Page 30 of For his Surrender

“That doesn’t seem very fair.”

“Really? You’ve known my daughter for five minutes, me for ten, and you really think you can tell me what’s fair or not fair to her?Marcos, I really don’t need your judgment.If that’s all, you can go now!”

The bastard smiles, a big wide smile.

“I wondered what it would be like to see you out of control, Antonella, and see the way you dealt with the representative of Isabella’s daycare, damn...” He turns his head, turning his eyes away from mine, still smiling, and when he looks at me again, what I see makes me gasp.Because I’m pretty sure his next words will beit was the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen!But no…“It was rough! And now, this... I’m not judging you, Antonella. I was saying that being all what Isabella needs doesn’t seem very fair to you.I’m sure you didn’t do her alone.”

“I don’t care. As long as she’s well, happy and healthy, I really don’t care what I need to sacrifice.”

“I know…”

“You don’t, Marcos. You have no idea…”

“I do, because I understand now how wrong I was about your reasons for saying yes to me.It was never for you, it was for her, always for her.”

“Whatever I do, it will always be for her, Marcos…”

“I see...” He lowers his head, looking at the floor, and keeps looking at it for a while, pondering something. “I’m not a father, Antonella...”

“What?” I ask, rubbing my hands on my face, starting to think I’m hearing things, because the last words that came out of his mouth don’t make any sense at all in actually having been said.

“I was wrong to think your age defined your maturity and now I know it, but if we’re going to do it, I need no doubt about it.I don’t want to be an asshole, Antonella.However, it is a fact and, against facts, there are no arguments.”

“Marcos, what are you talking about?”

“The wedding, Antonella. I didn’t give up on marrying you.”

“I’ll need to sit down to have this conversation...” I warn, already walking to the couch, pushing Barney, Bella’s giant teddy bear, to the side and sitting in on it. “Why do you think you need to tell me you’re not a father, Marcos?”

“Because you’re an adult and you can separate things. How is Isabella going to live with me for two years without confusing them?”

I smile.

“You have to do more than live in the same house to be a father, Marcos...”

“I know, I just...”

“That’s ok, I understand...”

“Well...”he says slowly, sounding relieved.

“So, what’s the next step?”

“Now we sign the contract.”

?

“Did you add paragraphs to the termination clause?” I question the next day, sitting in the very same chair in which the absurd proposal was made to me days ago.Today, with the contract in hand, review it one last time before signing it.

Marcos left my apartment yesterday, after we agreed that this morning, I would be here to discuss the last details and sign the contract.When I said that I had nowhere to leave Bella, since returning with her to daycare was not an option, he surprised me doubly.First, telling me to bring her, that Carmen could take care of her as we talked and she could choose which of the penthouse rooms she would want.

And then offering to file a lawsuit against the institution for negligence.I really didn’t expect him to care, but for some reason I still can’t understand, he does seem to care.As if he hadn’t already given me enough to deal with. Right?

Apparently, Asshole Marcos isn’t entirely an asshole, and that’s something I wasn’t prepared for.All the kindness throughout the day, all the support, even if only moral, of his presence, are not things I am used to receiving.Except for Grazi, no one was ever there for me, even before Bella existed.

Last night, as I closed the door, finally alone with my daughter, I realized that for the next two years, this would probably be one of the last nights I would spend like this.Something else I couldn’t handle?The relief brought by this finding.

“I did...” he replies, playing with a pen between his index and middle fingers.

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