Page 32 of Fake Wife for Dr. Secret Daddy

Dr. Sam’s face drains of color. “Winnie?—”

“Thirty days,” I say, spinning on my heel and storming away. I hear Dr. Sam sputtering after me, but I don’t care.

My body is full of adrenaline, and my hands shake. I feel like I could kick a hole in the wall or run a race—I feel like I could do anything.

I bumped into someone, and I let out a soft curse. “I’m sorry,” I apologize.

“It’s okay,” a quiet voice says. The woman looks faintly familiar, but I don’t know her more than most of the guests here.

I give her a tight smile, and she gives me a strange smile before she almost runs away. I frown at her but then shake my head. Maybe she realized she didn’t know me either.

I’ve lost track of Austin, but I see Ted and Luna across the banquet hall. They’re playing a game of patty cake, and my heart aches. This could’ve been my daughter. This could be Ted playing with our girls.

I love Luna, but it hurts to see her sometimes, knowing what I lost.

Not for long, I vow.

I’m going to find my daughters. Or I’m going to burn everything down.

CHAPTER 13

Ted

"Hey, good morning, baby." I come up behind Winnie and wrap my hands around her.

It's quite unlike her when her body doesn't melt into mine. Instead, it feels like she stiffens up a bit, but I don't pay any deep attention to that.

"Good morning." She shifts on her feet, and I take the hint to release her.

"You're grumpy this morning." I tap her ass lightly, and I watch it bounce, as I search for a mug to pour in my coffee. She has already set a pot up.

"I don't think I slept too well last night." She doesn't look me in the eyes when she responds.

That finally caught my attention, and I realized that right from when I woke up without her by my side.

"Oh, is it something I can help with?" I'm always the willing partner, but she waves my offer away.

"No, it's fine. I'm about to head out for the day. I already had my shower." She gives me a hasty kiss on my cheek and steps out of the kitchen. Her footsteps are light because she doesn't want to wake Luna up.

I fill up my mug quickly and follow her into the master bedroom. Winnie is looking through the closet when I enter the room and shut the door quietly behind me.

"What do you mean you're heading out for the day?" I ask her, and she stares at me blankly. I can't believe she's already forgotten what we had planned for the day.

"I don't understand..." She trails off and looks at me in confusion when she notices the expectant look on my face.

I sigh in exasperation. "Today's Friday."

She still doesn't get it, so I must spell it out. I can't believe she's forgotten already when she was so excited about it before.

"It's Friday, and we planned to have a nice day today—just the three of us—and you promised that you had cleared your schedule up already." I can't hide the disappointment in my voice.

The realization dawns on her, and she steps away from the closet, closing the door behind her. She walks up to me and places her hand on my arm. "I'm so sorry that I forgot. I just," she sighs wearily. "I guess I just have a lot on my mind."

She pats my arm twice and then lets us go. This is more reason for us to have a fun-filled day. We need quality time, just the three of us, and I'm glad I prepared for the day well ahead of time. It might have skipped Winnie's mind, but it was still very sharp in mine.

Winnie offers to get Luna ready because she's already freshened up, and I go to take a shower.

While there, I think briefly about how weirdly she's behaving. I have thought that it could just be hormonal mood swings, and by the time I've scrubbed off, the thought is already out of my mind.

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