Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 103109 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103109 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
“She’s my daughter in every way that matters, Shay. I cannot imagine what my life would be like if I didn’t have her, and I don’t want to.” I swallow the lump in my throat. She’s asking me a serious question and she deserves an honest answer. “No. If I’d known she wasn’t mine, I wouldn’t have stuck around. Raising another man’s child is a heartache I wouldn’t have signed on for if I’d known.”
She nods slowly.
I wrap my arms around her because I can feel her pulling away. “Does it bother you? The idea of getting involved with a man who’s already a father? Does it bother you that Abi remains my priority despite our DNA?”
“No. That doesn’t bother me.” I see the truth in her eyes, but it doesn’t explain the stiffness in her body.
“What about Scarlett? Will it bother you that she’s around sometimes?” I blow out a breath, realizing I should address the possibility of Scarlett moving to Jackson Harbor now and not later. “Will it bother you if she decides she wants her second home to be here and not Chicago?”
She blinks at me. “She’s thinking of moving here?”
I nod slowly. “I was trying to talk her out of it, but I’m not sure what’s going to happen now.”
“Oh. I guess that could be good for Abi.”
But not for her? Is that what she’s thinking? “Scarlett can live right next door if she wants to, and it won’t change the fact that I want you.”
She curls into my chest and closes her eyes.
I stroke her back. “Hey, Short Stack. Talk to me. Are you okay?” Please don’t panic. Please don’t give up on this before we even have a chance to begin.
“Will you . . . just hold me for a while?”
“Of course. You’re talking to the guy who wants to hold you forever, remember?”
Shay
Dr. Merritt Reddy
Associate Professor of Anthropology
Office Hours, MWF 2 to 5
I hold my breath as I stand in front of Dr. Merritt Reddy’s office. I’ve questioned my decision to come here dozens of times and nearly turned my car around on the interstate. I should’ve gone to George first, told him and let him decide what to tell his wife. But can I trust him to tell her the truth? If I leave it to him and he doesn’t tell her, I’ll walk around feeling guilty forever. She deserves to know about me as much as I deserved to know about her.
I hate him for putting me in the position he did, but I refuse to hate myself. I need to do this.
I lift my fist to knock on the wooden door, but it opens before I can, and I’m suddenly standing in front of the woman I saw George kissing in his front yard. Her long blond hair is tied back today, and the glasses on the tip of her nose rise higher when she scrunches up her face in a frown.
“Can I help you?”
“Um, yes. I’m . . . Yes. Dr. Reddy, my name’s Shayleigh Jackson. I was wondering if we could speak privately?”
Sighing, she rolls her shoulders back and presses her office door open, gesturing me inside. “I was going to get some coffee, but I suppose that can wait.”
“Thank you.” My voice shakes and I fear I might throw up on the lovely blue and gray rug covering her office floor. So, this is what it feels like to destroy a family. I’m a walking, talking time bomb, and she’s just invited me into her office.
She waves to the gray armchairs just inside the door and waits for me to sit before she takes the one opposite me. “You’re George’s PhD candidate, is that right? I understand you’ve really blown away the whole committee with the work on your dissertation. George is very proud of you.”
Bile rises in my stomach. She’s not making this any easier. “I’m surprised he talks about me at all,” I admit.
“Oh, of course he does. George lives and breathes for his graduate students. You’ve been a bit of a passion project for him the last couple of years.”
You have no idea. “Have you and he . . . been together long?”
She smiles. “It’s all relative, I suppose. We’ve lived together for ten years or so, been married for five. Our daughter is four.”
I feel lightheaded, and the room feels like it tilts sideways. I gulp in air.
“You look a little pale, darling. Can I get you some water?”
“No, I’m fine.” I just want to get this over with. “I’m really sorry to come here like this, Dr. Reddy. I want you to know that I thought a long time before I decided to come.”
She arches a brow. “Okay.”
“Before I say anything else, I want you to know that regardless of what you decide to do, I don’t like being in this position. Family is everything to me. But I had to come.”