Page 30 of The Hitman's Secret Love Child

Chapter 12

Robyn

It took a lot longer to get dressed than it normally would, mostly because I was unsure of how to approach Constantine after what happened in the bedroom. No doubt he thought I was weak and vulnerable and maybe even a bit needy.

Regardless, once dressed in a pair of jeans and t-shirt I found myself standing in front of the full-length mirror examining my reflection. I looked like death. Grabbing my makeup case, I quickly applied a thick coat of foundation, applying a generous amount of concealer to the undereye area. By the time I was done and applying a thin layer of gloss to my lips I nodded at my reflection. Not exactly beauty queen material, but at least I didn’t look sickly. A big thank you to MAC cosmetics.

Wow, way to lower your expectations of yourself, I thought, turning from the mirror and exiting the bedroom. My feet felt like they had weights attached as I made my way downstairs. I’d just pretend like nothing ever happened. It’s not like much did anyhow, nothing to be embarrassed about.

As I approached the bottom of the stairs the smell of bacon and eggs drifted to me, making my stomach grumble. Bacon. Damn, I loved bacon; it had been so long since I’d last had a taste of that salty, greasy and oh-so-delicious meat. Walking into the kitchen I stopped dead in my tracks at the entranceway.

Austin was standing on a step stool in front of the stove, a spatula in hand with Constantine standing next to him, directing him on how to flip the pancakes. The helicopter mom in me felt a surge of terror seeing my child so close to the stove where grease from the bacon could fly up at him, but there was another part of me that felt warm and cozy inside seeing Constantine interacting with him.

He turned and smiled at me. “Take a seat,” he said, nodding at the four-person table to the left of the room, “we’re almost done.”

“Look Mommy, I’m making pancake,” Austin exclaimed, the halfway cooked pancake on the spatula.

Before I could respond the pancake slipped from the spatula and hit the floor, with a soft splat like sound. His smile immediately faded and a frown took its place.

“Don’t worry, little buddy.” Constantine gave him a pat on the back. “It just means we get to make another one.”

This seemed to brighten his mood and his smile returned. “Awesome!”

I entered the kitchen and headed toward the roll of paper towels. “Sit down, Robyn,” Constantine said, putting his hand out and stopping me from proceeding. “I’ll get it.”

A protest was on the tip of my tongue, but I bit it back. If he wanted me to take it easy then who was I to object? With a grin on my face I sat down at the table and watched the boys work, impressed at how good Constantine was with Austin. It made me wonder if Constantine was dating anyone, or if he’d had much experience with children, maybe by dating single moms.

I didn’t want him to get the wrong idea, but I had to ask as curiosity got the better of me. “So Constantine, have you been dating much?”

He laughed, a loud hearty laugh, and then turned to face me. “Not really.”

“Why not?” He was good-looking, seemed to be doing well for himself. It seemed odd he wouldn’t be seeing someone and have an active social life.

“I’m pretty busy most of the time. What I do isn’t the typical 9-5 job. So, relationships aren’t exactly on my radar right now. Maybe sometime in the future when life is less hectic and I have a little more stability. Maybe then I can start a family.”

His comment pierced through me and I tuned out everything else going on around me. Okay, so it’s not like I expected anything from him. He was a sperm donor. That’s how I’d treated him when I left without a word, why would it change now just because Constantine finally knew the truth?

My head was seriously fucked up right now. I wasn’t thinking straight.

“Try it, Mommy!”

Austin’s voice pulled me from my thoughts and I focused on the food that was now in front of me. Fuck, I’d tuned out for quite a spell, apparently. I smiled at Austin across the table from me, though it was a weak smile at best. I forced my smile to widen.

“It’s good.” He said shovelling a forkful of pancake into his mouth.

“I bet it is, baby.”

~*~TT~*~

Constantine

Slipping on a pair of black gloves, I entered Robyn’s former apartment building and headed for the elevator. I wasn’t sure why I was even going back there, but I had a gut feeling. Besides, I needed to know if they were aware she was now on the run from them. The deadline was closing in and I would imagine Gabriel would be getting anxious waiting for me to complete the assigned task.

I had Robyn’s key so once I was at her floor, I was about to slip the key in when I noticed the door was just slightly ajar. Guess I’d been right. My heart rate accelerated as adrenaline began to pump through my veins at a quickened pace. I loved this moment, the anticipation of an altercation. Over the years it had become my addiction, my own personal crack. Maybe I subconsciously had a death wish?

Pulling my gun from the holster that was concealed under my jacket, I proceeded with caution, screwing on the sound suppressor, and then pushing the door open with the barrel of my gun. The door opened effortlessly and I took a moment to examine the room before proceeding inside.

Cushions had been thrown off the sofa and were scattered across the room; the furniture was in disarray. From first glance, it didn’t appear that there was still anyone in the apartment, but sometimes looks could be deceiving. There could easily be someone waiting to pounce. And my instincts were rarely wrong.

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