Submitting to My Ex's Dad novel · Chapter 6 of 24

Chapter 6: On the Steps

Benedict turned off the engine and sat for a moment with both hands on the wheel.

"Stay in the car," he said.

"No."

He looked at me.

"It's my driveway," he said.

"It's my ex-fiance," I said, and I opened my door.

Two neighbors were already out on their steps, a woman with a leash and a man with a coffee.

They had the interested faces of people on a quiet Sunday.

Preston came down the steps fast.

His eyes were red, and he was holding a bunch of white lilies in cellophane, my favorite, from the corner shop by his condo.

"Hallie, I've been trying to reach you since Friday. I came to say sorry.

Then I drove here to see if Dad knew where you were.

And you're in his car?"

"I'm in his car," I said.

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to be."

He looked from me to his father, who had come around the hood and now stood at my shoulder.

I watched the thought cross his face and fail to land.

"Dad," he said. "You're not. You wouldn't."

"Preston," Benedict said.

"She's my fiancee."

"She ended it at ten on Friday night," Benedict said. "You were in the bedroom."

Preston went red from the collar up.

"Not in front of the neighbors," he hissed.

"You came to my house at noon with flowers," Benedict said. "Let's have it in front of everyone."

I took the lilies out of Preston's hand.

I felt him stiffen as my fingers touched his.

I put them on the stone step behind him.

"I'm not yours, Preston," I said. "I wasn't yours on Friday night when you let me walk in on that. I'm not yours now."

"You're sleeping with my father."

"Yes."

The woman with the leash made a small noise.

"Hallie, that's disgusting."

"You had my best friend in the bed I helped you pick out," I said. "I think we're even on disgusting."

His mouth worked.

"Give me your key," Benedict said.

"What?"

"The key to this house. You've had it since you were seventeen."

"Dad, I just want to talk to her."

"Key."

Preston dug it out of his pocket with a shaking hand.

Benedict took it, and set it on the top step, on top of the lilies.

"Go home, son," he said.

"I'm not leaving without her."

"She isn't leaving with you."

For one second I thought Preston would swing.

Then a siren sounded somewhere on the next block, nothing to do with us, and he flinched, and his shoulders fell.

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