Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Gray

Rattling the ice cubes in my empty glass, I stared at the mess of my life strewn all over the living room couch and floor. The folder Max had given me contained everything—her medical papers, her will appointing me as Ella’s sole guardian, a seven-page letter that detailed all of the whys, hows, and whens of her illness and pregnancy, and my daughter’s birth certificate and medical files. She’d even admitted in writing to the details of the con job she’d pulled on me. It was a shitload of information. But it was the photo of my daughter sitting on top of the papers that I kept coming back to.

My daughter.

I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to even thinking the words, much less saying them aloud. Ella Kent Cartwright had been born on Valentine’s Day almost three years ago. Max had listed the father’s name as unknown on the birth certificate but gave Ella my mother’s maiden name as her middle name—Kent.

I picked up Ella’s picture to study it for the thousandth time. I had no idea how to take care of a child—a daughter, no less. But my heart swelled every time I looked at her adorable little face. I felt like my life had once again been sucked into a tornado, and where it would spit me out was anyone’s guess. But I knew one thing for sure: I needed to meet Ella as soon as possible.

Stumbling to the kitchen, I refilled my glass, cursing at the empty bottle while I poured the last drops.

I needed to talk to Layla. She’d texted me an hour ago, and I still couldn’t bring myself to respond. What the fuck did I write back?

Yes, I have a daughter.

And…pretty soon I’ll be a single dad to a nearly three-year-old I’ve never met.

What I wanted to do was lie—tell her Max hadn’t shown up for our meeting and just spend one more night in denial. But…no lies. That’s how I’d lost her in the first place.

The discussion certainly wasn’t one that should unfold via text. It was almost eight so I figured Layla would be home by now.

Gray: Is it okay if I stop by so we can talk?

Her response came quick.

Layla: No.

My heart started to pound, and I fumbled my phone, dropping it on the floor when I started to text back. I heard another phone ringing in the background while I swiped my cell from the floor. I was so laser focused on finding the reason she didn’t want me to stop by that I didn’t realize it was my own home phone.

Gray: Are you still at work? I could come pick you up and we could ride to your place together.

Layla: I’m not at work anymore.

Shit.She just didn’t want me to come over.

Gray: Too tired?

My phone rang again. This time I heard it loud and clear, but chose to ignore it. Whoever was calling wasn’t as important as Layla.

Layla: Actually, I’m not.

Fuck.

I started to text back and then thought better of it. Instead, I hit Call. She answered on the first ring.

“We need to talk, sweetheart,” I said.

“I agree. So why don’t you answer your home phone already?”

I was thoroughly confused for a few heartbeats. “How do you know my…”

“Because I’m standing downstairs, waiting for you to tell your nice doorman to allow me to come up.”

I picked up my house phone and held it to the other ear. “Norman?”

“Yes, sir, Mr. Westbrook.”

“Can you please send Ms. Hutton up?”

“Will do.”

“And for future reference, Ms. Hutton is welcome any time she wants.”

“You got it.”

I hung up the cordless and returned to my cell. “Get your ass up here, wise ass.”

***

I waited in front of the elevator doors. Freckles, on the other hand, took his trusty shoe and charged right inside when the door opened.

Layla bent to pick him up. “Are you glad to see me or trying to escape in the elevator?”

I wanted to keep that smile on her face forever. Suddenly, a sobering thought hit me. I hadn’t wanted to have a serious conversation over text. The same might’ve been true for her. She could be here to dump my ass in person.

I attempted to push the thought out of my head and remain positive. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

She finished scratching Freckles and set him down. “I figured you’d been avoiding me all day because you had news you didn’t want to share and wouldn’t lie when I asked you.”

I forced a smile. “You know me well.”

On the inside, I was a fucking wreck, unable to think straight, but that didn’t stop me from soaking her in. She wore a red business suit—a skirt and jacket, with a white, silky camisole underneath. Holding Freckles, the thin fabric clung against her bra, and I could make out the pattern of lace underneath. Her long, toned legs were shapely and smooth, and she wore black high heels that I’d have opted to have stitches in my back just to feel them puncture my skin. But it was her nose that did me in. She hadn’t covered her freckles. Somehow that gave me a beacon of hope to cling to.

While I was busy ogling her, apparently she’d done the same to me. Except what she found wasn’t as pleasant.

“You look terrible,” she said.

“Then it’s a good thing you look so beautiful and can pick up the slack.”

“Are you…going to invite me in so we can talk? Or are we just going to stand in front of the elevator and stare at each other?”

“How would you feel about staying right here?”

She forced a smile. “Come on. Give me a drink. From the looks of you, I have a lot of catching up to do.”

After I poured her a glass of wine and grabbed myself a bottle of water—I’d had enough—we went to the living room. I’d forgotten the mess all over the place. Sweeping papers from the couch, I made room for her to sit.

Layla’s eyes landed on the photo I hadn’t been able to take mine from today. She picked it up and stared at it while sipping her wine.

“She’s beautiful. The photo doesn’t even do her justice,” she said softly.

“I’ve done nothing but stare at that for hours.”

Her eyes flickered to meet mine. “She’s yours?”

I blew out a deep breath. “Max gave me DNA results to show that Aiden isn’t the father and testing she claims was done with a sample from my toothbrush and razor, which is positive for paternity.”

