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River hadn’t been expecting that. Sure, he might blame the man for the role he had played, but he never imagined Trevor would agree with him. “Sir?”
“Everything that has gone wrong between the two of you. Dawn. I had a hand in most of it and I wanted to make sure you knew that. Don’t blame Morgan.” Trevor hesitated for a moment. “I want to tell you something. Something I’ve never told anyone before.”
River sat up straight in his chair. He wasn’t sure what Morgan’s father was about to tell him, or if it would change anything between him and Morgan, but he was curious to hear what he had to say.
“I’ve never believed that Morgan was my daughter,” he said. “Long before the DNA tests and news that the babies were switched in the hospital, I knew she wasn’t mine. She didn’t look like me or any of our other children. Naturally, I believed Patricia had taken a lover at some point.”
River’s breath froze in his lungs. He wasn’t quite sure if he was really hearing a confession like this from Trevor. It seemed too out of sync with what he knew of the man. But it made him sit at attention and listen because it likely wasn’t going to happen again.
Trevor shook his head. “I tried to distance myself from the baby once I realized the truth. But it didn’t take me long to fall head over heels for that little girl. Before she could walk, she had me wrapped around her pinky finger. I love my sons—don’t get me wrong—but Morgan was and is my world. And over time, as she grew older and her appearance became more strikingly different from the rest of the family, I started to worry.”
“That people would gossip about the affair?”
“No.” Trevor gave him a pointed look of irritation that made River decide to keep his mouth shut until the man had finished whatever it was he had to say.
“To my knowledge, no one has ever publicly or privately questioned Morgan’s paternity. But I began to worry that someday her biological father might show up and try to take her away from me. I was paralyzed by the fear of losing my baby girl to some mystery man with dark hair and green eyes. So I sheltered her. I protected Morgan to the point of smothering her to keep her safe and by my side. That was all I could think to do. And then one day, when I least expected it, a man did come into her life and I almost lost her.”
Trevor looked up at River and smiled ruefully. “She had finally been stolen from me, but not in a way I ever expected. You came out of nowhere, and suddenly my baby girl was gone. I panicked when I heard the news that you two had eloped. I acted on reflex and I made some bad choices, trying to fix what I felt was a problem. It never once occurred to me that my baby girl wasn’t a baby anymore, and it wasn’t my mistake to correct.
“Everything that happened after that was me trying to shield her from being hurt, but it just made things worse. In an ironic twist, I drove her away by fighting to keep her close. Things were never the same between us.”
Trevor sighed heavily and sat back in his chair. “And now, when I think about Dawn...and I try to put myself in your shoes as the baby’s father... Considering how much I love Morgan, how would it feel to find out I’d lost a daughter I never knew about? One I never got to hold, to see or to mourn when she was gone. I would be devastated, no doubt. And angry that someone had robbed me of my chance. So I understand why you left.”
He looked River in the eyes. “But I want you to be angry with me, not Morgan. Every secret she kept, every lie she told was because of me.”
“It’s not as simple as that, Mr. St—Trevor. I mean, yes, I was angry to learn she’d kept all that from me, but there’s more to it than that.”
“I understand. Relationships are difficult. Patricia and I have had our ups and downs over the last forty years, and the two of you have had plenty of challenges without my help. But you need to know that it’s worth it. She’s worth it. Worth the risk. Worth protecting. Worth sacrificing. She’s worth it all, River.”
River knew that. He wouldn’t keep beating his head against this wall if being with her didn’t make up for the pain. But how much would he have to sacrifice to have her in his life? He’d already lived the last few weeks in the shadows as they hid their relationship. He wasn’t willing to do that anymore and he hoped he wouldn’t have to. Trevor knew something was going on between them or he wouldn’t be here. If they could be together in the open, that would be one less issue, but there were more. “I’m not sure what’s going to happen with Morgan and me. There’s a lot for me to think about.”
“Of course. It can be scary to love someone that much. After all these years, all the things I’ve done to protect Morgan, I’m still scared of losing her. When the truth came out and I knew for certain she wasn’t my biological child, I was petrified. I should’ve been relieved that my wife hadn’t had an affair, but I wasn’t. It was just confirmation of what I’d always known and feared—only now there was no blood tie to hold her here if she wanted to go to her real family. I wouldn’t have blamed her. Everything I’ve done was more likely to drive her away than keep her here.
“But she didn’t go. Even after everything. Even after knowing you two had split up again and it was my fault, she still looks at me with love in her eyes and calls me Daddy. I’ve been a fool and I’m sorry for what I’ve done to you out of my own misplaced fears.”
River had done his best to keep up with the conversation, but it was a lot to take in. Trevor Steele had just laid his soul bare and apologized to him in a way he had never expected or anticipated. He hardly knew what to do or say to Morgan’s father after something like this. “I don’t know what to say,” he voiced his worry aloud.
Trevor nodded softly. “I understand. Tell me this—do you love my daughter?”
Despite his anger and feelings of betrayal, that was an easy answer to give. ?
?Yes, sir.”
“Good. More than anything, I want Morgan to be happy. You made her happy then, and you make her happy now, River. I know that I’ve shown up here and dumped a lot of my baggage on you, but there’s a good reason for it. Today, I saw my little girl more brokenhearted than I’ve seen her in a long time. I can’t fix the hurts of the past that I’ve caused, but it’s not too late to do something now. I came here today in the hopes that I could explain myself to you and perhaps you wouldn’t let my mistakes ruin your future together.”
The older man’s words seemed to stir something inside of him. Perhaps he was right.
“She’s agreed to stay in town for another week to handle some legal matters. Go to her and tell her how you feel,” Trevor said. “And if she loves you half as much as I think she does, this time, don’t let me or anyone else get in the way of you two being together.”
Twelve
“Your birthday is coming up soon.”
Jade looked up from her phone as Harley came into the room. He had a satisfied smirk on his face as he leaned in and gave her a hello kiss. “Thanks for the reminder.”
“Thirty is a big birthday. We need to do something.”
“Like what?”
