Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92136 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 461(@200wpm)___ 369(@250wpm)___ 307(@300wpm)
Nate sighed, his eyes closing a moment. “She’s a woman I met at a tax law seminar last year.”
“Met?”
Nate pressed his lips together. “Slept with.”
“At a tax law seminar?”
“The seminar was boring. She had a hotel room.”
I nodded, ignoring the quick dart of jealousy, the same one I sometimes felt when I saw women leaving his apartment in the morning. It made even less sense right now. “And was that”—I did some quick math—“roughly eleven months ago?”
He nodded slowly without meeting my eyes.
“And you weren’t careful?”
“Of course I was careful,” he scoffed. “I’m always careful.”
“Right. Well, you’ll forgive my confusion as I seem to be holding evidence to the contrary in my arms.”
At that Nate jumped off the couch and began to pace back and forth in front of the window, grabbing onto fistfuls of his hair with both hands. “No. This can’t be. I protected myself.”
“Everyone gets carried away sometimes, Nate.”
“Maybe you do, but I don’t. Never. Not once. I’m always in control. Always.” He stopped pacing and looked at me, his eyes bloodshot and glassy, his hair a disaster. The muscles in his neck flexed as he swallowed hard. “I wore a condom every time. I know I did, because I always do. It’s a rule.”
“No form of birth control is one hundred percent effective.”
He opened his mouth like he was going to argue, but then closed it.
“Unless you think she’s lying…” I challenged.
“I didn’t say that.”
“Did she seem like the kind of person who’d make this up? I mean, she’s a lawyer too, right? She’d know paternity could be legally proven or disproven with a test.”
He exhaled, his shoulders slumping. “I know. You’re right. It’s… She’s…” He braved a glance at the baby in my arms. “She’s more than likely mine. I just…can’t believe this is happening.”
I couldn’t help feeling sorry for him. A lot of guys like Nate—especially lawyers—would probably be screaming get me a paternity test right the fuck now! He didn’t need someone to scold him or shame him or be judgmental—he needed a friend. He needed a voice of reason. He needed confidence.
And frankly, I needed to see a man step up and be a man. It couldn’t all be a fantasy.
“What am I going to do?” he moaned, dropping onto the couch again, holding his head in his hands.
“You’re going to take care of her until her mother comes back,” I said firmly, taking a seat next to him.
“When’s that going to be?”
“I’m not sure, she didn’t say. But I can’t imagine more than a day or so.”
“I know I’m an asshole for this, but I don’t want a baby, Emme. Not even for a day or so, even if she is mine.”
I kept trying. “What you want doesn’t really matter. She’s here.”
Nate looked at his daughter. “I am the least qualified person in the universe to parent a child.”
“What makes you so unqualified? You’ve got money. A good job. A place to live.”
“That’s economics, not parenting. I’ve never wanted kids. I know nothing about taking care of them, especially a girl. And a baby? Forget it.” He stood up suddenly, fisted his hands at his sides, and stared down at me. “You have to take her.”
I shook my head and stood up too. “No way, Nate. I’m not taking her. She’s your daughter.”
“God, this is such a nightmare.” Nate yanked on his hair and started pacing again. “What the fuck was Rachel thinking? Why didn’t she tell me? I could’ve…could’ve…”
“Could’ve what?” I asked. “What would you have told her to do?”
“I don’t know,” he admitted.
“Maybe she was scared of your reaction. Maybe she didn’t want to tell you because she thought you wouldn’t handle it well.”
“I’d have handled it fine!” he yelled. “Because I’d have been prepared for this insanity, and not fucking blindsided!”
“Okay, okay.” Paisley had started to fuss again. “Lower your voice. Look, let’s focus on moving forward. Do you have contact information for Rachel? A cell phone number, or an email address?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Do you know what firm she works for?”
“No.”
“She was staying at a hotel, so is she from out of state?”
“I don’t think so. She might be from Kalamazoo. Or Battle Creek? Somewhere in the middle.”
“How about a last name?” I was sort of kidding, so I was stunned when he shook his head again. “Jesus, Nate.” I switched Paisley to my other arm and forgot not to be judgy. “You might think I date assholes, and maybe I do, but I at least know their last names and how to find them.”
“That’s because you’re a little girl living in a fantasy world,” he shot back. “You think every guy you have sex with is going to be your future husband. You think an orgasm is the equivalent of an engagement ring. Some of us exercise a little more restraint, because we are mature adults and understand that sometimes a fuck is just a fuck.”