The guy still looks like every woman’s foreplay. I mean, his eyes are still that mesmerising turquoise colour, his hair is slightly longer than when I last saw him but not by much, and the stubble that lines his jaw is just… No. Stop it. Shut it down.
“Well if you stopped ignoring me then I wouldn’t have to show up like this,” Caleb says, and I drop my head to stop myself from letting my eyes roam over his body, because that is all kinds of wrong—not to mention the fact that he’s fucked me like I was his whole world once upon a time.
“I haven’t got time for this,” Danny says with a huff.
“You know what, I’ll go, but we’re not done here,” Caleb says, and then I hear footsteps walking away before the front door slams, echoing around the apartment.
I look up to see Danny breathing heavily, but I’m frozen in place, completely thrown by the reappearance of the only guy I have ever truly fallen for.
I suddenly wish I had asked his dad’s name, because I would have put two and two together and ended this before it began. It would have been the best thing to do, because surely all this can end in is heartbreak? No good can come from this, none at all.
“I’m sorry about that,” Danny says as he pulls me from my thoughts.
“It’s okay.” My voice is quiet and unsure.
“No, it’s not. You shouldn’t have to see that, and I can only apologise.” My eyes meet his and he looks… broken? My heart goes out to him looking so lost, and I find myself standing up and wrapping my arms around him as he nestles his head in the crook of my neck.
I just hold him, knowing he needs a moment. Fuck, I do too, but this isn’t about me right now. This is about my boyfriend… my boyfriend… my God, what am I going to do?
“He just rubs me up the wrong way, you know?” Danny mumbles into my neck. I say nothing, because what the hell do I say? I only know the Caleb I fell in love with three years ago. I don’t know him as Danny’s dad, and I don’t know him as the person he is today, but what I saw was passion in his eyes, for his son, and frustration at being so far away—emotionally speaking. He even managed to hide the shock of seeing me here… I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing right now. My mind is having trouble processing it all.