All Chapters of Owned By My Best Friend's Father: Chapter 1 - Chapter 4

I’m sweating before I even step off the elevator.Miami in July doesn’t care that I took two buses and walked six blocks in this dress. The heat clings like a second skin, making the thin white cotton stick to my ribs. My tote bag slaps against my hip—towel, dollar-store sunscreen, the dog-eared copy of Haunting Adeline I pretend I’m reading for the plot when really it’s for the smut. Emily’s text lit up my phone at 2:14 p.m.: POOL DAY. NOW. Bring your cute ass and stop being boring. I rolled my eyes, but I came. I always come for Emily.She’s the only person who can drag me out of my head when I’m drowning in it—Sophie’s science project half-done on the kitchen table, Mom’s latest text asking if I paid the electric bill, Victor my sperm donor calling from some bar in Hialeah demanding “just twenty bucks, baby girl, I swear I’ll pay you back help your dad out here.” I never have twenty bucks to spare, but I still feel guilty saying no. That’s the problem with being the responsible on

I don’t know how long we stay on the couch like that—me curled in his lap, naked except for the slip dress bunched around my waist, him fully clothed but holding me like I’m the only thing that matters in the world. His hand strokes slow circles on my back, his lips brush my temple every few minutes, and every time I start to drift, he whispers something soft: “You did so well,” or just my name.Eventually, he shifts. “We can’t stay here,” he murmurs against my hair. “Emily could wake up. She’s a light sleeper when she’s drunk.”I tense. “Where—”“My room.” He kisses my forehead. “Come on.”He helps me stand, my legs still shaky, my core still pulsing with aftershocks. He smooths the dress down over my hips, buttons his shirt halfway, and takes my hand. We move quietly down the hallway, past Emily’s closed door. My heart is in my throat the whole way, but he moves like this is routine, like sneaking his daughter’s best friend to his bedroom at 1:30 a.m. is just another Tuesday.His be