“Cole, she has a daughter.”
I dropped my hammer. I couldn’t have heard him right.
“What?” I choked out.
“She’syourdaughter. She’s at the house right now. We’ve been trying to reach you. Rosalie wants to talk to you.”
“I-I have a daughter?” I rasped, gripping the edge of the catio so I wouldn’t fall over.
How the fuck….?
E nodded. “You do. She’s beautiful, man.”
“I-I have a daughter? Rosebud and I… s-she had my baby?”
E nodded again.
I gripped his shoulders tightly and gave him a shake.
“You’re fucking with me. Don’t fuck with me, E. Please.” My bottom lip trembled. “Are you serious? Tell me everything.”
“She’s at the house. Enzo arranged it so she’d be there for a few days, so you can meet her if you want. I assume it happened the night you were with her in that club. If you don’t want to?—”
I remembered that night. I’d fought with Klaus. I was so fucked in my head then. I wanted her and had lost myself in that bathroom with her.
I sprinted and went into the house. E followed. I raced upstairs, him on my heels.
“What are you doing?” he called out as I went into my old bedroom. I had some clothes there yet.
“I-I need to shower. To see her. I can’t go like this.” I dashed into the bathroom and stripped naked as E leaned against the doorframe. Quickly, I got beneath the warm spray and washed as fast as I could.
“Tell me everything about her,” I said as I tried to hurry.
“Uh, well, she looks just like you. She’s a ballerina?—”
I poked my head out. “She dances?”
E nodded. “Apparently, she’s a little prodigy, but I wouldn’t expect anything less coming from you and Rosalie.”
My throat tightened at his words. I quickly finished, got out, toweled off, and put on some clothes before adding a dash of cologne and trying to get my hair to cooperate.
“Fuck it,” I muttered, leaving the room. I shoved my feet into some shoes and left, E behind me again.
We went out to his Range Rover, and I got into the front.
“Where’s Riot?” I asked.
“With Ann. I dropped him off with her after school. Figured if I couldn’t find you, I’d drive all over town.”
I said nothing as E drove us back to the high-rise.
“Stop here,” I said suddenly.
E pulled over, and I jumped out. I rushed into a flower shop and bought a dozen red roses before coming out.
“Nice,” E said, smiling as I clutched the flowers.
“Do you think she’ll like them? I-I don’t know what to get her. Fuck. Should I get her something else?”
