He's My Daddy Now

Sarah Skuld Romance

“Aren’t we waiting for your… friend?”
He smiles. “She’s already here.”
I follow him into the dining room, glancing at the photos on the wall as we walk. He hasn’t changed any of them since Mom died. Not a single one. The walls have been repainted a few times, but the photos have remained.
“Remember, Em,” he turns to me before pushing the door open. “She makes me happy.”
I smile and laugh awkwardly. “How bad can it be?”
Bad, I realize as soon as I step into the dining room. It’s been redone- a gaudy dark green with dark mahogany wood. My dad never would have done this. It looks awful, but it’s not nearly as bad as who I find seated at the table in a matching green dress. It’s the same shade as her homecoming dress our freshman year.
“Ava?” I say, my voice shaky and giving away my anger, but I don’t care. “Ava f*****g Johnston?”
She looks up at me, her fake blond hair cascading beside her face. I turn to look at my dad as fury rises.
“I didn’t recognize her when we first met,” he tells me gently, trying to calm me. “We met at the gym and went out for coffee.”
I turn back to her, and she smiles awkwardly as she still sits at the dining room table like she belongs here. In my mother’s seat.
My heart is pounding, and my breathing is shaky. “She bullied me,” I say to my dad, trying not to cry. “She was horrible. Do you not remember how many times you had to dry my tears because of her? I had to change schools because of her!”
“She’s not who she was then,” he tells me gently. “She makes me happy.”
I leave, seething in anger. That’s just fine, Ava. F**k my daddy, and I’ll f**k yours.
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In her anger, Emmy creates a mess, and she's not sure it's one she can get out of without hurting everyone involved.

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