Dear Sir, I'm Yours Read Online Free PDF Page A

terrible mistakes.
    “Do you remember when I came home from Drury?”
    Daddy nodded, his brown eyes locked on her. At one time, that stern gaze had been enough to curb any disobedience she might think to toss back as an unruly teen. Even crippled, shrunken, and mute in a wheelchair, he projected that same authority.
    “I—I’d met someone. But I was…scared.” Her voice broke, but she kept up the slow, steady rocking. “He was ten years older than me, my English professor, and he was just about as intimidating as you.”
    Daddy laughed, she thought, patting her hand. His brown eyes twinkled.
    “I left Drury not sure I’d go back to see him.”

    Sudden agitation trembled through him, and she jerked her gaze back to his.
    “No, no, Daddy, don’t even think it. I wasn’t sure I’d go back to him even before your accident. I was too much of a coward to face him again. Staying home to help you and Mom was simply my excuse to stay gone. Then Richard—”
    Daddy’s face hardened, his eyes narrowing. Concentrating hard, he forced one word out.
    “Dick.”
    Rae choked back a laugh. “Yeah, he was. I shouldn’t have married him. You tried to tell me, didn’t you? But I was still running from Conn. I was still afraid, and I thought Richard would be safer. I thought I was protecting myself from a man that scared me spitless.”
    Dropping her gaze, she whispered, “I ran into Conn today.”
    Her free hand trembled in her lap, and she clenched her fingers into a fist to hide it.
    Daddy squeezed her other hand, making another low, soothing noise.
    “I’m still scared.” She blinked back tears. “He has the power to tear me down to nothing if I let him.” Remembering the ferocity of his steel blue eyes locked on her mouth, she knew he also had the power to rock her world like none other. “You taught me not to be a coward, but I ran from him because I was scared. You taught me not to be a quitter, but I divorced Richard.”
    She took a deep, shuddering breath. “I’ve messed up everything, Daddy. This job opportunity is a dream come true, a miracle, but it puts me in contact with Conn. It puts me under his thumb, since it’s working for his grandmother. I’ll have to see him, deal with him, answer his questions about why I left, and I’m still a coward.”
    Daddy made a sharp noise, leaning toward her, tugging on her hand until she looked into his eyes. Again, it took concentration for his shorted-out brain to form words that she could understand. “Fix. It.”
    Tears streamed down her cheeks. His motto as a general contractor had inspired hers.
    If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it; if it is broke, fix it right the first time.
    “How? How do I fix five years? I ran, and then I married someone else. Conn has no idea.” She choked and closed her eyes. There are some things she just couldn’t bear to tell anyone. Things that he would want—demand—from her, and she’d give, helplessly. The memory of their last day together in his office stung and heated at the same time.
    “Make. Right.”
    Yeah, easier said than done. This was her chance to make it right with Conn after destroying everything five years ago. Nodding, she brushed her tears away. “You’re right, Daddy, as always.”
    She rocked in silence for awhile. Glancing over at him, she noticed he was drifting into sleep. Quietly, she stopped her chair and rose to gently set his hand on his stomach. He looked so small and frail. She didn’t need the doctors to tell her he was slowly slipping away. “I love you, Daddy.”
    He stirred, a soft smile on his face. One eye peeked open. “Love Conn?”
    Crafty as a fox, as usual. Despite her anxiety about dealing with Conn, she laughed shakily and nodded. “Too much, I think. Even now.”
    “Go.”
    Swallowing hard, Rae leaned down and kissed his cheek. “I’m going. I’ll call Mom every day to see how you are.”
    “Fine.” Frustration flickered across his face. He wanted to tell her to live her