meeting his daughter

★★★★

Payne could see that her mother was so angry it was as if she was breathing fire. She knew that if she didn’t speak up, her mother might take her back to the house, which would ruin her plan. She had already texted Dante from her mother’s phone, and everything needed to go according to plan.

"Mom, are you angry?" Payne asked tentatively.

"No," Jasmine replied curtly, staring straight ahead and avoiding her daughter’s gaze.

"Are you really going to take me somewhere to eat?" Payne asked, her tone hopeful and trying to break through the tension.

"Anywhere you want to go!" Jasmine said, her thoughts clearly elsewhere.

"Red Lobster. I know it's expensive, but we can share a plate," Payne suggested, crossing her fingers. Red Lobster was a costly place, but it was what Dante had chosen for their meeting.

"It's okay. We can have Red Lobster," Jasmine said, driving toward the restaurant without realizing that her daughter knew about this particular place, despite them not having be