Perfect Fit by Brenda Jackson

dismissed the tired and worn look for one of profound guilt that was eating away at him.
    “I think we need to talk.”
    Sage shook her head. If he really thought that, then he had another thought coming. There was nothing they had to say to each other, especially not now. Her pain was still too raw. “Dad, I don’t want to talk to you right now. I—”
    “Please, Sage, I need you to hear what I have to say.”
    She sighed. She didn’t want to hear what he had to say. She knew he had cheated on her mother, and that said enough.
    “Just a few minutes of your time, Sage. I do believe I deserve that,” he added before she could say anything.
    Sage swallowed and was reminded of the times he had been there for her, even when she had been wrong—like that night she had sneaked into the house way past midnight when she’d been sixteen years old. He had been the one who’d caught her climbing into her bedroom window. To this day her mother still didn’t know about that incident.It had been Sage and her father’s secret. But she quickly reminded herself that this was a totally different situation. A teenager sneaking into a house past midnight was nothing compared to a married man breaking his marriage vows and sneaking around and sleeping with a woman. Yet, for some reason, Sage couldn’t trust her voice to speak, to turn down what he was requesting. So instead, she nodded. “All right. I was about to go up to my room.”
    They traveled in the elevator up to the eighth floor in silence. Sage figured they would save the talking until they were safely behind closed doors. When she reached her hotel room door and unlocked it, she pushed it open, resigning herself to whatever lay ahead. She wondered if any other woman in the world had ever gone through what she was experiencing simultaneously with her fi-ancé and her father. It was real tough when the two men you loved the most had fallen off that pedestal you had placed them on.
    She tossed her purse on the bed when she heard him close the door behind them. She turned around. “I would offer you something to drink, but all I have right now is bottled water.” She kicked off her shoes. “But please have a seat or you’re more than welcome to look around and check out the place, although I’m sure it’s probably similar to the room you and your lady friend enjoyed last night,” she couldn’t help but lash out.
    Ignoring the hurt look on his face, she continued. “But then, I guess the hotel room’s décor isn’t what the two of you were really interested in, was it?”
    Charles Dunbar’s gaze dipped to the floor.Seconds later, he raised his head and met his daughter’s eyes. “None of that is necessary, Sage. I already feel worse than you can ever imagine.”
    Sage pushed her hair back from her face. “Oh, I don’t know, Dad, you’ve known me long enough to know my imagination can get pretty wild at times. That’s why I’m in the business that I’m in. I just love coming up with creative ideas.”
    She sat on the bed. “And last night my mind was working overtime as I sat on that very same couch you were sitting on in the lobby tonight as I waited for you to come down so you could assure me what I thought I saw was all a misunderstanding. But after you were up there for over three hours, I figured that you and your companion had very little to say. In fact, I’m surprised the two of you could actually even walk straight.”
    Charles Dunbar took a sharp breath, then slowly walked across the room to stand in front of the only window in the room. He turned and faced his daughter’s stormy expression. “I think you’ve said enough, Sage,” he said tightly. After inhaling deeply, he then said, “Just so you’ll know, that was our first time together,” he said softly. “It was something that happened, but I assure you it won’t happen again.”
    Sage blinked. Then the frown on her face deepened. “It won’t happen again? It should never have