range.
When he reached the house, he jogged up the porch stairs then wiped his boots on the rubber mat in front of the door before entering. It was cool inside with no sign of Demi, or anyone else, for that matter. He frowned.
He walked through the house to Demi’s room. Maybe one of her friends had come over. Although, considering she was only fourteen, she didn’t have any friends who could drive themselves anywhere.
When he reached her room, her door was closed but he heard voices from the other side. Demi’s voice and another that definitely wasn’t female.
He grabbed the doorknob and opened the door. Demi was cross-legged on the bed and a good-looking teenage boy was sitting close to her. In one sweep of his gaze, Blake saw books and papers scattered on the comforter… And he saw the way the boy was looking at his daughter.
The boy and Demi looked up. A look of fear crossed the boy’s face.
Jaw clenched, Blake strode over to the boy, grabbed him by the collar, and jerked him to his feet.
“Dad!” Demi slid off the bed, horror on her face. “What are you doing? Stop it!”
“What the hell are you doing in here with my daughter?” Blake said in a growl as he jerked the boy out of the bedroom.
The boy looked terrified. “We were just—”
“Shut up.” Anger made Blake’s gut burn as he marched the boy toward the front door.
“Dad!” Demi hurried beside him. “Stop it! Let Brett go! We were studying. What are you doing?”
Blake flung open the front door and shoved Brett onto the porch. “I don’t want to ever see you around my daughter again.”
He cut his gaze to Demi. “Get his things.”
Demi had her hands clenched into fists at her sides. She whirled around and ran toward her room.
Blake turned his glare on Brett. “How old are you?”
Brett’s throat worked as he swallowed. “Sixteen.”
“My daughter is fourteen years old,” Blake growled. “You have no business being around her.”
The boy looked frantic. “I was tutoring—”
“I don’t want to hear a word out of you,” Blake said in a growl.
Brett clamped his mouth shut.
“Here.” Tears wavered in Demi’s voice as she came up beside Blake and pushed a backpack at him.
Blake, in turn, shoved the backpack into the boy’s arms. “Get on out of here and don’t ever come back into my home again.”
Brett didn’t hesitate. He grabbed the backpack, turned and jogged down the stairs, and headed toward his truck. He didn’t look back as he got into his truck. Moments later the truck tore down the dirt road, dust roiling up from the tires.
“How could you?” Demi shouted and Blake turned to face her. “How could you embarrass me like that?”
“Get to your room.” Blake narrowed his gaze. “We’ll talk about this when you calm down.”
“Calm down?” Her fists were still clenched at her sides, her eyes glossy with tears. “You were the one who overreacted and threw my friend out for no reason.”
“Friend?” Blake nearly roared the word. “You’re fourteen and you had a sixteen-year-old boy in your room. Boys that age have only one thing in mind and it sure as hell isn’t studying.”
“Brett’s not like that,” Demi shouted. “He’s a nice guy.”
“Get on out of here and go to your room,” he repeated.
“I hate you!” Demi stamped her foot, tears rolling down her face now. “I wish Mom was here. She wouldn’t have embarrassed me.”
The words hit Blake like a concrete block to his chest. He pointed to the hallway. “To your room. Now. ”
Demi looked like she wanted to say something else but she spun and ran away from him, and then disappeared down the hallway. A moment later a door slammed.
Blake stared in the direction his daughter had gone. A slow burn in his chest threatened to erupt as he thought about the boy being alone with his daughter in her room and he gritted his teeth.
He raised his hat and pushed his hand through his hair before settling his hat on his head