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I drop my gaze to my coffee. “I don’t understand why she’d contact Blue. But of course it’s possible that after I spoke to her that night, she spent a while thinking about him, and decided she should tell him that he had a daughter. It’s plausible that she’d go for a walk to think about things—she did that a lot. And she happened to pick an unstable part of the cliff. Apparently they’ve sectioned it off, and they’re going to investigate why there weren’t any signs indicating it was unsafe. But it’s too late now. It’s done.”
“How did Blue react to the news that Maddie had died?”
“The DI said he was shocked. She also said that he wants to talk to me about Leia.”
“Are you okay with that?”
My jaw knots. “He’s Leia’s father.”
“That doesn’t answer the question.”
I blow out a breath. “The DI said that if I want, she’ll facilitate a meeting on neutral ground. If I’m going to put Leia up for adoption, surely it would be better for her biological father to adopt her than two strangers. Right?”
Aroha looks down at Leia and strokes her downy head. “So you’ve decided to give her up?”
I grit my teeth. “I’m not a natural father.”
She gives me a look that says Don’t start. “James—”
“I’d already decided I didn’t want kids. I’m not married or in a long-term relationship. Being wealthy isn’t enough. I know Maddie named me Leia’s guardian, but that’s only because she didn’t have anyone else.”
“She named you to stop Blue having Leia, didn’t she?”
“I don’t know that. I don’t know anything. I don’t know why she named me, and I don’t know why she called Blue that morning. He doesn’t have any rights by law, but that doesn’t seem fair to me. Men never have a say in pregnancy or fatherhood. I understand why, and I fully believe in a woman’s right to choose, but… I don’t know. He had no say in the fact that she chose to have the baby. I… feel for him, I guess.” I frown. I’m uncomfortable with having any sympathy for the guy when I would happily have punched his teeth down his throat before now. But I can’t help how I feel.
“I suppose you can meet with him and see how you feel afterward,” Aroha suggests.
I nod slowly. “Would you come with me?”
“Yes,” she says without hesitation. Then she gives a shy smile. “I feel protective of Leia. I’d want to make sure she’s all right.”
I look at where she’s stroking Leia’s head. Aroha has elegant hands with long, slender, fingers. She’s gentle in both the way she moves and her manner. She’s very calming, and I think that’s why she’s so good with children. I like that about her.
I’m touched that she feels protective of Leia, and that she wants to make sure she’s okay. But I can’t let that distract me from the bigger picture. Blue is Leia’s father. He deserves to meet his daughter, if nothing else. My personal dislike of the guy is irrelevant. Maddie arranged to meet him. She must have changed her mind and wanted him to play a part in Leia’s upbringing, or else why did she phone him?
“All I can do is meet with him and trust my instincts. The fact is that, by law, right now I’m Leia’s guardian, and he’ll have to apply to the courts to get any kind of access to her. All we can do is play along and see how it goes.”
She nods. “When will you organize the meeting for?”
“Soon as.”
“Okay.” She sighs, stroking Leia’s back. “It looks as if we might have even less time together than I thought, little bubs.” She looks sad. Is it because she’ll miss the baby, or because she was hoping the gig would last longer? She is in need of money, after all.
“You need to give me your bank details,” I tell her. “So I can pay you.”
She continues stroking Leia’s back, not looking at me. “Sure. I’ll text them to you.”
“Thanks.” I hesitate. She glances at me and catches my eye, the way we seem to do, and we hold each other’s gaze for a moment. But even as my pulse picks up, she looks back at Leia. And she’s right to do so. I have to stop sending mixed messages.
I clear my throat and stand. “I’m going to get back to work.”
“Do you want some lunch?”
“No, thank you, I’m good.”
“How’s your head?” she asks as I begin to walk away.
“Better, thank you. I think your massage helped.”
