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“Do you have doubts about me? About who your father is?”
“Yes.”
Her response hit its mark, but it also generated the first smile she had seen on his face since the moment he had stood and left Marlowe’s condo for his supposed call. “Direct as always.”
“There really isn’t any other way to be.”
“What doubts do you have about me?” he finally asked.
Nova considered his question, and with it how much she should tell him. Clearly, Ferdy was a question mark between them.
“I’m worried that, no matter how hard you try to keep things separate, my situation will spill over onto your case as you try to find Ace.”
“But I told you I can keep them separate.”
“Which would be fine, if they were separate.”
When he didn’t say anything, Nova continued. “I’m worried that you jumped in to help me, even though you don’t know anything about me. And that I’ll get hurt because of it. And what if Ace isn’t even my dad?”
He didn’t respond, but neither did he avert his gaze. He maintained the direct stare, those hazel-green eyes steady and focused.
Meeting his eyes and taking it all in—from his behavior yesterday, his warm, generous and selfless actions, to his doubts today—Nova knew she had to make a choice.
She could either trust him and trust that things would work out or she could continue to leave him in the dark and allow all the reasons that she was on the run to fester in his mind.
“What I’m worried about is that if I tell you the truth about the baby’s father, it’s going to put us all in danger. You. Me. And most of all, my child. Can you understand that? Do you understand now why I am afraid?”
“Nova. You have to know I wouldn’t do anything to put you or the baby in danger.”
“You say that now. You believe it. Just like last night, you believed that you wanted to help me. Only today, your mind suddenly told you otherwise.”
He shook his head. “No, it’s not the same. I know it’s not the same. You have to believe me.”
She wanted to. She wanted so badly to believe him. Just like she wanted to believe Marlowe and the idea that she could have a family here in Mustang Valley. Just like she wanted to believe Ace Colton would welcome her with open arms when they finally met.
Only, the Coltons weren’t her family.
And Ace might be a stone cold attempted murderer.
She wanted to believe that Nikolas could make things right.
But how did you make things right against the threat you never even saw coming?
That was really at the heart of it all.
It was those things you never saw coming that did the most damage. Her mother’s illness. The truth about her father. Ferdy’s betrayal.
She’d gotten quite good over the past year at dealing with the things that she hadn’t seen coming. Maybe it was time to trust herself and make the leap.
“Nikolas. I do believe you.”
“Then tell me. Tell me what has you so scared.”
Just like the day before, when she’d sat outside Nikolas’s office on the sidewalk bench, the baby kicked. Hard enough to make a point and timed well enough to push her into gear.
She’d leap.
And if it was the wrong choice, then she’d figure it out and run once more. She’d gotten pretty damn good at it, after all. She could take care of herself and the baby.
