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“Maybe he fired me.” I shook my head and lifted the mug up to my lips. “I wouldn’t blame him if he did. Working for him with our history was going to be awkward.”
“What history?” Taylor materialized in the hallway and fussed over her appearance in the mirror. “The two of you slept together once. That’s not history. That’s called a one-night stand.”
I took another sip of my coffee and winced. “Yeah, but we have a son together.”
“A son he doesn’t know about,” Taylor pointed out, pausing to adjust the collar of her shirt and toss her hair over her shoulders. “You are planning on telling him, right?”
I sighed and set the mug down with a little too much force. “I don’t know. I haven’t decided yet.”
Taylor twisted to face me and arched a brow. “What do you mean you haven’t decided? He’s Ron’s father. He deserves to know the truth.”
“I don’t even know what kind of man he is. He was nice and sweet the day we met, but then he just disappeared.”
Taylor covered the distance between us and picked a muffin up off the counter. After peeling away the cover, she took a big bite. “Babe, I know you’re just trying to protect yourself, but just because it didn’t work out between the two of you doesn’t mean he would be a bad father to Ron. You should at least try and give him a chance.”
I finished the rest of my coffee and washed my mug. “I don’t know. What if he breaks Ron’s heart?”
“That’ll be on him, not you.”
I spun around to face her and placed both hands on my hips. “Since when are you such a fan of his?”
“I’m not, but I know how important it is to have a father,” Taylor replied before finishing off the rest of the muffin. “He deserves to know either way.”
I sighed. “I guess.”
“You should call him and reschedule lunch. You can make it after you pick up Ron. I know my parents won’t mind watching him for an hour or two.”
“Your parents are a godsend, Tay. So are you.”
Taylor blew me a kiss. “We’re happy to help. Anyway, I’ve got to go into the office, so I’ll call you later, okay?”
“Okay. Have a good day.”
As soon as she was gone, I wandered into the living room and sat down on the couch. I propped my feet up on the table, reached for the remote, and switched on the TV. While the news played in the background, I scrolled through my phone and turned the matter over and over in my head.
Did I want Bernard in our lives?
Even if I didn’t want him back in mine, he deserved to find out about Ron.
At the very least, Ron deserved a loving and present father and not just a father figure. Taylor and her parents had given us a safe space and a home to call our own, but they couldn’t offer Ron everything he was missing out on. As amazing as they were, they couldn’t take the place of his father, a living, breathing man who had come back into my life and deserved to know the truth.
I wasn’t being fair to him.
A few hours later, I was dozing off on the couch while the news continued to play in the background when someone knocked on the door. I sat up straighter and frowned when I heard the doorbell. Slowly, I crept forward, phone clutched in my hand, and checked the peephole. Bernard stood on the other side of the door in dark jeans, a button-down shirt, and with his hair slicked back over his forehead.
My stomach gave an odd little lurch.
I undid the latch and poked my head through the slit. “What are you doing here?”
“You had your address listed on your resume,” Bernard replied, pausing to shift from one foot to the other. “We didn’t have the chance to get lunch the other day, so I thought we’d try again.”
I opened the door the rest of the way and cleared my throat. “You came all the way here to ask me to lunch again?”
Bernard shoved both hands into his pockets and stood up straighter. “I thought it would be better to get some things out of the way if you’re going to work for me.”
I glanced down at my watch and back up at his face. “Okay, but I have to be back home in an hour because I have some things I need to do.”
“There’s a restaurant I know a few blocks from here.” Bernard took a step to the side and gave me a small smile. “It’ll be a quick lunch.”
