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I bet she thought I waited too long to get custody.
“Well, I’m happy you have your daughter back in your life. She’s so pretty.”
“Listen, Cam…” I rambled for a minute before I finally said, “to make a long story short … she’s not my biological daughter.”
Her brown eyes widened in disbelief. “No-freaking-way. Natalie had lied to you?”
“She didn’t know. It’s too complicated to explain.”
“Does Aria know?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Wow… all this time… after all that pain you went through…” She placed a sympathetic hand on my shoulder. “You know you can always sue your ex for emotional damages and stress. I could even represent you.”
“No one had forced me to be a drug addict. I self-medicated my pain away all on my own—that was never Natalie’s fault.”
Cammie stayed quiet, as if to verify my admission of guilt.
“We had some amazing years, you and I,” she said.
“Most of which I regret—because of my addiction.”
Walking at a leisurely pace, we stopped in front of a blown-up photo of Aria.
“Her eyes are so blue,” Cammie noticed. “She’s very beautiful.”
“Her eye color could be brown, green, violet—doesn’t matter. It’s Aria’s heart that makes her so amazing.”
“I believe you.” She turned her head in my direction. “Are you her stepdad now?”
“Well, she spent a year with me before we found out about the paternity. It’s kind of hard to break that bond, especially since I thought I was her father ever since she was conceived.”
“I can’t even imagine what that feels like.”
A caterer came by with some more champagne, which gave Cammie the opportunity to grab a glass for herself.
Where the hell did Evan take her?
I had become a possessive partner and an over-protective father—no denying that; at least I was aware.
“Are you working in New York?” Cammie asked.
“Yeah—just got back today, actually. I was working a case with our partnering firm in London for two months.”
“Sounds exciting.” She sipped her champagne. “Have you ever lost a case?”
“No, and I don’t intend to.”
“You’re still cocky as ever.”
“Interpret my confidence however you wish.”
We strolled past a small crowd of people, admiring Evan’s artwork.
“How long have you been dating this mystery woman?”
I paused and gave Cammie a look, as if to say it was none of her business.
