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“We’ll need to accelerate the investigation process,” Nik declared. “We can’t afford for rumours to drive up share prices. Hopefully nothing will come out of this, or, at worst, people will assume I’m an old friend. I may have an idea that would help with that. Give me the afternoon, and I’ll fill you in tonight.”
CHAPTER17
“Daddy, watch this,” Ava said, before swirling spaghetti on her fork and popping it into her mouth. “See? No sauce anywhere.” She giggled as Jules reached over with a napkin and rubbed an imaginary speck of sauce off her cheek.
Nik’s heart was so full his chest hurt. In the last two days, he’d been given the opportunity to have everything he ever wanted. Ava’s easy acceptance of his presence in her life amazed him. “You did great,” he agreed. “But your mother is right about you not wearing your best dress to eat spaghetti. Even adults can make a mess. I did.” Nik pointed to a stain on his black shirt, where sauce had splashed on him when he’d helped Ava stir it.
Simone was teaching a class that evening, and Ava’s nanny had left as soon as he and Jules arrived. Simone had left a pot of sauce on the stove.
Ava’s sigh was loud and dramatic, but she didn’t argue as she continued eating her dinner. Her desire to wear a fancy dress had been quashed by Jules immediately, and the splashes of sauce around Ava’s placemat explained why. Was this what dinner would be like most nights? He wanted this picture of domesticity to be permanent, not something he experienced between flights. Somehow he’d find a way to make that happen. Part of it would be convincing Jules to give him a chance. To givethema chance. He’d start the ball rolling on that later tonight.
The doorbell rang as they were cleaning up after dinner. “I invited someone over to meet you tonight,” Nik told Ava as Jules went to open the door. He’d arranged for his lawyer to hire a private testing company to run an expedited paternity test, and tonight they were coming by to get the necessary cheek swabs.
“Who?” Ava looked up at him curiously.
“It’s someone I work with, and she’s bringing a special nurse with her,” Nik said as Jules brought the visitors into the kitchen.
Maya Ramirez was a lawyer he’d worked with in the past, and she’d been happy to find a company to run the paternity test for him. Now she stood in the kitchen in jeans and a winter coat, her dark hair glistening with rain. Accompanying her was the nurse, a slender Filipino man who looked to be about thirty.
“A nurse? Are you sick?” Ava’s little face wrinkled with worry.
Nik lifted Ava back onto one of the chairs, her concern for him hitting him right in the chest. “No, baby, no one is sick. But you know how we told you I didn’t know about you? We’re going to have the nurse do a test to let the world know I’m your dad.” Nik hated that this was necessary, but having legal proof Ava was his would protect all of them from anyone who might try to dispute the truth.
Ava frowned. “A test? Is it going to hurt? I had to get a needle last year, and it hurt. But I got a Disney Band-Aid, so that made it better.”
Nik smothered his laughter. Before he could reply, the nurse crouched in front of Ava, getting down to her eye level.
“My name is Miguel. I’m the nurse who will do the test, and I promise it won’t hurt. No needles.” He gave her a reassuring smile.
Ava perked up at that. “No needles? Then how do you do it?”
Miguel opened the kit he’d brought with him and pulled out a sealed package, holding it up for Ava to inspect. “All I have to do is rub that swab on the inside of your cheek. Then I’ll do a different one for your dad. We’ll send the swabs to a lab, and they’ll do a test to prove he’s really your dad. It’s as simple as that.”
Ava turned the sealed swab kit over in her hands, checking it out before returning it to Miguel. “OK. Test me,” she said.
Miguel pulled on a pair of gloves and tore open the kit, then carefully swabbed the inside of Ava’s cheek. He put the tip in the collection tube and showed it to Ava. “All done.”
“Huh. That was easy. Now it’s your turn, Daddy. It didn’t hurt,” she stage-whispered.
As Maya notarized Ava’s test sample, Miguel prepared the next test kit. Nik kissed Ava’s forehead. “I’m glad. You were very brave.”
After Miguel swabbed his mouth, Nik hugged Ava. “I have to talk to Miguel and Maya for a few minutes, so your mom will give you your bath. I’ll come read you a story when we’re done.” She hugged him back and ran down the hall for her bath.
After Jules followed Ava out of the kitchen, Nik pulled Maya aside. “Thanks for arranging this so quickly. Have you been able to start on my other requests?”
Maya pulled a sheaf of papers out of her briefcase. “I need several signatures to execute the will and trust you want set up. I’ll need Ava’s Social Insurance Number to finalize some of the investments you asked me to make on her behalf.”
“I’ll get that for you.” Nik started signing the paperwork where Maya had flagged it. Finding out about Ava had tipped his world on end, and making sure she was taken care of financially if anything happened to him was only the beginning.
Once he signed the last page, Maya returned the papers to her case. “There will be more paperwork in a few days, and I’ll need Ms. Roberts to sign as the named trustee should something happen to you.”
Apprehension had Nik shifting restlessly in his chair. He hadn’t discussed any of these moves with Jules yet. How would she handle his desire to take care of Ava financially? Nik didn’t want to start a fight, but Ava was his daughter, too, and he had the means to make sure she and Jules never wanted for anything. He wasn’t going to apologize for that. He’d convince Jules this was for the best. “Once everything is ready, I’ll let her know.”
And he would. He and Jules needed to sit down and discuss the future. But their days were filled with work, and now that he’d met Ava, their evenings would be all about her. He needed to get Jules alone so they could talk and get to know each other better. She might be resisting turning their relationship into something more than co-parenting, but he was still hoping for more. Which was why he’d come up with an idea that afternoon to give them that time. He had a plan. Now he needed Jules to agree to it.
By the time he’d ushered Maya and Miguel out, Ava’s bath was done, and Jules was reading her a story. He paused in the doorway, overcome with emotion. Their two blonde heads, so alike, were bent over the book as Jules pointed to the words and encouraged Ava to identify the letters and try to figure out the words. They represented love, joy, contentment. They were the family he’d always wanted, and he would do everything in his power to make that dream reality.
“The end.” Ava giggled. “I know what those words look like.”
