be a family when all along he planned to cut her out of Charlie’s life? Based on what his attorney had said, plans were already in place that would kick her to the curb.
Well, she wasn’t unwanted baggage, she was a vital part of this little boy’s life.
Charlie caught her staring and smiled. She gave him a thumbs-up. “That was really good, sweetie.”
Meg dropped her hands to her side and clenched her hands into tight fists. If Cole thought she’d walk away from this boy she loved, well, he’d find out soon enough what happened when you shook a mother lion’s cage.
“Aunt Meg.” Charlie’s sweet voice broke through the churning in her brain. “It’s your chance to read.”
“You almost missed your turn,” Cole joked.
Meg met his gaze, the smile on her lips only for Charlie’s benefit. “You’ll find it’s not that easy to cut me out.”
Cole didn’t say a word, but she knew he’d gotten her not-so-subtle message. An observation that was confirmed once they’d put Charlie to bed.
He took a seat on the sofa and gestured for her to sit beside him.
Meg reluctantly dropped into a nearby chair.
“It’s not my intent to cut you out of Charlie’s life,” he said, his eyes dark and serious in the lamplight.
“Yeah, right.”
“I’m telling you the truth.”
“Who are you?” Meg’s voice sounded shrill, but she didn’t care. Truth. Did he even know what the word meant? “I feel like I never knew you. Not back in high school. Certainly not now.”
“Look, I’m sorry you had to find out Charlie is my son this way.” Cole raked a hand through his hair. There was so much he wanted—make that needed—to say to her. But when he’d planned this discussion in his head, it hadn’t been with her glaring at him.
“Yes, that did come as quite a surprise.” She gave a humorless laugh. “I wonder why it took me so long to see it. It’s obvious now when I see the two of you together.”
“Meg, I didn’t—”
“When were you planning to kick me out, Cole? Your leg is almost healed. Were you waiting for the doctor to release you before you told me I’m out of his life? Or were you going to just let me get the legal papers in the mail?”
Cole had initially assumed it’d be best to let Meg talk. Give her the opportunity to blow off steam. He realized that had been a mistake. She reminded him of a locomotive being stoked by misconceptions. A head of steam was building and any moment she could blow.
“You know, I’m getting this déjà vu feeling all over again,” she continued before he could respond. “Following your own agenda is what you do best. You pretend to have feelings for me then you drop me. You haven’t changed at all.”
“Meg,” Cole said. “Please let me explain.”
“Explain?” She practically sneered the word. “Or make up a few more lies?”
“Yes, explain.” Cole spoke between clenched teeth.
She crossed her arms and lifted her chin. “Okay. You can start by explaining to me how it happened that you and my best friend had a baby together.”
Despite her adversarial tone, Cole told himself this was progress. At least she wanted—okay, was willing—to hear what he had to say.
“Janae and Ty were going through a rough time in their relationship.” Cole chose his words carefully. “She wanted to get married and Ty wasn’t sure he did.”
“So you muddied the waters by sleeping with her.”
Cole ignored the comment and continued. “She left Jackson Hole and moved to Texas. I’m not sure why she chose Austin other than her great-aunt Mary lived there. Janae and I ran into each other and started hanging out. Both of us were lonely and one thing led to another. We only had sex a couple of times before we realized you shouldn’t sleep with someone when you’re in love with someone else.”
“Wow, what a revelation,” Meg drawled, sarcasm dripping from each word.
“Janae loved Ty. It wasn’t long before he realized the mistake he’d made in letting her go and came to get her. They married in Las Vegas on their way back to Jackson Hole.”
“Then Janae found out she was pregnant.” The hurt in Meg’s eyes tore at his heart. “And both of you let Ty think it was his.”
“I didn’t find out she’d even had a baby until her aunt mentioned it when she stopped by the coffee shop one day. By that time, Charlie was already eight months old.”
“Really? She didn’t call or say