I questioned myself on whether I had made a horrible mistake. Done things the wrong way. But I reminded myself I was panicked and didn’t want to destroy Alex’s life and it was the right choice.
Every time I remembered that having sex with Alex had been what had driven him away, I bowed down my head in shame. What must he have thought of me, throwing myself at him like a woman in heat, which I was. I wished I could turn back the clock. I definitely would not have slept with Alex.
If I hadn’t, things would have been different. Maybe Kayden would have finally had his father in his life.
Regrets were a waste of time and no matter how much I rearranged the past, it didn’t change the fact that I was about to lose my job and my livelihood.
I rounded a corner and the first thing I saw was an unfamiliar car outside my barn house. The owner was nowhere to be seen and when I saw that the front door was slightly open, my heart galloped in my chest.
There was only one person who could enter my house without my knowledge or permission. Alex. With a lightness in my chest, I pushed the stroller to the front door, pulled it open and entered.
Alex was stretched out on the couch reading a magazine and when he heard the door, he looked up. A smile broke out on his face as he swung his long legs to sit up.
“Hey buddy,” he said to Kayden. “Look around Kayden, Christmas has come early.”
I finally dragged my eyes from his face to the living room floor. I gasped at the number of toys on the floor. It resembled a children’s play area. Kayden had seen the toys too and in his unsuccessful quest to get out of the stroller, he’d started sniffling.
“Okay, I’ll let you down,” I said to him, glad to have something to do.
I couldn’t even pretend to be mad at seeing Alex. All I felt was overwhelming relief to have someone in my corner. Because whatever happened between us, I knew that I could count on Alex. He was my friend, above all things.
We watched Kayden as he toddled over to his toys moving from one to the other and then flash me a toothless grin. His joy made me feel guilty at how few toys I had bought him. But we had needed to be careful with money and kept some for a rainy day.
“He’s so happy,” I said. “Thank you.”
“It was nothing. It’s nice to have a chance to do something nice for you and him,” he said.
Feeling awkward standing, I plopped down on the couch next to him. “What are you doing here? Not that I’m complaining.”
He laughed. He looked so relaxed.
“I’m on vacation and I decided I wanted to spend it here watching Kayden until Mrs. Horace came back,” he said. “I’m already checked in at the B & B.”
“You can’t do that! What about your job?” I said, stunned at what he had done.
“I’ve worked like a dog for the last two years. My father was the one who shooed me out of the building.”
“That’s crazy,” I said. I wanted badly to accept his help but I didn’t want to take advantage of Alex’s kindness. A thought sprouted in my mind. Alex was Kayden’s father even if he didn’t know it.
Besides there was also another advantage to spending time with Alex. It would give me time to study him closely. I knew I could trust him with Kayden. That wasn’t the problem.
I needed to know that I could trust him not to take Kayden away from me when he learned that he was the father. I could just hear his mother telling him how unsuitable I was to raise Kayden.
Charlotte
“Have you ever taken care of a baby?” I asked him, though by my tone, he had already deduced that I would say yes.
Not that I had a lot of options. Actually, I had none and finding Alex waiting for us felt as if I had won the lottery.
“Oh yes. I’m Ryan’s favorite uncle,” he said.
It took a moment to figure out who Ryan must be. “Oh, that must be Mary and Richard’s son. How nice.”
“He’s a little older than Kayden but I’ve changed diapers, fed him and a lot of play in between,” he said.
“Okay,” I said. “You’re hired on a trial basis. When do you want to start?” I was so happy and