Chapter 20

“Mitchell, I am not inviting you in. Please go away. Leave me alone,” insisted Christine loudly as Melissa hurried into the living room to find Mitchell and Christine in a heated exchange.

“I want some answers, Christine. Somebody did this to you, and I want to know who,” demanded Mitchell.

“Mitchell. Christine. What’s going on? What happened to you, Christine? Are you okay?” asked a perplexed Melissa as Hailey came rushing into the room, followed by her father.

Dan took the scene in and started for Mitchell. “Young man, I warned you what would happen if you mistreated my daughter.”

With that, Dan pulled a fist back and punched Mitchell in the jaw. For his part, Mitchell never even flinched. He slowly brought his hand up to his jaw and rubbed it. Christine was horrified. This was precisely what she had been hoping to avoid. What a horrible ending to an awful night. Her father had just struck Mitchell. Now there was no doubt that she and Mitchell would never be together again, not that