Tyrant Daddy by Isabella Starling

Chapter 12

Raphael

I'm tapping my fingers against the door as I watch Nox walking up to the car. From the scowl on his face, I can tell he's ready for a fight.

With a heavy sigh, I push open the door and get out of the car.

"I didn't come here looking for trouble," I say resolutely. "I just came to –"

"Is she with you?" Nox snarls at me before I can even get my sentence out. "Do you have her?"

Answering his question for me, Willa pushes the passenger door open and gets out of the car, smiling apologetically at her father.

"Hey, Nox."

There's a look of pure relief on Nox's face – but it only lasts a moment and then it's replaced by pure, undiluted anger.

"You going to explain this, Willa?" he hisses at his daughter. "What are you doing with this prick?"

"He helped me," Willa cuts in with a pout. "He didn't do anything wrong."

"Oh, fucking sure," Nox scoffs. "I knew you were up to something, you sick son of a bitch."

Before any of us can stop him, Nox has thrown himself at me like a wild animal. I'm looking out for a weapon in his hands but there's nothing except the man's clenched fists – and those hurt like a motherfucker as they connect with my jaw.

I stumble back then pick myself up again. The next time he comes at me, I'm ready, and he doesn't move me an inch. Growing angrier, he throws himself at me again and again, screaming his head off.

"Nox, Nox, Nox!"

Suddenly Dove is between us, trying to push her husband off me.

"Don't do this," she whispers. "Remember your parole."

I raise my brows as Nox runs his fingers through his dark hair and paces the sidewalk. There's a small crowd gathered on the street now, and everybody's staring us down just as the police officers run forward.

"Is there a problem here, sir?" The male officer addresses me, and I can tell Nox is going to explode again since the man addressed me and not him.

"Everything's fine," I mutter, motioning for him to back off. "I brought Willa home. I'm sorry for everything."

"You're about to be real fucking sorry, you piece of shit," Nox growls at me just as two little boys come out of the house.

"Dad?"

Nox looks over his shoulder at the boys, carbon copies of him and Dove. They must be their sons. The family resemblance is uncanny.

"Everything's fine, boys," Nox calls out. "Go back inside the house."

The two boys don't budge, watching with wide eyes.

"We're sorry, Mr. Miller, but you were still in violation of your parole," the female officer speaks, her eyes filled with pain as she reads Nox his rights.

"Parole?" Willa's bottom lip wobbles and she glances between Nox and Dove. "You don't have to go back, do you?"

"You have the right to remain silent," the officer begins, making my blood run cold. Fucking hell, I've really just fucked up this guy's life in one fell swoop.

"I'll get you a lawyer," I tell a crestfallen Nox. "The best."

"Fuck your lawyer and fuck your money, and fuck you," Nox spits out. "Stay the fuck away from my daughter."

"That's enough," the other officer barks. "I suggest you keep your mouth shut, Mr. Miller."

They shove him into the squad car and we all watch as Dove runs up after him, eyes glistening with tears because she can't leave her children with me and go with her husband. She doesn't trust me now, either. She probably never did. The woman only has eyes for her monster of a spouse.

After Dove gets some information, the car pulls away and she runs to her crying young boys, not even glancing at me and ignoring Willa.

"I'm... I'm sorry," my girl mutters miserably. "I didn't think this would happen."

"No, you didn't think, did you?" Dove's barely fighting back tears, sighing and shaking her head. "Can you watch them, Willa? While I go to the police station?"

"N-No."

We all look at Willa with surprise. She risks taking a long look at me before drawing a deep breath.

"I'm going to stay with Raphael for a while."

"Are you kidding me?" Dove shoos the crying boys inside with some comforting words before walking up to me and shoving her finger into my chest. "How dare you manipulate her! How dare you toy with her emotions! How dare you try to ruin my family!"

"That was never my intention," I reply, capturing her wrist in my hand. A few years ago, this would've wrecked me. But not now that I've met Willa. She makes everything I went through with Dove pale in comparison. "I can't help how I feel, but if you're against this, I'll stay away."

"No, you won't." Willa walks up to me and grabs my hand. "I want to be with him, Dove."

Her mother shakes her head in disbelief. "I guess I can't stop you, Wills. You're eighteen now."

"I'm sorry for hurting you and Nox. I never deserved you in the first place."

Before Dove or I can say a thing, Willa locks herself back inside the car.

Now, her mother's attention is firmly on me and she seems fucking pissed. She looks at me with pure disgust before saying, "I hope you finally got what you wanted and that it was worth ruining my life for."

"Willa loves you, Dove."

"Don't you dare say her name," she spits out. "Or pretend you know anything about my daughter. I know you're doing this out of revenge, Raphael."

"This isn't about you," I say in response. "It's about your daughter. I... I have feelings for her."

"You think that's enough?" She laughs bitterly. "That's nothing, Raphael. She needs love, not your fucking pathetic feelings. Bring her home once she realizes that, please. Because she'll realize just how bad you are for her soon. I'll make sure of it."

