“I want you to put your money where your mouth is.”
I had no idea what that meant.
“You want my daughter?” He raised his forefinger. “Here’s your one and only chance to prove yourself.”
I kept a straight face, but my chest rose with the breath I needed.
“You step down as the Skull King. Now.”
Was not expecting that.
“My son is a kingpin in the drug world. But he’s not the leader of the underworld. You can’t be both. You can’t keep her safe if people want you dead. You can have my daughter, have my approval, if you do this.”
I wanted to argue that I could keep her safe even as the Skull King, that she was safer with me than anywhere else. But this was a test I couldn’t fail, and if I argued, I would lose my only chance. This was his sole demand, my chance to prove that I would sacrifice anything to be with his daughter—and that would make me worthy of her. “Alright.”
He couldn’t hide his surprise, as if he expected me to argue, expected me to try to have it both ways.
“I want to marry her.” A part of me was glad her father was a former criminal, someone who understood my world. If he were some average guy, he would never understand anything. He would be ignorant and scared.
“I’ll consider your request—after you step down.”
I didn’t want to walk away from my position. I expected to continue to be the Skull King for a few more years, until Catalina wanted to start a family. This was short notice. My reign had barely begun. “I need time to prepare.” I couldn’t just put in my resignation on the spot. I hadn’t even decided who would replace me.
“I said now.”
“And you know that’s a ridiculous demand. I need a successor. I need to wrap up loose ends. I will fulfill my promise. I want to marry Catalina as soon as possible, which I don’t want to do without your blessing, so I will take care of it as quickly as I can.”
He didn’t argue with me, but he didn’t look happy either. But he did give a nod in agreement.
I had to make a big sacrifice to keep her—but at least she was my prize. “You don’t want to interrogate me?” He hadn’t asked me about kidnapping her. He hadn’t asked me about my beef with Damien. He hadn’t asked me anything personal.
“No.”
I sat there, surprised this conversation was so brief.
“My daughter told me she loves you. She wants to spend her life with you. I trust her judgment. All the details about who you are, your past, all that stuff doesn’t matter. All that matters is how much you love her. And you just proved that to me by giving me what I asked. For a powerful man, that wasn’t an easy sacrifice to make. I know because I’ve personally done it.”
I didn’t ask what he used to do, but I assumed it was significant if he left it to be with Catalina’s mother, to be a father to Catalina and Damien. It was probably difficult for him, but a necessary sacrifice if he wanted to keep his family safe. It was the biggest test he could give me—and I passed. “I like you.” He didn’t need my approval, but I said it anyway.
He didn’t react to my words.
“Your personal feelings toward me and my crimes are insignificant. All you care about is your daughter’s happiness, and I respect you for that.” His reaction was completely different from Damien’s, showing a man who possessed maturity he had accumulated through both time and experience.
His hands remained linked together. “Make my daughter happy. And someday…I might like you.”Catalina immediately fired off questions when I got into the truck. “What happened? What did he say?”
I started the engine and drove away. “It’s fine.”
Her eyes burned into the side of my face from her position on the other side of the truck. “What? It’s fine? What the hell does that mean? What did he say?”
I drove through the streets and headed to my place.
Our place.
“He said he accepts me.”
“How did you pull that off?” she yelled. “What did he ask you?”
I kept my eyes on the road. “Said he trusted your judgment.”
“That’s not what he said to me…”
“So, he asked me to prove myself.”
“Okay, what does that mean?”
“Asked me to do something—and I agreed.”
“Well, what did he ask you to do?” she asked. “How could a fifteen-minute conversation be enough to resolve all of this?”
I shrugged. “Guys don’t say much.”
“Heath,” she said with a growl. “Why won’t you just be straight with me?”
I turned down all the right streets, getting closer to the home where I shared my life with her.
“Heath, what did he ask you to do?”
“I’ll tell you when we get home.”