CHAPTER FIFTEEN
1250 Words
NATHAN HAN.
Both daughter and father’s jaw drops as I call him a bastard but I am past that now. Anger wells up inside of me and it is taking the grace of God for me not to slam him against the wall and make him pay for what he has done.
I ball my hands into a fist as I stand there, glaring daggers at him.
“Say something, asshole” I cajole him, “say what exactly is going on in your mind”
“Do not speak to my father like that, Nathan”
Ophelia cut me off, her eyes full of anger, “I do not appreciate that”
“Your father will listen to me” I cut her off, “he is my deputy”
“This is his house!”
“Say something, Colleen” I urge him, “cat got your tongue?
“You see why I asked you to stay away from him?” He asks his daughter, “Is this the kind of man you want to bring home for marriage?”
“Dad, I didn’t—
I don’t wait for her to finish. I just turn and stalk away. I have messed up big time, allowing my emotions to get the best of me. That was not supposed to happen, at least not yet. But that old man knows exactly what he is doing.
Nicholas is parked a few feet from the house and I climb into the car almost immediately.
“Drive,” I order him. Everything today was a flop and that b***h was to blame. Who told her she could help me or speak to me in that manner? I want to grab her and shove her against the wall.
“I am guessing we have to come back another day” Nicholas says as he jerks the car back to life. “This is a big deal”
“Let’s just leave for now” I tell him before closing my eyes. No matter how much I think about it, I can’t help but hate Colleen and his daughter the most.
I haven’t gone far when my phone rings and her name pops up. I decide not to pick it but on a second thought, I do.
“Where are you?” She asks as soon as I click on the receive button.
“I am not obliged to tell you where I am, Ophelia”
“Wait right where you are” she commands and ends the call.
My face breaks into a mocking laughter. Who exactly is she using that tone with? That woman clearly doesn’t know what I am capable of doing.
“Stop” I tell Nicholas and he immediately pulls up by the side of the road. Luckily, I haven’t gone far.
It is at that moment that my phone rings again and August’s name pops up. I heave a sigh, I know there is no way I will be able to hide it from her. I just answer the call anyways.
“Are you home?” She asks.
“Not yet” I answer.
“I thought you just wanted to go see her and rile that old man up. What’s going on? Why aren’t you back yet?”
“Something happened and I kind of lashed out at that bastard. I am sure Ophelia knows by now”
“What did you do, Nathan?” August grits her teeth and I can not even blame her. I mean my anger has always been something I tried to work on for the longest time now.
“It’s nothing serious and I don’t think I need to hide anything from that man again. He annoys the hell out of me”
“Of course, you have everything to hide from him” she yells, “he can’t know you remember everything and you are back for revenge. That man is a calculative bastard, he will not allow you bring him down”
“He doesn’t have a choice, August” I say as I lean forward, my jaw clenched tight against each other. I hate how disoriented I am at the moment, I hate that I allow that old fool and his daughter to get to me.
“I have Colleen in the palm of my hands, August” I tell her, “I found out something today and I am going to leverage that. I don’t think I need to hide anything from that man again. I am facing him head on”
“What do you mean?”
From the corner of my eyes, I see a power bike pull up and a lady climbs down. It is only when she removes her helmet that I recognize Ophelia.
“Let me call you back”
Before August can respond, I end my call. I know I am going to get an earful later but this one, I have to nip it in the bud.
She climbs into the car almost immediately, the look on her face deadly. I have never seen her this upset before and it piques my interest. Now, I really want to see what she hides underneath those good girl pants she always has on.
“You really have some guts stopping me in the middle of the road, sergeant”
“What did my father do to you?” She asks, her voice calm yet lethal, “because it also looks like you are trying to provoke him too. Why were you sneaking through our house like that? What’s going on, Nathan?”
“You are really smart” I lean back and study her for a while. It can only be two things. Either she knows and is just pretending or she doesn’t really know.
One thing I have come to realize since my dealing with her is the fact that she can not fully be trusted even though she looks naïve. The innocent looking ones always do.
“Do you have a grudge against my father?”
“If I tell you, will you marry me?”
“What? No. I just—
“Then I won’t be telling you” I add with an air of finality.
“Nathan. No” she throws her hands in the air, frustration evident on her face, “I am not going to marry someone my father does not approve of. You said a whole lot today and even called him a bastard. I want to know why. What’s going on?”
“Will you marry me, Ophelia?” I ask her again.
“Nathan no! What’s going on?”
“Think about this question carefully” I continue, “carefully. Will you marry me?”
“Nathan. You—
“That is one of the many ways I can break the man who murdered my father” I blurt out, I don’t even bother to stop myself.
A huge frown forms on her face as a look of confusion settles there. I love how confused she looks—it fills me with excitement,
“What do you mean the man who murdered your father?”
“What do I mean?” I raise an eyebrow at her, “think about it carefully and give me a call, Sargent. I am a very busy man”
Without waiting for her response, I gesture to Nicholas—I know she will be accepting the proposal soon
- Writer
