I wasn’t sure where he was going with this. I had a feeling that all of this somehow involved me, that somehow my dad had been protecting me from the ugly truths all this time.
And I sort of wanted to be left in the dark.
A sick feeling twisted in my gut. I hated that feeling, especially given the fact that I’d wanted to know exactly what my dad was confessing to me.
But now that he was telling me, now that I was finally going to be “in the know,” I was pretty sure that I didn’t want to know anymore.
“Randy crossed the line. What Damien did was stupid, but Randy made some threats back. He told Damien that if he went to the cops, he’d kill his ‘little girlfriend.’”
I sucked in a sharp breath at my dad’s words.
I suddenly understood why I’d been kept in the dark for so long. Ignorance certainly had been bliss.
Parker’s arm tightened around me. I felt his lips at my temple, and he whispered, “It’s okay, Jimi. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“D came straight to me to tell me what Randy said,” my dad continued. “I was frankly shocked that Randy would threaten the life of someone who he had watched grow up from birth, the little girl born to his best friend. The girl who had grown into an amazing woman.”
My dad’s eyes bore into mine as fear raced down my spine.
“Look, CC. Randy killing Damien was a threat.” I saw my dad’s eyes glisten with emotion.
This strong man, this international rock star, arguably the biggest star in the world, sat in my living room near tears because of me.
He was my hero in every way—always had been—and that moment proved why to me. He would stop at nothing to ensure my happiness, but more than that, he would stop at nothing to ensure my safety.
“I thought everything would be okay when I moved Damien. And things were fine for a long time. He kept quiet after D’s debts were paid. But Randy holds grudges. He didn’t like that D wanted to go to the cops. That’s why I’ve left them out of everything this whole time. When Randy brought you into the equation, I cut ties with him. I’ve known Randy since I was seven. We saw each other through some of life’s biggest challenges. But threatening your life showed me who he really was. It showed me that no matter how the chips fall, he doesn’t care about anyone but himself.”
“So now that he…killed Damien,” I said, “does this mean I’m safe?”
My dad shrugged. “I wish I could say yes. I wish I knew what Randy’s next move was. Clearly he knew that D would have left behind some evidence. That had to be what he was looking for when your hotel rooms were torn apart or when you thought someone had been in here. And I apologize. That’s my fault. I thought he had let things go, but he’s got a grudge against me, too.”
“Why?” Parker asked. I could see in his eyes that he was interested in why my dad was still part of this.
My dad sighed. “He doesn’t trust me. He knows I relocated Damien. And he found him. He’s pissed that I tried to hide him. He doesn’t care about the money, because I paid that. He cares that I paid off a debt that wasn’t mine. He cares that I hid D away. And most of all, he’s pissed that I married the woman he loved more than anything. He hates me for taking Jade from him.”
“Can I ask you a question?” I finally said, shaking from my dad’s revelations.
My dad nodded.
“Why did you marry Jadyn?”
“I love her.” I saw the earnest sincerity in his eyes. He meant it.
He really loved her.
“How did you two meet?”
“We met at one of Randy’s parties.”
“Do you trust her?” I asked.
My dad shifted in his seat. His eyes focused in on mine. “Implicitly. CC, I wish you knew her like I did.”
“What do you think Randy’s next move is?”
“I don’t think he’ll stop until he finds what he’s looking for. He doesn’t care who gets in his way. But the bad news is that he’s managed to dodge everyone since Damien was killed.”
I sucked in a sharp breath. That couldn’t be good news. “Can’t we just go to the cops now that we have Damien’s DVD?”
“It’s not that simple. Yes, I will be taking a copy of everything on that DVD. But there’s a lot at stake here. I’ve gambled illegally with Randy since we were in our twenties. Maybe even before that. I can’t just run to the cops and tell on him.”
George spoke up from the kitchen. “Sir, I’ve got all of the data copied.”
My dad nodded, barely acknowledging the man who worked for him. “I need a day or two to figure this out. Let’s get through your wedding, and then we’ll deal with Randy.”
I shook my head vehemently. “What if he shows up at the wedding?”
“We have tons of security in place. He won’t show. That’s one day that he won’t be a threat. I’ve got enough money to hire the entire LAPD. Your day will go off without a hitch. Then you two can go on your honeymoon and I’ll take care of Randy while you’re gone.”
“What if he follows us? What if he shows up wherever we go?” I asked. And in my head, I wondered whether we would we need to take George with us on our honeymoon.
Parker was silent beside me, his fingers digging into my shoulder. They dug harder and harder with each unanswered question I posed.
“We’ve got a couple of days until your wedding. George and I will come up with a game plan. We’ll take care of him. I don’t want you to worry.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have told me,” I said bitterly.
My dad sighed. I had no right to be bitter toward him when he’d finally told me the truth I’d been seeking for so long. It wasn’t really his fault that I didn’t like the truth.
My dad and George left.
“I don’t want you to worry, Jimi,” Parker said later that night as we lay quietly in bed together. It was one of the few nights we didn’t have sex before bed. I needed his closeness, his intimacy, without the sex. I needed to feel his warmth beside me and know his love. But after everything we had been through, my brain simply wasn’t in the right spot for sex.
“I’m worried,” I replied.
He kissed my shoulder. “I know, baby. Me too. But it’s out of our control. The only thing we can do right now is get to our wedding. Tomorrow night’s the rehearsal, and then Saturday will pass in an absolute blur.”
I listened to his quiet voice in the darkness. “Are we moving too quickly?” I finally asked.
“Yeah, we are,” he said. “But it’s right. Every decision I’ve made since the first time I saw you has been with you in mind, and every decision I make for the rest of my life will be with you in mind. Forever. I can’t wait for you to be my wife. I know I haven’t had to wait that long, but I’ve been waiting my entire life.”
I loved when he said the exact right thing that somehow put every single little thing into perspective for me.
“I love you,” I finally said.
The next morning when we awoke, I realized it was the day before my wedding.
Holy shit.
It was the day before my wedding.
I knew that I should feel anxious and nervous and stressed, but I didn’t. Not about the wedding itself, anyway. All of the details were going to work themselves out, and I was just going to enjoy my wedding day.
We were smiling at each other over our coffee cups when Parker voiced what he’d been thinking. “I’d like Kimmy to be a part of our day.”
I nodded. “I think she should be, too. What do you want her to do?”
He shrugged.
“That’s my move,” I chided, earning myself a laugh from my fiancé.
“You decide.”
“She could do a reading,” I suggested.
“I don’t think she’d like that. I mean, she’d be honored, but she’s not much for the spotlight.”
“Something else we have in common.”