AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Whatever was stuck in my throat grew a few sizes bigger, and all coherent thoughts fled. “You’re having me on.”
Heather shook her head. “We met last year, remember? Downstairs at the bar. I spent three days in this loft. We—”
“I remember.” I raised a hand to stop her and glanced at the baby. His dimples landed differently this time, and I quickly looked away. It was so fucking hot all of a sudden that I was sweating through my shirt. “But we were careful.”
“Not careful enough,” she replied. “A few weeks after I left the Bay, I found out I was pregnant.”
“And it didn’t occur to you to call?” My tone was harsher than I intended.
She narrowed her eyes. “How many women have you had in your bed, Will?”
My stomach sank, and I opened my mouth—but nothing came out. We both knew the answer, and it wasn’t going to help to say the number out loud. I scrubbed at the moisture on my forehead and muttered, “I don’t believe this.”
Her eyes flashed as her nostrils flared. “You think I’m lying?”
“I—” I didn’t need to glance at the baby again to confirm how much of myself I saw in his features. “No. I didn’t say that.”
Heather shook her head, and her shoulders fell. “Look, you were the only man I was with that month and the first in the three months before that. And maybe I should have reached out at the time. For a hundred reasons, I didn’t, but I’m here now.” She hefted the baby carrier, and he reached for her fingers wrapped around the handle. Heather ignored him. “This is your son.”
This must be what people meant when they talked about out-of-body experiences. I took a few wooden steps backwards,falling onto the sofa when my legs hit the fabric. Heather rolled her lips, then stooped to collect the tote bag. She followed me into the apartment and set her baggage at my feet. “I need you to take him.”
“Take him?” My echo was hollow. Her words made sense to my ears but not my brain.Take him where?
Again, because I couldn’t help it and because I could feel his eyes on me, I looked at the baby. Sebastian. He wore a navy cotton onesie, and a soft toy rabbit was stuffed into the side of the padded seat. His cheeks were rosy, thin wisps of light brown hair dusted his scalp, and his eyes were so blue they were almost purple—a sapphire colour like the one I’d inherited from my father and always hated. Sebastian was still smiling, a trail of drool crawling over his chin, dimples dancing. Those were from my father, too.
“Yes.” Heather opened the bag and riffled through some things before extracting a fat envelope and trying to hand it to me while I fixed her with a blank stare. “Birth certificate. Doctor’s records. Sleep and feeding schedule. And a contract transferring all parental rights to you.”
I didn’t realise I was on my feet until Heather took a step back.
“You need to slow down,” I said, taking handfuls of my hair and tugging hard enough to hurt. “I don’tunderstand. Why the hell would you come here after all this time—how long has it been? A year? Fifteen months?—and give me your baby? You don’t even know me!”
“I’m giving youyourbaby.”
Her neck was stiff, and her chin raised with so much determination that her refusal to look at Sebastian had me feeling irrationally pissed off. What kind of parent refused to look at her child?
Mychild.
“What kind of person walks away from their own son?” I demanded, though I already knew what kind of person did that. The kind of person like my dad, which is why I didn’t for a second doubt that Heather was serious.
Her chin trembled once, and regret at my tone fleetingly replaced the anger burning my skin, but then she spoke again.
“I’ve met someone, and—”
“He doesn’t want a kid?” I opened and closed my fists slowly and deliberately, hanging onto reason by my fingernails alone.
“He doesn’tknowabout the kid.”
Jesus. I sank down again and dropped my face into my hands. I was going to throw up.
Heather waited in silence, but when I didn’t raise my head, I heard her place the paperwork on the coffee table and step back again.
“He’s formula fed—the directions are in the paperwork. I’ve signed all the contracts, so when you’re ready to file, all you need to do is add your name to the tabbed pages. My phone number is in there, but—don’t use it. Please. It’s just… It’s just in case I’ve missed anything in the legal documents. I don’t need complications. I want to settle this quickly and move on with my life.”
I raised my head and stared at her in disbelief.
“What about my life?” I pointed at the baby. “What abouthislife? You’re the only parent this boy has ever known.”
Heather cleared her throat, feet shifting, but she didn’t back down. “He’s an easy baby. Happy. Good sleeper. He’s used to being cared for by new people, so he won’t give you any trouble.”
