Page 5

“Nope.” The “p” pops as he says it.

“Anything else I should know?” I take out my phone and text Miles to find as much information on her as I can.

“She likes The Scarlett Letter.” I eye him up and raise my brow. What does he know about that book? “She thought it was funny that her name is Hester Hawthorne, I’m Nathan, and then there’s Scarlett.”

A wide, predatory grin crosses my face as the pieces fit together. I can see how that would be a source of amusement for a bookworm.

“Are you gonna like, date her?” He scrunches up his nose. “’Cause she’s cool.”

“Oh, and dating me would make her less cool?”

He shrugs like it’s a given. Shaking my head at him, I watch as Scarlett climbs into Hester’s lap, and they continue the story from the beginning with Scarlett reading the words she knows and Hester helping her pronounce the ones she doesn’t.

“I don’t know, son; seems to me that Scarlett’s the one who’ll win her heart for us.” He frowns while we watch them, and not for the first time, I wish I knew what he was thinking.

My son is like me in so many ways. The worst is his unwillingness to share his thoughts or feelings unless he wants to. This is one of those times. I’m not sure if he’s opposed to me dating, or to me dating Hester. Eventually, I’ll get it out of him; I just hope it’s not a problem we can’t work through because now that I know she exists, there’s no way I’ll continue to live without her.

I’m unsure how long we’ve been sitting and watching the two of them read, but when Miles enters the library, his grey eyes find mine, and I catch a hint of anger. “Watch your sister; I’ll be right back.”

Nathan nods and pulls the gift bag closer, inspects the contents, and takes out the book they just read.

“What?” I ask when I approach Miles, unable to hide my irritation.

“McKenna has called a lawyer.” I roll my eyes, unsurprised by his news.

“And?” She must have gone out of state because I’ve paid off dozens of firms not to take her case. She’s not mother material.

Flipping his phone towards me, I read the threat. That may not be how they intended it, but that’s exactly what it is. Ken told the lawyer about business she shouldn’t even know about, revealing the lockdown we’d just been under for their own safety, and now she wants to play that against me. I don’t fucking think so.

“Get my lawyer on the phone. Tell him to shut this shit down immediately.” Before I fucking kill the bitch.

He nods and leaves as quietly as he came.

I return my stare to the woman teaching my daughter to read, now knowing that I might not be able to act on my desire to claim her. Not when McKenna is trying to take my children away. If she manages to bring her accusations before a judge, I might have more trouble on my hands than I want.

From the day they were born, Nathan and Scarlett have been my entire world. Nothing and no one comes before them, and that’s not about to change.

Until Nathan, I’d never thought of myself as the fatherly kind of man. I didn’t have one; how was I supposed to know how to be one? We’ve managed, though, and for a number of years McKenna lived in the house with us. Which is how Scarlett happened. I can’t even say it was a mistake because neither of my children is. I love them more than anything.

“Hey, Dad?” I stare down at Nate and raise a brow. “I think it’d be cool if you dated Hester. She’s pretty awesome, and Scar really loves her. Hester is all she’s talked about the last month. I think that’s why Mom has been so cranky.” Squeezing his shoulder, I silently thank the boy for his permission. “Just don’t break her heart. I think she’s had a lot of that before.”

He’s quite insightful, and after what I witnessed today, I feel the same. “How about we invite her to dinner?” I ask, and his eyes light up.

“Jungle Jim’s?” My son rubs his hands together eagerly.

“Sure. Sounds like fun.” More like a nightmare. Miles will pitch a fit.

Walking over to the girls, still immersed in their book, I clear my throat. “Princess, it’s time to go.”

“Awe, man, we were getting to the good part.” Her arms cross defiantly over her chest, but she gets up, prepared to do as I ask.

“I was thinking, maybe we could convince Hester to join us for dinner at Jungle Jim’s tonight.” My eyes remain on the woman in question as Scar squeals and jumps around.

“Please, please, please, Hester!” Scar drops to her knees and clasps her hands together. Her begging is cute, and I hope it works.

I can see Hester coming up with excuses before she even says a word. “Oh, uhm, I…”

Holding out my hand to help her up, she stops in her tracks, so I soften my voice before saying, “Please come with us,” hoping she’ll be less intimidated.