I remember the blackmail note in my office.

Could it have been Dove that sent it?

Is she capable of blackmailing me to get me to stay away from Willa?

The dark spark in her eyes tells me everything I need to know.

I'm about to turn around and get in the car when Dove's fingers wrap around my forearm, pulling me back.

Had this happened years ago, things would end a lot differently for Nox's little bird. But this time, I merely shrug her off with an icy expression. Dove doesn't have the effect she used to have on me, and she seems to have realized that now as well.

"Does she know about Elise?" Dove asks in a hushed tone.

Fuck. I managed to completely forget about the woman who's moved into my apartment to play a front.

I nod. "She knows I'm engaged. But that's –"

"Fuck, Raphael!" Dove runs her hands through her dark hair. "You're stringing her along. We both know she's going to get hurt, either by you, or by Elise herself."

"I'll take care of it."

"How?" Her thunderous eyes meet mine. "She's already falling for you, Raphael. I can see it."

The words ignite my heart and I glance at the car where Willa is waiting for me. This shouldn't excite me, but I can't fucking help it. I want Willa. Elise is long forgotten by now, and I'm going to end things with her, cut off all ties, tonight.

"I'm sorry, Dove."

I walk to the car while she watches me. She doesn't say another word, but I feel the weight of her gaze on my back as I get in the car with Willa. She grabs my hand and I make eye contact with her. She's panicking, I can tell.

"It's going to be okay," I mutter. "You can come and stay in my apartment tonight."

"What about..."

"Elise?" I shake my head. "I have another place. One she doesn't know about."

Willa nods mutely as I drive to my hidden bachelor pad in the city. A lot of women have passed through this apartment building, and bringing Willa here feels almost dirty. Still, she doesn't say a word as I guide her into the building and lock the door of my apartment behind us.

"This is a nice place," she whispers, sitting awkwardly on the white leather couch.

"Wills, I should've taken you somewhere else," I mutter. "This... this place isn't worthy of you."

"Why didn't you take me home?"

My expression must speak volumes as she grimaces before saying, "Oh. Because she's there."

"Yes, Elise is currently in my apartment," I admit. "But I want you to know, Willa, our arrangement... that's all it is. A business deal."

"You don't love her?" I shake my head, making her frown. "Then why are you engaged?"

I was afraid of this question, and now that it's come up, I know I have to tell Willa the truth.

"I haven't told you much about myself, have I?"

Willa shakes her head. "I don't know anything. Do you have family?"

I give a shrug. "My mother died fifteen years ago, and my father died when I was young. He was a photographer, like me, but I always struggled to live up to his name. He was a war photographer, interested in culture. He wanted to shock the nation with his images. He always looked down on me, for being just a fashion photographer. But I did that because I knew what my father's absence did to our family."

"He wasn't around much when you were younger?"

I shake my head. "Never. I barely even knew him. And yet I lived my whole life in his shadow."

"I'm sorry, Daddy."

Her words send shivers down my spine and I manage a smile. "When I turned fifty... I realized it was almost too late for me to have a family, a life I envisioned for myself. Without wanting to, I'd walked down the same path my father had taken. I was a loner, without anyone to love, without children I wanted so badly, without a meaningful life."

"So, Elise..."

"Elise is my ex," I mutter. "And she found herself in the same predicament, though she's a little younger than me. We agreed to build a marriage and have a child together, while leaving our relationship open. Though it quickly became apparent this meant more to her than me."

"So now you're stuck."

"I'll break it off, trouble."

"But she won't like that."

I grin. "I don't give a fuck. I want you."

"Do you?"

When I raise my eyes to meet hers, I see the doubt in her gaze and it cuts fucking deep. "Why are you questioning that?"

"Because." She shrugs, not giving a straight answer, and I sit down next to her, pulling her onto my lap so she's straddling me.

"Not good enough, trouble. Tell me the truth."

"I can't compare to her." She won't meet my eyes, so I cage her cheeks with my hands and force her to look at me.

"To Elise? Why?"

"She's older, smarter, successful, beautiful. I'll never be like her. Or at least not for a few years. And I'm not ready for a baby."

"I know," I mutter, kissing her lips. I don't know how to explain it, but none of that matters to me anymore. All I care about is Willa being mine, for ever. "It doesn't matter to me. As long as I can have you."

She heaves a sigh, leaning her forehead against my chest. "I'm tired, Daddy."

"Let's get you to bed."

I lift her up in my arms and carry her to the master bedroom. She looks tiny in it, tucked into the white sheets with her eyes growing heavier and heavier with every blink.

"You need to rest up, trouble," I mutter. "We'll deal with everything tomorrow."

"Tomorrow." She nods, yawning as she stretches. "And tonight, you'll hold me until I fall asleep?"

I smile to myself. "Of course, trouble."