Trouble: A BWWM Bad-Boy Billionaire Romance by Alyse Zaftig Page A

so?"
    "You two are legally adults now, over eighteen. When you were younger, your mom and I would resolve your disputes. But now that you're adults...it's good for you to learn conflict resolution skills."
    "Ugh, Dad," I teased playfully, "I don't want to be a grownup."
    Hints of a smile touched the edges of his mouth. "I think that it's too late for that. You're in college now. You can make your own decisions. And, sweetheart, if you want to date Trouble, your mom and I approve."
    "What?!" I almost bounced out of my seat, but my seatbelt held me back.
    "I know that Trouble was a player in high school. I'm not blind. But I think that Trouble has always been in love with you, and you've always been the one for him. I am glad that you two are in college together. It was hard for you to do it when you were at home with Chris. Now you are not, and you can sort out your relationship like reasonable adults.”
    I relaxed into my seat. What Dad said made a lot of sense.
    "Chris said that Trouble saw me as a sister, and that it was disgusting."
    Dad snorted. "Trouble doesn't see you as a sister, sweetheart. Chris is just projecting."
    He sighed. "Do you know why Trouble was always over at our house during your childhood?”
    "No. Why?"
    "You know that Chris' mother died when he was born, right?"
    "Yeah. There are pictures of her everywhere."
    "And you know the Trouble's mom died when he was born, right?"
    "Yeah, Dad," I said and looked at the split ends of my hair. "That's old news."
    "We haven't talked about that time in my life." He stopped. "The first time that I met Trouble, he was just a firecracker in the same swimming class as Chris. The rest of the kids had a parent who toweled them off after swim class and told them how proud they were of their work. Instead, Trouble had a dour old woman who drove him around. She was his nanny."
    "When Chris won his first ribbon in a swim meet, I was so proud. I put him on my shoulders, water and all. I saw how envious Trouble was, how much he wanted to have a father who loved him as much as I loved Chris."
    "But Trouble's dad is barely home."
    "Exactly. So that day, I took the two boys out for ice cream. I told the nanny that I'd have him back in two hours. She was relieved to take a break. We went to the park, too. The boys chased each other around the playground, and I watched them."
    "So you feel like Trouble's dad, almost."
    "Yeah, almost. He's sort of like an adopted child to me. He probably spent more waking hours at our house than at his own for the first 18 years of his life, really. Your mom and I don't mind it if you two date. If it doesn't work out, he'll still be part of our family. If it does, then he'll still be part of our family. I'm not afraid of the two of you trying something new. I'm proud of you."
    My eyes widened. "Proud of me?"
    "Proud of you for taking a risk. I know you played it safe, and I know that your mom and I have a lot to do with that. I thanked Heaven every day that you didn't show any interest in boys when you were in high school, especially when I was worried that Chris was going to get shackled to some girl for the rest of his life when he was a teenager." Dad shook his head. "It was a relief when the two of you went off to college without any teen pregnancies, let me tell you."
    I smiled. "That's absurd, Dad. I have big plans for my life, ones that don't include teen pregnancy."
    "That's my girl, raised right." He turned and tugged on my ear like he used to when I was little. "There's more to the story, too." He sighed.
    "When my first wife died..." he trailed off and parked the car in one of the big parking garages.
    “I was completely overwhelmed when she died. I stayed in the house, barely seeing other people. Your mom came to help me take care of Chris, and that’s when I fell in love with her.”
    "I know the story. You hired her, and then you swept her off her feet."
    "That's right, baby girl." The corners of my dad's eyes crinkled when he