“A father?” Steele shook his head over and over, as if the motion would help him make sense of my words.
“Yeah, a father.” I held up my hand to stop the questions from coming. “I was so shocked, I dropped my beer. It drenched us, and the glass broke on the floor.”
“No wonder you stink like stale beer,” Kaden said.
“And look like you should’ve been wearing a diaper,” Steele added.
“Yeah, thanks. Anyway, in the ensuing chaos, she slipped out.”
“She dropped a bomb like that on you and left? What the fuck?” Steele shook his head and scowled. Steele rarely showed emotion, so this display was epic and somewhat touching. I’d never point that out to him though. He’d be mortified.
“She told you that you’re a father and then vanished?”
“Sure did.” Anger seeped into my tone and vibrated through my body. The anger kept the confusion and guilt at bay. If I stayed pissed at her, I wouldn’t have to accept my responsibility in this situation. After all, there wasn’t any excuse for what she’d done.
“I have zero respect for any woman who keeps a baby secret from the father. We have as much rights as they do when it comes to being parents.” Steele pounded his fist on the table. Kaden and I stared at this stranger. We’d never seen him so adamant about a subject other than hockey. There had to be a story there.
“I agree,” Kaden said. “What are you going to do about it?”
“Call her back and demand an explanation,” I answered.
“Get a DNA test. She might be trying to extort money from you.” Kaden was ever the suspicious one when it came to women. There was a story there, too. I guess we all had our own secrets. Hell, I had a secret I hadn’t even known about.
“I will. Tomorrow.”
“Are you in love with this woman?” By the horrified expression on Kaden’s face, he couldn’t think of anything worse than falling in love.
“I…uh, no, it was a summer fling. A fucking memorable summer fling. I dumped her and walked away. On a whim, I looked her up a few years ago and found out she was married with kids.”
“Why is a married woman looking you up and claiming you’re a father?”
“Lots of questions. No fucking answers.”
“Be careful, E, something seems off,” Kaden warned.
“Get a good attorney,” Steele added.
I nodded. Tomorrow morning, I’d straighten out this mess.
Not that I’d be able to get one minute of sleep.
I was a fucking father. How did a guy handle news like that seven years too late?
Easton point of view
If I had a child, I had to know. I wasn’t sure what I’d do with that knowledge, but I would do right by the kid. Caro was married, and most likely the child thought Caro’s husband was his or her father. I wondered if this man knew about me. I couldn’t fathom why she was contacting me after keeping the secret for seven years unless it all came back to money. Her timing was suspect. I was an NHL player and making an NHL salary. Caro and her husband might want a piece of that pie to enhance their quality of living.
If the child was mine, I had every intention of owning up to my responsibilities. Beyond that, I hadn’t a clue. I was twenty-three years old and not ready to be a dad. I was still growing up myself.
I admitted with a twinge of guilt that Caro hadn’t been given that choice. If the child was mine, she’d have given birth at eighteen. Then I reminded myself I’d have been involved if I’d known.
I wondered as I had a thousand times since last night if I had a son or daughter. Did the kid look anything like me? Did my child like to skate and have any athletic ability? Caro had been the least-athletic person I’d ever met. She could trip over a leaf and fall flat on her face, but she’d known her hockey. She’d loved hockey. We’d spent hours talking about it, and she’d never once been bored with it.
As mad as I was at Caro, I couldn’t help thinking about how good she’d looked. She might have given birth, but she’d maintained her trim figure. Her honey-blonde hair had still been long and glossy. Her eyes had been as blue as I remembered, so blue I could lose myself for hours in them. I hadn’t seen her smile, but she’d once had a hundred-megawatt smile that lit up any room. She’d stirred something deep inside me, something I’d prefer to keep buried. My body had responded to her presence, her scent, her closeness, even though I didn’t want it to.
Memories of the summer we spent together camrushing back. I’d fallen for her with all the passion and hormones of a teenage boy. Those strong emotions had scared the crap out of me, and I’d mistaken them for love. I’d torn out of there, far and fast, to get away from my own feelings.
And now she’d kept the ultimate secret from me. I didn’t know if I’d ever forgive her for such a thing, but I wouldn’t have to. She was married to another man. All we needed to do was straighten out this parenting business and figure out what rights I wanted to enforce and how the kid fit into my life.
Caro had texted me a few times to apologize for her rapid retreat. I recalled what a worrier she was, and my lack of response would’ve given her plenty to worry about.
At six a.m., I picked up my phone, found her last text, and texted her back.
Caroline point of view
I woke early in the morning in a strange hotel room. I hadn’t fallen asleep until the wee hours, and I’d spent a good part of the evening fretting. Had I misjudged Easton? Was he disinterested in being a father? Did he hate me for running and not explaining the situation?
From his point of view, I didn’t look like a very good person. I’d regretted my rash actions and returned to the bar only to find him gone. I’d texted him several times, the last being at midnight, with no answer. I checked my phone almost every hour to find nothing.
I wished I’d allowed Fran to come to Seattle with me. She’d offered, but deep down, I knew this was something I had to do myself. I’d sure messed that up. Fran would tell me to have patience. I’d dropped a bombshell on Easton, and he needed time to put all of this in perspective.
Knowing it was early, I called Fran. She wouldn’t mind, even if I woke her up, and I needed to speak to someone. Fran was the closest thing I had to a real mother.
“Caro? Is everything okay?” Fran’s voice was a mixture of sleepiness and alarm.
“It’s okay. I’m sorry to wake you up.”
“You don’t have to apologize. We’ve been waiting for your call. When I said I was here for you, I meant it, no matter the time. Tell me what’s going on.”
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.
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