Hawk (Reckless Kings MC #2) - Harley Wylde Page 0,29

still dazed from the knowledge I had a kid. One dressed in pink at that.

I tugged my arm free of Beast and turned toward Torch’s house. My steps were slow and measured as I crossed the distance and went inside. I didn’t want to make Hayley run off, but Torch was right. We needed to talk. I found her in the living room curled into the corner of Torch’s couch, our daughter in her arms and Cuddles sitting on her feet. Freya was still screaming, and I worried something was wrong with her.

“Is she all right?” I asked.

Hayley flinched and glanced my way. “The doctor said it’s called purple crying and should pass soon.”

I sat next to her, staring at our daughter. I hadn’t planned to be a father anytime soon, or ever. It seemed life had other ideas. I reached out and ran my finger over Freya’s arm, marveling at how soft she felt. The little girl hiccupped and turned her gaze my way, quieting a little.

“Do you want to hold her?” Hayley asked.

I rubbed my hands up and down my thighs. “I don’t know. I’ve never held a baby before. I might drop her.”

“Hawk, she’s your daughter. You won’t break her,” she said.

I gave a jerky nod and held out my hands. Hayley handed her to me and showed me the correct way to hold her. Freya had gone quiet and seemed to be content staring at me. Did she know I was her dad? Could she somehow sense it?

Cuddles chittered and scurried into Hayley’s lap, watching me carefully. I wondered if he thought of Freya as his, like he’d claimed Hayley.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” she said. “I thought I was doing the right thing. You seemed worried when you realized we hadn’t used a condom.”

“I know nothing is foolproof, Hayley. Not condoms or birth control pills. Not even that shot thing.”

She sighed. “Right. Except… we didn’t use any of those things.”

I managed to pry my gaze off my daughter and looked at Hayley. “What?”

“I lied. Or rather I omitted the full truth?” She licked her lips and turned her face away. “I could tell you were going to freak out, so I lied by omission to keep you from worrying you’d gotten me pregnant. I mean, what were the odds? When I found out we really had made a baby that night, I didn’t think you’d want either of us. I was trying to give you your freedom.”

I could have kicked my own ass right then. Was I pissed she’d kept my daughter from me and denied me the chance to experience the pregnancy with her? Sure. But I could admit I wasn’t totally blameless either. She was right. If she’d said she wasn’t on birth control that night, I might have freaked out a little. Until I realized I wanted to keep her around. It wouldn’t have mattered then. If anything, I’d have been excited over the idea of having a baby with her.

Hell, if she’d given me a chance, I might have tried to get her pregnant on purpose, just to have a reason to hold onto her.

“Hayley, keeping her from me was wrong. Even if I’d been pissed, don’t you think I should have had a chance to decide that for myself?”

She winced and I saw tears gather in her eyes. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to be selfish or a bitch.”

“I know you weren’t, baby. I’m not angry, at least not entirely with you. If I hadn’t made you think I didn’t want a kid, then you’d have found a way to reach me. At least, I’d like to think you would have.” I looked down at my daughter. “Or would have told me the next time I was here.”

She smiled faintly. “Would have been easier than doing all this on my own.”

“On your own? I thought you had family here.” I held her gaze. “Your dad obviously loves you a lot. He didn’t help?”

“I do have family. They kicked me out when they realized I was pregnant, and I refused to tell them who the father was. Makes my dad a big hypocrite since he knocked up my mom when they weren’t even dating, but it is what it is. He thought threatening to make me leave would make me tell him everything he wanted to know. It didn’t work. Now he’s too stubborn to back down, and so am I.”

I thought about my brief meeting with the chief of