“What, Ella?” he says, his tone flat and mechanical. “What do you need to say?”
I swallow. I wasn’t ready for how hard this would be. I draw a deep breath. “I know I wasn’t supposed to see that room. And I’m sorry I walked in. But I think it happened for a reason.”
He doesn’t react.
I continue, voice trembling. “I think… I think I may have found who you’re looking for.”
Silence.
Then a sharp laugh. Cold. Almost cruel. “Youthinkyou found my daughter?”
I open my mouth, but he cuts me off before any words emerge.
“I’ve had private investigators, detectives, cops,everyonelooking for her for almost 3 years. And now, suddenly, you’ve just—what? Figured it out? Just like that?”
“Nathan—”
“What apatheticattempt to manipulate this situation,” he snaps. “Unbelievable.”
“I’mnotmanipulating you.”
“I expected more from you, Ella.”
“Please, Nathan…”
“I never want to see you again.” His voice is low. Final.
And then the door slams shut in my face.
I stare at it.
Breathless. Speechless. Hollow.
Then I turn.
And I walk away.
Chapter 38
Ella
After hours at the bakery, it’s just Ashton and me. The open sign is off, the chairs are flipped onto tables, and the scent of cinnamon and sugar lingers in the air. I’m wiping down the counter for the third time, not because it’s dirty, but because I need todosomething with my hands.
Ashton sits on a stool across from me, elbow on the counter, watching me like I’m about to crack.
“So,” she says gently, “You gonna tell me what happened?”
I take a deep breath and finally let it out. The entire story spills from my lips in one long unraveling thread, and the look on his face when I said the words,“I think I found who you’re looking for.”
When I finish, Ashton doesn’t speak right away. Her mouth is slightly open, like she’s trying to find the right words but knows they won’t be enough.
Finally, she says, “Ella… if all this is real, if that little girl really is his daughter, you can’t just let this go.”
“Iknow,” I whisper.” “That’s the problem. Even after everything… I have to do something. Forher.Forhim.”
“Then you need proof. Not a hunch. Not a maybe. You need aphoto.”
I nod slowly.
