Page 8 of The Sweetest Mistake

“Like you said, she’s Ava’s mom. I couldn’t just take off with Ava and leave her there.”

“Why not? That’s what she did to you.” Julia hated how petty she sounded, but she couldn’t help it. Her emotions were all over the place.

“I didn’t ask for any of this to happen, Jules.”

“Yet you didn’t use birth control.”

“I already said that was a mistake.”

“Funny, you never made that mistake with me.” And now I sound like a bitch!

Shaking his head, he traded the rattle for the teething ring, which Ava immediately stuffed into her mouth. “I don’t know what I was thinking back then.”

“Or maybe you were so caught up in the heat of passion that you forgot. Is that it?” Now that she’d gone down this path, she’d gotten even more fired up.

“Julia.”

“Don’t Julia me. I have every right to be upset. First, I find out my boyfriend has been keeping a huge secret from me, and then I have to accept that he has a baby with his ex-girlfriend who he once loved. So, what? Am I just supposed to sit back and go along for the ride? Is that it?”

Just then, Ava started fussing again, and deciding she needed a break, Julia stood up. “Stay here,” she demanded when Connor started to get up. “I’ll warm the bottle and be right back.”

Once she was out of sight and had put the formula in the microwave to warm, she leaned against the kitchen counter and breathed deeply. She still couldn’t believe this was happening. Why was it that just when they’d overcome one obstacle, they encountered another one? And in this case, the obstacle was in the form of a baby who was crying in the next room. Poor child. She had no idea what kind of havoc she’d created, and yet, none of it was her fault. She was innocent in all this, and that’s what made the situation even more difficult. If Ava had been Connor’s niece, cousin, or a friend’s baby, Julia would have been thrilled to help him babysit. But this wasn’t babysitting. This was a commitment. Ava would always be part of Connor’s life, and now Julia’s too as long as they were together.

“Jules? Is the bottle ready yet?” Connor called.

She’d been so lost in thought she hadn’t realized that the microwave had pinged. “Let me check,” she replied. Testing the formula on the inside of her wrist, she determined that it was the right temperature and hurriedly returned to the living room. It was hard to ruminate over her own problems when there was a hungry mouth to feed.

Connor was pacing the room and patting Ava on the back as he tried to soothe her. For a second, it stopped Julia in her tracks—the vision of this big, muscular man cradling a tiny baby. Even though he looked like an inexperienced new dad, she still found the scene breathtakingly beautiful.

“Jules? You gonna give me that?” he said, holding his hand out for the bottle.

“Yeah. Sorry,” she said and handed it to him.

The instant Ava’s mouth closed around the nipple, she quieted. And then the vision of daddy and daughter became even more tender.

Connor continued to stand, but he rocked Ava gently in his arms as he fed her, staring down at her with a look of wonder on his chiseled face.

Suddenly, Julia felt like an intruder. Like she shouldn’t be the one witnessing such a tender moment. Cam should.

Connor hadn’t even looked in Julia’s direction since she’d given him the bottle, so he hadn’t seen her eyes tear up. Turning away, she started stuffing Ava’s toys back in the diaper bag. Once she’d finished, she said, “You know what? I’m going to leave and let you two have some quiet time.”

His head jerked up, and he looked panicky again. “What? No. Don’t leave. We’re not done talking yet.”

Giving him a half-smile, she said, “We can talk more later. Cam will probably be back soon, and you need some bonding time with your baby.” She sounded more confident than she felt and hoped Connor was buying it.

He peered at her for a few seconds and then sighed. “You’re probably right, but what if she gets fussy again?”

Julia raised her brows. “She looks pretty content to me.”

Ava was peacefully sucking on the bottle, and her little eyes had started to close. But sensing that Connor needed her, Julia was hesitant to leave.

“When she’s done eating, you need to burp her.”

“Terrific. How do I do that?”

“Have you had any experience with babies?”

“Little to none.”