“Do you believe her?”

I looked at the photo still in her hands. “I think I would’ve believed her with that photo alone.”

Layla smiled sadly. We stared at each other in utter silence for a long time. I didn’t know what to say, and I thought it best to let her digest it and not force it down her throat.

Eventually she looked away. “Why did she keep it from you?”

“She said she found out she was pregnant right before I took the deal, and she thought I might not take it if I knew I had a child on the way. I might’ve fought for my freedom, and that would’ve put her immunity deal at risk.”

“God,” she gasped. “That’s ruthless.”

I shook my head and looked down at my feet. “I didn’t think anything else could shock me.”

“Does she want you back? Is that why she told you the way she did—through me? Showing up at my office like that?”

“No. She said she wanted to see who her daughter was going to be spending time with.”

“There are obviously more normal ways to go about doing that. Like perhaps letting the father know he has a child before stalking his girlfriend?”

“There’s nothing normal about Max. I learned that the hard way.”

We were again quiet for a few minutes. I needed to tell her the rest, but wasn’t sure how to tell her the life I’d just gotten back was about to be turned upside down. Her next question, though, opened the door.

“So what happens now? Is she going to let you see her? Will she fight you for visitation and your legal rights?”

I waited until Layla drank her wine and lifted her eyes to meet mine again. “Max is dying. Stage four breast cancer that has spread to…everywhere.”

Her jaw dropped, and her hand clutched at her chest. “Oh my God, Gray.”

“She decided to tell me because she’s running out of time and wants to help make the transition easier.”

“The transition?”

“To me having custody.”

“Wow.” Layla rubbed at one temple. “I…I don’t even know what to say.”

I took the wine from her and set it on the coffee table so I could take both her hands in mine.

Looking into her eyes, I said, “Say you’ll date a single father who doesn’t have a fucking clue what to do with a kid. Say this isn’t going to scare you away again.”

She looked down. “Gray…this is a lot.”

“I know. And I’m not asking you to take it all in right now. Fuck, I haven’t even let it all sink in.”

She looked up at me. Her mind seemed to be jumping all over the place like mine had done all day, clicking the puzzle pieces into place. “That’s why she’s so thin. The wig. The big sunglasses.”

I nodded. “She doesn’t look good.”

“Did you get to meet Ella today?”

I frowned. “No. I left Max’s office with my head unscrewed and came home to read a seven-page letter she’d given me in a file with a bunch of legal documents. The letter had her cell phone on it and said to text when I was ready to see Ella. I sent her a text earlier, but haven’t heard back yet.”

“Ella wears a hearing aid. I noticed it when Max moved her hair the other day. It completely slipped my mind.”

I nodded. “She had medical records in the file for Ella, too. She has Connexin 26. It’s a genetic condition that can cause mild to total hearing loss. Her case is mild, but it can become progressively worse over time, so Max is teaching her sign language as a precaution. My father had it, too. He didn’t wear a hearing aid, but he should have. He just made everyone repeat themselves all the time.”

“Jesus, Gray. I don’t know what to say. You’ve missed almost three years of your child’s life.”

“I’ll have to make up for it.”

She stared into my eyes, and I watched hers fill with tears. I thought she was sad about this latest wrench in things. A lone tear slipped down her cheek, and I wiped it away with my thumb.

“I’m sorry I have all this baggage. If I were a better man, I’d walk away from you and not leave all this at your feet. But when it comes to you, I’m completely selfish. I can’t help myself. I’m sorry I’m upsetting you. But I can’t let you go again. I had no choice last time when you walked away.”

More tears started to fall. I blew out a deep breath and wiped her cheeks again. “I’m sorry. Please don’t get upset. I’ll figure this out. We’ll figure this out. It kills me to see you crying because I let you down again.”

“I’m not crying because you let me down.” She sniffled. “I’m crying because you lost years with a child you haven’t even met yet.”

I pulled her to me and wrapped her in my arms. It felt like I could finally breathe again. I stroked her hair.

“It’s a lot, I know. And I don’t expect you to say anything at all today. You need some time. But there’s one more thing I need to say.”

Pulling back, a sad smile threatened at her lips. “I’m not sure I can take much more.”

I took her hand in mine and brought it to my lips for a kiss. “This doesn’t have anything to do with Max. But it’s important that you know.”

“What is it?”

“Tomorrow or whenever you reflect back on everything—when you think of all this bad stuff I just unloaded on you—I need you to also remember one other thing.” I paused and waited until she was really looking into my eyes before continuing. “I’m in love with you, Layla Hutton—so fucking in love with you it hurts to think about losing you.”

She smiled. “Gray...”

I pressed my lips to hers to stop her from speaking. “Shhh. We’ve talked about enough heavy shit for one night. How about I pour you another wine and we take a hot bath together?”

“I don’t know, Gray. I should go…”

“If you go, I’m going with you. You’re not getting rid of me that easily. We can go to your place if you want, but I’m not leaving you alone…not tonight after I just sprang all that shit on you.”

She seemed conflicted, but after a few minutes she finally nodded.

Layla accepted my offer of wine, but turned down my suggestion of a bath together. When we climbed into bed that night, I held her in my arms as tightly as I could without hurting her. But even through my iron grip, I felt her slipping away.