You Distract Me

Clarity

Olivia

"Forgive me for coming to see you this late."

I just stared at him as he spoke, his soft tone lightly dusted with an accent I couldn't recognize. Part of me wanted to sit down with him and hear whatever he had to say, while the other part wanted to scream and get out of the place.

Noella placed her hand on my back. "Let's take a seat, okay?"

I swallowed hard and let her guide me to the sofa opposite his. He only sat after Noella and I took our seats.

To my surprise he looked mildly nervous, his massive hands rubbing over his jean-clad thighs.

"How are you doing, princess?" he smiled gently, startling gray eyes crinkling at the corners.

I stayed quiet, not ready to speak yet. All I could do was stare at him, awed by the facial similarities we shared.

I was disappointed in myself when my heart stopped pounding with the fear of meeting him, disappointed in myself that I couldn't find the hate I'd had for him anymore. All that was left was anxiety from meeting my biological father.

Oran Demir should've disgusted me.

I directed my self-hate at him, folding my arms and hardening my voice. "Why am I here? Take me home to my parents right now."

There was a sudden hint of panic in his eyes as they darted between me and Noella. He ran his hands through his chocolatey locks. "Princess—"

"Don't call me that," I said, getting up from my seat. I placed my hands on my hips and walked to the huge window. "Please don't call me that," I said more quietly.

"I'm sorry, it must be the excitement from finally meeting you. I can't help it. You are my child after all."

"Please just stop!" I turned back to him, my voice rising an octave per second. "Why am I here? Why am I meeting you now? Why all the fuss when you could have easily knocked on my front door? How the hell is Oran Demir, a world class criminal, my biological father?"

He licked his lips nervously, shifting in his seat. "If I'm going to tell you what's going on, I'll need you to take a seat."

I hesitated for a moment but complied and joined Noella again, her hand going straight to caressing my back. I'd be damned if it didn't calm me down.

Demir took a deep breath. "What has your mom told you about your father, your real father?"

Mom. Of course. Who else could pull the deception of the century other than my mother? I wouldn't dare put it past her lying about being my birth mom too.

I physically swallowed my infuriation. "Not a lot. She just mentioned he was a painter she had met a long time ago. But I'm guessing she lied."

He gave a slight shrug of his heavy shoulders. "Your mother must have had her own reasons for doing what she did. But what matters is that we're together now, even after she kept you from me."

"She must have had a good reason. People don't just go around hiding babies from criminals." I really wanted to meet my mom half-way.

He frowned, looking a little taken aback. "I'm not a criminal, Olivia."

"I beg to differ." Refusing to be lied to further, I said, "How did you meet my mother?"

Demir sighed but spoke anyway. "It was several years ago when your parents had attended one of my fundraisers. When one of my colleagues introduced me to your parents, I was utterly taken by your mothers beauty. And it seems she was taken by me too." He tried and failed to hold back a smile.