Total pages in book: 103
Estimated words: 95678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95678 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 383(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
I swallowed down a sob before mumbling something to the effect of, “Never mind,” and turning around to make my way quickly across the dying grass of the back lawn around to the driveway.
I could hear his voice calling from behind me as I walked away.
“Go ahead and leave, Nico. It’s what you’re good at.”
I didn’t let the tears come until I was safely back in the car on my way down the familiar driveway and out of that godforsaken town.
Chapter 4
West
I stared after him in shock. That was it? That was the sum total of his reaction to meeting Adriana’s beautiful daughter? The only person left in his fucking family—the tiny life he was now in charge of protecting? To walk away again?
Adriana had spent hours trying to convince me that Nico was a decent person worth loving, worth forgiving, but I’d never actually believed her. And there, in the back yard of Adriana’s home, I knew I’d been right. He was a heartless asshole who’d selfishly walked out on her when they needed each other most. He’d never looked back. Clearly he hadn’t grown up, and all he still cared about was himself.
I began making my way back to the house, knowing I was going to have to hand Pippa over to that selfish prick. Just the thought of leaving her in his care made acid burn in my stomach. There was no way he was capable of taking care of a newborn. No fucking way. I’d bet my entire medical practice on the fact he’d never changed a diaper or given a baby a bottle. Hell, I’d be shocked if he’d even held a baby before. What exactly was he planning on doing while the adoption process played out?
Just as I reached out to open the back door, I heard an engine turn over in the front of the house. A vehicle crunched along the drive until the sound indicated it had driven out of earshot. Who had left? Surely not the man who was supposed to take charge of Pippa. I’d fucking kill him.
As I entered the house, I could see Hon and Goldie peering out the front windows by the breakfast table.
“Did that guy seriously just leave?” I called out. They both spun to look at me, Goldie bustling over to take Pippa out of my arms and Hon nodding his head. “What the hell?”
“I think this has all been a big shock to him, West,” Hon said gently. “Nico hasn’t been back to Hobie in like fifteen years. Cut him some slack.”
“Please tell me he’s agreed to let the Warners adopt her,” I asked the attorney. “He has to.”
“He hasn’t confirmed it, but he sounded relieved when I told him about them.”
“Thank god,” I muttered, sitting down on the overstuffed sofa and running my hands through my hair. As long as the guy was willing to give Pippa the best chance at a good life, I could forgive him for being a Grade A asshole.
Goldie walked over and rubbed my shoulder, giving me the same sweet smile she’d given me at work after a tough case.
“Sweetie, why don’t you head on home and get some rest? It’s been a long day. I’ll stay here with Pippa until Nico comes back.”
“Goldie, he can’t take care of her himself. You’re not going to let him—”
She squeezed my shoulder to stop me from saying it. “I’m going to stay the night regardless. You know better than to ask if I’m going to leave this baby with someone before I’m sure he can care for her. You’re tired. Now go home, Dr. Wilde.”
I met her eyes and saw in them the stern nurse she’d been since I’d been a child playing in my grandfather’s office at the practice. Hell, she’d probably changed my own damned diapers once upon a time.
“Yes, ma’am,” I mumbled. “See you tomorrow.”
I made my way back out to my truck, taking care to remove the car seat and leave it on Adriana’s front porch. I tried not to think about Nico Salerno attempting to figure out how to put it in the back of his rental car and getting it all wrong.
As I drove back the few blocks to the center of town, I noticed what looked like his rental car parked in the empty lot of the small city park off to my left. I didn’t see whether or not he was behind the wheel, and I forced myself not to look too hard for him. I couldn’t decide if I was disappointed or relieved he hadn’t left town.
Two blocks later, I pulled into my own driveway and followed it around back and into the freestanding garage behind the house. I lived above my medical practice in a great old Victorian house near the center of town. One of my grandfathers started the practice in the midseventies and passed it down to me when he retired a few years ago. Grandpa and Doc had tried to gift me the home as part of the practice, but I’d refused. Instead, I was buying it from them with monthly payments that galled them every time they noticed the deposits on their bank statements.