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With one word, the bottom of Nik’s entire world collapsed. Mommy? Since when was Chloe the mother of a child? When she was drunk in Vegas on their first night back together, she had told him there hadn’t been a man in her life since him. Usually, drunk people told the unvarnished truth. Or at least what they perceived was the truth.
Chloe hadn’t said a word about a child.
He stared at the little girl, and his mind connected the dots. He didn’t want to believe it, but there wasn’t any arguing with genetics. This girl was his daughter. She had his eyes, his hair, and the unmistakable Andropolis charm.
The blood drained from his face and pooled in his stomach.
Chloe’s sister entered right after the little girl with a flushed face as if she’d been chasing the kid for several blocks. Kristina’s jaw almost hit the floor when she saw him standing there.
Thinking fast, she pulled on the girl’s arm. “Honey, let’s not bother Auntie Chloe while she’s working. Mommy will buy you some ice cream down the street. Let’s go.”
He turned accusing eyes on Chloe, not fooled for a minute by her sister’s quick cover-up. His jaw tightened, and he compressed his lips to keep from shouting at her. He didn’t want to frighten the little girl... his little girl.
Chloe trembled beneath his angry gaze. “It’s okay, Kristina. I just... can you take Mia home while I talk to Nik?”
Kristina nodded. “Sorry about this. Kyle’s mom had an emergency and asked me to take Mia for the afternoon.”
“It’s okay,” Chloe repeated, even though she was almost a hundred percent positive it was not okay.
Kristina took Mia’s hand and pushed the door open for her. Before leaving the shop, she turned her hostile gaze on Nik. “You don’t deserve my sister. She’s too good for you. Keep that in mind.”
Then they were gone.
“I can explain every—”
He cut Chloe off with a violent slash of his hand. “You kept my child from me?”
“I didn’t know I was pregnant until after I came back to Brookhaven. I swear I didn’t know when you took the engagement ring off my finger and told me to leave Vegas. If I had, I would have said something.”
He thought back to the multitude of calls she’d made to him after he sent her away. Other people were instructed to deal with her. He hadn’t wanted to hear her voice. Thinking back, he wanted to kick himself. Hard. So what if she’d ripped his heart out? He should have dealt with it on his own instead of passing it off to employees.
“No.” He shook his head. “You have nothing to apologize for. This is strictly on me. I should have believed you, and I didn’t.”
“What are you saying?”
“It’s my fault. Not yours. I was a fool to break off our engagement without giving you a chance to explain.”
Her eyes widened in obvious surprise. “Did Barry admit he forced a kiss on me?”
Nik shook his head. “I haven’t spoken to that loser since I saw the picture of you and him together. My mother sent him to work in our Greek office. If it was up to me, he would be a penniless beach bum living on an island somewhere.”
That made her smile, and her smile warmed his heart.
“If Barry didn’t admit to setting me up, why do you suddenly believe me?”
He reached out to stroke her soft cheek, but at the last second he brushed hair away from her face instead. “When I made love to you last month, you were so present. You gave to me without holding anything back, and I saw your soul in your eyes. I knew you weren’t the kind of woman who would cheat on me or blackmail my mother for money or pretend to love me when you didn’t.”
Her eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I never thought I would hear you say those words to me.”
He nodded. “I should have believed in you. My pride got in the way. I am so sorry that you had to give birth to our daughter without me. What I don’t understand is why you didn’t tell me when we were together last month.”
“Simple. I was afraid you would try to take her from me. I can’t afford to hire a team of lawyers and fight you in court.”
“I would never do that to you. Or to her. A little girl needs her mother.”
Her smile returned, brighter than ever. “You aren’t going for custody?”
“No. You totally call the shots when it comes to... Mia? Is that what you called her?”
