Chapter 5: Girls

I will not have a disgusting thing such as that in my house. – John

Daddy

Riffraff looked at his phone. Although he was still up, it was later than when Angel was usually awake. He clicked the button and called her but it went to voicemail. His phone chimed and he looked at the new message. 

Can you come get me

John kicked me out

“The hell he did.” Riffraff muttered as he typed out a quick reply. 

He tucked his phone back into his pocket and then quickly dispatched the remaining three solid balls on the table. Picking up the twenty dollars, he passed his pool stick to Werewolf. 

“Everything OK?” the man asked concerned. 

“I gotta go get my daughter.” He said angrily as he pulled his keys out of his pocket and went out the front door.

It was a clear night and there was not much traffic. He wasn’t sure what was going on. But he would get to the bottom of it. Obviously Crystal’s husband forgot who actually owned the house they lived in. 

Pulling up to the house, he saw his daughter sitting on the curb with her backpack. Riffraff stopped and killed the engine and put down his kickstand. It had become routine and he did it automatically without thinking. 

Angel stood up and walked into his open arms. Wrapping her arms around her dad’s waist, she buried her face in his chest and sobbed. One large hand gently held her head to his chest while his other one made slow calming circles on her back. 

“Do you want to go to the Shack? Nans? Or just ride for a little while?” He asked softly as she started to calm down. 

“Can we take a long way to the Shack?” she sniffled. 

Smiling, he kissed the top of her head. “Absolutely, baby girl.”

After securing her backpack on the back of his bike, he got back on. He made sure her helmet was secure before helping her on behind him. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she laid her head against his back and smiled as the bike roared to life.

It was over an hour later when she finally squeezed his leg. It was the signal that they had established while riding. A tap meant she needed to stop for a break. A squeeze meant she was ready to go home. 

The clubhouse was still going when they got there. He parked in his regular spot and told her to take her bag up to his room. 

Riffraff watched her wave at some of the guys as she made her way up to the third floor. She was definitely in a better mood. He grabbed some beers from the bar and told the bartender to put them on his tab.

Carrying his six pack, he went to his room. Angel was standing outside the door. 

“Can we go to our spot?”

“Come on.” He had anticipated the request and held hus hand out to her.

The back stairwell led up to the roof and their spot. Two prospects were on the roof walking the perimeter. The table that Angel liked was almost in the center of the flat roof. A dozen or so feet away was a double lounger that Trigg's daughter used to read on her sleepless nights.

They sat on the table with their feet on the bench. Using his keychain, he opened two of the beers and handed her one.

“I’m not old enough to drink.” She smirked as she looked down. 

“Uh-huh.” He hummed knowingly as he took a drink of his own. 

“But if you insist.”

“Oh, I insist.” He grinned at her. 

They sat in silence for a few minutes looking at the stars and drinking. Angel laid her head on his shoulder. Riffraff wrapped an arm around her and held her close to him.

“I like girls.” She whispered with tears in her voice. 

“Me too.” He replied casually. 

“No, like, I’m attracted to them.”

“Yeah. Me too.”

“Dad. I have sex with girls.”

“Me too.” He shrugged. “Well, women actually.”

“Dad. I’m trying to tell you that I’m a lesbian.”

“And I’m trying to tell you that I know.” He kissed the top of her head. “I love you no matter what.”

“I love you too.”

He took a deep drink and finished off the bottle before opening another. 

“Is that why John kicked you out?” he asked and she nodded. “What do you want to do about it?”

“What do you mean?” She asked with confusion in her voice. He was certain that if there was more light, he would see it on her face as well. 

“When I paid off the house last year, I had your name added to the deed. So…. It’s your house. What do you want to do about it?”

“Can I kick him out?”

“Sure. We can file for an eviction.” Riffraff grinned. Admittedly, kicking the man out of the house would have made him happy years ago. Now, he just wanted his daughter happy. Without the guilt she would feel for making her mother and brother homeless. 

“But that would mean mom and Joey too.” Angel sighed. 

“Yup.” He held back his smile. 

“How did you pay it off so fast? That’s less than ten years.”

He grinned in the darkness. 

“I told your mom that I would pay the mortgage with her rent. And I did. I just charged her a little more and made double payments. Tax returns and bonuses went to the principal balance.” He shrugged. “I had plenty of time to sit around and do nothing. Or, I could do classes. I chose classes. And did a whole course on mortgages and financing.”

“Dad.” She said with a little laugh. 

“Daughter.” He replied with a chuckle. 

“You’re amazing.”

“I’ve been telling people that for years!”

She laughed as she hugged him and he hugged her back. 

“Think you’ll ever get married again?”

“I think that I’m a little too old for all that crap.” He admitted. “I enjoy living here and I doubt that a woman would want to. And I am not marrying a bunny.”

“I applied for an international exchange program for college.” She whispered. 

“Australia or Spain?”

“Spain. You know me so well.”

“That’s my job, baby girl.”