Page 104 of Changing Tides

“I suppose.”

“Did you leave?” I ask.

“Nope. Not at first. He pleaded with me to stay, and he agreed to go to counseling.”

“The oldest trick in the book,” I spit.

“It got better for a while—it really did—but I couldn’t let it go. Every late-night business dinner or overnight trip after that, I was suspicious. It ate at me, and finally, neither of us could take it anymore. It was civil at first. He moved out, and we tried to do mediation. Split custody, split finances. All I wanted from him was child support to help pay for day care and essentials, but one day, during a meeting with the mediator, he let me in on another little secret of his. He’d collected Leia’s DNA and had a paternity test done without my knowledge.”

“And he wasn’t the father.”

“Nope.”

“I thought it didn’t matter to him?”

“So did I,” she whispers.

“But it did.”

“It did in the end. So much so that it drove him into the arms of other women—at least, that’s the story he told in court. Painting me out to be a liar and a scammer who was just after his money. The son of a bitch was a broke college student when we met. Everything we had, we built together. I wasn’t after anything. I loved the asshole.”

“His fragile, self-important ego is what drove him to fuck one of his employees. Not you,” I hiss.

“I know that,” she agrees.

She attempts to touch my arm, and I move out of her reach.

Silence fills the space between us as I stare at this woman, who has spent almost every day with me for the last few months, yet never bothered to mention that the little girl I’d taught to fish and had a tea party with was my flesh and blood.

“Say something,” she pleads.

“I’m processing.”

“I’m sorry, Sebastian.”

I fold my arms over my chest to keep from punching the wall as anger vibrates through me.

“For which part? Passing my baby off as someone else’s?”

Her chin lifts, and her eyes blaze with indignation.

“I didn’t know how to get in touch with you. I didn’t have a phone number or address. I didn’t even know your last name, for God’s sake. What was I supposed to do?” she yells.

“What about the last four months, Avie? I’ve been right here. You had every opportunity to tell me.”

Her eyes fall to the floor. “I was scared.”

“Of what?” I roar.

“Of this. Of your reaction.”

“So, protecting yourself was more important than letting me know that the little girl I’ve been bonding with is my fucking daughter?”

“No. Protectingher.I couldn’t risk you rejecting her too. She was devastated and confused when Conrad just disappeared from her life. She adored him. He broke her heart, and I had to make sure you wouldn’t do the same thing,” she screams.

That’s when my legs move, and I advance on her. She stands her ground and holds my eyes as I rant in frustration.

“That’s a fucking cop-out, and you damn well know it. It was reckless and selfish. How long were you planning on playing this game? Till November? Were you gonna take off and never tell me?”