“Miss Crane, please tell me what you mean by that statement?”
“Are you mute?? What the hell is wrong with you?” She ignores him and spews her angry words at me.
“I’ve advised him to remain quiet unless I felt there was a need to discuss anything pertaining to the paternity.”
“Classic, arrogant lawyer move. We have the opportunity to discuss our child and you treat it like it’s unsubstantial.”
At her words ‘our child’, I break my silence. “What is it you’d like to discuss exactly? It seems premature to talk about anything until I have the results in my hand. It has nothing to do with being a lawyer, but everything to do with being intelligent.”
Her demeanor changes and pupils flare. This time when she speaks, it’s softer, more controlled. “Is it so damn hard to believe I’m telling the truth? This baby is yours, and I deserve more respect as its mother. What I hoped to discuss, since you won’t speak to me without representation, is how we will handle this. You’re not getting rid of me. We’re going to be linked forever through this child, so you better get used to it.”
She gets up and goes to the door, leaving her lawyer at the table. Then she turns and pins me with her glare. “I have an appointment in an hour. The details are in the folder you carelessly tossed aside. I’ll leave your name with the receptionist in case you have a change of heart and want to see our child.”
I stare at the door as it closes and feel the weight on my chest. My denial seeps away and realization hits hard. Her eyes said it all. Sasha Crane is carrying my baby.
I don’t go back to the office, nor do I meet Sasha at her appointment. Instead, I ride around for a while before heading home, needing some time to wrap my mind around the events of the day. Caldwell saw what I saw and explained to Sasha’s lawyer I had no intentions of shying away from my obligations. If the test is positive, I’d be financially responsible for the child. I’d also be asking for custodial rights upon birth and expect to have rights in all decisions regarding his or her life. They went through the motions while I sat there quietly.
As I let myself into my condo, my knees almost buckle at the sight of Bizzy in the kitchen. She turns and lets out a yelp of surprise, then her face splits into a wide smile.
“You’re home early!” She comes over and throws her arms around my neck, leaning up for a kiss.
My arms link around her waist and hold tight, kissing her gently. She breaks away and moves her hand to my head, looking confused.
“You’re burning up!”
“Yeah, I have a killer headache. Thought I’d come home and rest for a while. The chaos of the office was making me useless.” I summon up strength, forcing my voice to hold steady and convincing.
“Sweetie, you should have called. I’ll cancel dinner.” She leads me to the sofa.
“Dinner?”
“Remember? Your brothers and Claire are coming over tonight. We were going to celebrate my moving in.”
I completely forgot. Even though it was my idea, it slipped my mind.
“I’ll call them now.” She goes to the kitchen for her phone.
“No, absolutely not. I’ll lie down for a few minutes then take a shower. It’ll pass. It’s only a headache.”
She looks at me skeptically, and I know this is the time I need to come clean. Bizzy deserves honesty. It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask her to come back to the sofa, but instead, I walk to her and take the phone from her hands.
“Maybe what I need is my super hot and sexy girlfriend to come lay with me, then we can shower together.” I dip down to run my lips along her neckline. “That’ll make me feel better immediately.”
Her body shudders on a breathy sigh. “Shaw, if you’re thinking about sex, it must not be life-threatening.”
“I’m always thinking about sex with you.” I try to guide her to my room.
“You had me worried. You never feel bad.”
“I’m better.” This isn’t a lie. Seeing her helped ease the stress of the day.
“Give me a few minutes and I’ll meet you in bed.”
I let go after kissing her once more and head to my room, stripping out of my suit on the way. It may be my imagination, but I swear I get a whiff of Sasha’s