“Wrong, Mommy?”
Hazel’s little concerned voice caused Devyn to smile. She gazed at her daughter and smiled. “Nothing, baby. Nothing at all.”
Hazel peered at her mother for a couple more seconds before she returned her focus to her iPad. Devyn knew she needed to get her shit together, and quick. If for nothing else, then for her daughter.
Deciding to push her chaotic thoughts to the side, Devyn focused on the pile of work she had to do.
As the clock inched toward that two-hour mark, she kept an eye on Hazel, who grew restless.
Right at noon on the dot, Hazel tossed her iPad to the side and glared at her mother. “Tired, Mama. Ice cream.”
Devyn giggled. “You did good, booger butt. We can leave in a few minutes.”
“I not booger butt. You booger butt,” Hazel said with her little face scrunched up.
“Girl, bye.” Devyn giggled as Hazel waddled over to her while rubbing her eyes. It was time for her afternoon nap, so Devyn needed to wrap up quickly so she could feed her baby and gether to bed. Hazel did not operate well with no sleep or while she was hungry. She turned into a little gremlin, and Devyn knew she only had about thirty minutes before a full-blown tantrum started.
Hazel climbed up onto Devyn’s lap and snuggled into her chest while Devyn checked a few more emails before she packed it up for the day.
Her office door opening knocked her out of her zone.
Her eyes landing on Haze knocked her out of orbit.
His handsome face frowned at her. He looked like he was about to tell her off for ignoring his calls and texts, but then his eyes landed on Hazel.
Devyn’s heart stopped.
A blind man could see plain as day that Hazel was his child. They were identical, down to the thick pink lips and dimples in their cheeks.
“The fuck?” Haze muttered. She could see his brain working, trying to come up with an explanation.
Tears clouded Devyn’s vision as she stood up with Hazel in her arms. She wouldn’t let her tears fall. She refused to make this moment about her. Devyn was the one that made the decision to box Haze out of Hazel’s life. It was time for her to face that shit.
“The fuck?” Hazel mimicked her father with a smile on her face.
Devyn was too nervous to scold her daughter. Her eyes met Haze’s, and she saw a world of hurt and pain there.
“Haze, I-I can explain.”
Haze’s jaw clenched. He marched over to the chair in front of her desk and sat down. “Get the fuck to explainin’.”
Devyn sat back down slowly as her mind raced. That guilt that had been clawing to get out of her for three years had finally been let loose, and she felt like it might swallow her completely whole.
The little girl had his exact face. It was weird as hell and freaking him the fuck out on the inside, but on the outside, he tried to remain calm. He needed a blunt, but because he respected Devyn and her place of business, he refrained from lighting one up. Not to mention, his mama would beat his ass if she knew he smoked in front of a child.
A childorhis child?
His leg bounced as he waited for Devyn to speak. Even in distress, she looked beautiful as hell. He came here to cuss her pretty ass out and fuck her back into submission, but that went out the window as soon as he saw the little girl . . . His eyes drifted back toward the toddler, and his heart gave a little squeeze.
“I don’t know what to say,” Devyn whispered. His eyes snapped back to her. She no longer looked at him but averted her gaze to her desk.
“I thought you just said you could explain,” he replied calmly.
“I-I can. I mean . . .” She took in a deep breath. Haze noted that she looked like she was on the brink of tears, but he couldn’t care about that right now. He felt like the walls shrunk in on him, and he didn’t want to explode from all the pressure. “Haze, this is my daughter, Hazel.”
Hazel?He scoffed. “Please don’t tell me you named that baby after me.”
His voice cracked. He saw sympathy swim in her eyes, but he didn’t want that. He wanted answers.
