“Where is she!?” I shout at my father.
“Calm down, Hunter. What’s going on?”
I walk over to him and hold up the picture. “Who is she? Where did you get this? Where is she? I have to find her. Now!”
“What is wrong with you?” He reaches out to take the picture from me, but I hold it to my chest. “Hunter, that’s Autumn. Porsha’s daughter. I asked her to give me a picture of her for my birthday. What are you going on about? You said you didn’t want to meet her.”
“I’m…” My thoughts are jumbled as I plop down on the couch in his office. I lean forward, looking at her picture and staring into her smiling eyes. “Dad, this is her. She’s the one.”
He walks over and sits beside me. For a moment he doesn’t say anything as he puts his arm around my shoulder and hugs me close. “I know she is, son. And you need to go and get her.”
“What?” I snap my head up and stare at him. “How do you know?”
“You may not want to admit it to me or to yourself, but you and I are alike. We’re stubborn and possessive and when we want something we feel it in our bones. The first time I laid eyes on Autumn, I knew she was the one for you. She was just like your mother, and I saw in her a spirit that would match your own. It’s the reason I married Porsha.”
I look at him, unable to ask all of the questions going through my mind. There are too many thoughts hurtling at me at once.
“I met Autumn when she was volunteering at the soup kitchen.”
“The one we used to go to with Mom?” I ask, and he nods.
“After she and your brother died, I needed to go back. I wanted to hold on to the memories of them. Your mother enjoyed helping people, and I know that it meant a lot to her that we volunteered. The first time I went back I saw Autumn. She was sixteen at the time, but I could see how kind and bright she was. We ended up talking and I found out a lot about her home life. From the first moment I met her, I knew that if your mother were alive, she would have taken this girl under her wing. She would have done everything she could to make her feel safe and loved. So that’s what I did.”
“You married Porsha to protect Autumn?” I ask in disbelief.
“I did. Porsha came and picked her up that day, and I asked her out for coffee. I knew that I would never love another woman as much as I loved your mother, but I could take care of Autumn. I didn’t want to replace your mother or your brother. But I wanted to make sure the rest of my life was spent doing the most I could for the people that mattered to me.”
“How did you know I would care about Autumn so much?”
He shrugs. “I just knew. One look at your mom and I knew she was the one. One look at Autumn and I knew she was the one for you. I’ve been looking after her for the last two years, waiting on you to finally meet. And I think it’s finally time.”
“Over my dead body,” Porsha hisses.
My father and I both stand up at the exact same moment when we see her standing in the doorway.
“I won’t let either of you anywhere near her,” she snarls, stomping into the office.
“I’m afraid that’s not up to you,” my dad says, putting his hands in his pockets. “She’s with Ben right now, and she’ll be here tomorrow.”
“Who’s Ben?” I bark.
“Her biological father,” my dad says in a soothing tone. “Don’t worry. I’ve been in contact with her since she left.”
“How dare you!” Porsha screams. “She’s my daughter!”
“Are you kidding me right now?” Even I can hear the exasperated tone in my dad’s voice. “You have done everything in your power to push that girl away. She chases after you and you ignore her, even sending her away to school when I begged her to be at home. You’ve spent all your time worried about yourself and your wallet that you never stopped to worry about your own child.”
“So this is why you’ve never fucked me? You were too busy trying to get with my daughter?”
I see my father physically shake with anger as his fists clench at his side. “I never touched you because I love my wife. And she will be the only woman I love for the rest of my life. I only married you to make sure Autumn had a good life where she was safe and cared for. And the fact that you insinuate something despicable about my feelings for her shows your true character. Autumn is a daughter to me just as much as my own children.”
“I don’t believe you,” Porsha snaps, but her face has gone white.
“I worried every night that you’d somehow try to sell her off for money, so I proposed to you to keep that from happening. Autumn is the only reason you’re still in this house, and now that she’s with her father, there’s no need for you anymore.”
My dad turns to me, and I’m by his side. I’m ready to back him up one hundred percent on his decision, as long as I can have my Autumn.
“Call the number on the desk. Have them here as soon as they can.”
I nod and do as he asks. When I’m finished I hang up the phone and look to him and Porsha.
“You’re done here,” he says, pointing to the door. “Get your things and get out. I’ve got a company coming to help you, and they’ll take you wherever you want to go. I had hoped at some point we could have worked this out, but I see now that I was a fool to think there was anything good inside you.”
“Fine!” she shouts and stomps her foot. “I’ve got a list of men dying to steal me away from you.”
My dad gives her a soft smile and nods. “I hope for their sake that you treat them much kinder than you ever treated me. Goodbye, Porsha.”
She screeches as she storms out of the room. I put my hand on my father's shoulder and he looks at me. There’s sadness in his eyes, and I hate that he had to endure someone like Porsha for so long. No one deserves to be treated with such hate. I never heard him say he loved Porsha, and he doesn’t say it as she walks out of his life.
“I have to go to Autumn,” I say, but my father shakes his head.
“No, Hunter. She’s in a good place, and she agreed to be here tomorrow. I know I shouldn’t keep you from her, but you need to give her the right to choose to come home. Because that’s what this will be for her and for you from now on. Home.”
Hearing the word warms my heart. I know he’s right, and going one more day without her will be torture, but I think I have something I can do to get ready for that.
“What time is she getting here?” I ask, and my father smiles.