enough that he could read the flash of apprehension in her eyes.
Did it make him an asshole that a dark gratification filled him at the sight of it?
Probably.
Fuck it. He owned it.
“The report confirmed that I’m Ben’s father,” he said, uttering those words aloud for the first time. Absorbing that punch of joy, shock and fear again.
“So now you know for certain.” She notched her chin up, and in spite of the anger swirling through him like combustible fuel, he had to battle the need to grip that stubborn chin and cup the vulnerable nape of her neck and drag her closer. Had to smother the urge to slam his mouth to hers until she melted under him, until her lips parted for him...until all those soft, dangerous curves pressed to his frame, surrendering. He wanted to fuck the insolence out of her. Clenching his jaw, he resisted the lust, the grinding lure to conquer, to dominate. “What now?” she continued. “Because we both also know you have no interest in being a father—you didn’t three years ago, and you didn’t right up until you found out about Ben.”
“You have no idea what I want. You’ve never asked me what I want,” he snapped, bitterness coating his voice. “Every decision has been yours without thought or care to the consequences or who you were hurting.”
“Because I’ve had to,” she shouted back at him, the words bouncing off the walls, echoing in the room. A breath shuddered out from between her lips and, visibly shaken, she swept a hand over her thick brown hair. Straightening her shoulders, she sucked in a breath and glanced away from him.
Several seconds passed before she faced him again, and a mask had dropped over her features. Composed, she said, “You can’t revise history to suit your narration, Ross. I did what I had to in order to care for my son. I’ve provided for him, and I’ll continue to do so. I don’t need or want your money, but this isn’t about me. Child support is about Ben. So if you want to contribute, I’ll set up an account for him, and the money can go toward his college education or whatever he decides to do with it when he’s of age.”
“How magnanimous of you to allow me to provide for our son,” Ross drawled. “I hate to break it to you, Charlotte, but you can’t keep me out of his life any longer. And if you would for just a second put your love for him ahead of your hate for me, you would see that he needs me, his father, in his.”
“How fucking dare you?” she whispered, her eyes narrowing, but it was the telltale glistening in those brown depths that relayed the level of her anger. Charlotte only cried when her rage reached a level that it was either explode or crumble.
And Charlotte Jarrett never crumbled. She might cut bait and run, but collapse?
Not possible.
“All I’ve ever done from the moment I found out I was pregnant with Ben was put him first. I almost lost my relationship with my parents. I left my old life. I started over in a new city. I worked long hours. I put my goals on the back burner. For. Him. Always for him. And I don’t regret a single one of those choices. So, hell no. You don’t get to sit in judgment of me with your righteous indignation. Where were you, Ross? Playing the international playboy hopping from party to party, woman to woman, while I sacrificed and cared for Ben. Loved him.”
“You didn’t give me that choice, Charlotte. Didn’t even grant me the damn option of deciding if I wanted to put aside that lifestyle and be in his life. So now you don’t get to be a martyr and cast me in the role of devil because you made decisions all on your own without anyone else’s input,” he snarled.
“Please.” She slashed a hand through the air. “You believe donating your DNA grants you some rights to him? You’re wrong. An absentee father is better than one who will play with him like a shiny new toy, then abandon him as soon as something important like a social event, gala or business prospect pops up. Or better yet, a father who didn’t want him in the first place.”
“What the hell are you talking about...that I didn’t want him in the first place?” he growled, latching on to the last accusation because trying