Page 303 of The Billionaires

“How about, ‘Hi, I’m the sperm donor,’” I grit out.

Tristan slowly blinks. “I guess I deserve that moniker. And you’re right. It doesn’t matter what I would’ve said. Just reaching out was important, and I blew it. I was a coward, and I’m sorry for that too. But when I saw you today—and realized that I’ve already met you—I couldn’t hold it in anymore.”

My chest tightens. “And here we are.”

Mom catches my gaze. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you the whole truth about him. Please don’t hate me. I thought what I did was for the best.”

“I’d never hate you,” I say, even though at this moment I am pretty mad at her. Grudgingly, I admit, “I’m not sure how I would’ve acted in your shoes.”

“Moot point,” Mom says proudly. “You did not get pregnant as a teen.”

“I hope you don’t hate me either,” Tristan says. “And that you’d consider getting to know me… in any way you’re comfortable with.”

Has someone cranked up the heat outside? “I’ll have to think about it,” I manage to say.

“Thank you,” he says so earnestly I feel a pang of something he doesn’t deserve.

“On one condition,” I add, surprising even myself.

“Name it,” he says.

“Make it so that I get to be in Piper’s life, regardless of how things go in there.” I gesture at the courtroom.

If I get to see Piper again, my heart would hurt a little bit less.

Tristan only hesitates for a heartbeat before he says, “I’ll do everything in my power to make that happen. But it would have to be only you. If things don’t go Adrian’s way, I don’t think Sydney would let him?—”

I gasp as a terrible realization occurs to me. “Once Adrian learns Sydney and I are related, he’ll think I helped her—especially if I get to see Piper and he can’t.”

“I doubt he’ll think that,” Mom says.

She thinks too highly of her fake son-in-law.

I turn to Tristan. “Do you know how Sydney got that stupid document?”

He hesitates longer this time. “Even if I tell you, and you run back in there and tell them, it won’t change the outcome,” he finally says.

“Obviously,” I say. “The djinni is out now.”

He shifts from foot to foot. “The help came from a disgruntled security guard who used to work in Adrian’s building. The guard claims she helped because she and her husband had to start over at a new workplace because of you, but I think she was money hungry and rationalizing. In any case, she gave Sydney the password you set to access the building and suggested that you’re not careful with passwords in general. The hope was that you’d used the same password with the app Adrian likes to use for all his legal documents—andthat turned out to be the case.”

Oh. Damn. It was Susan. She even chastised me for using recognizable words in said password—but I didn’t change my ways at all and went ahead and used the exact same password for that stupid app. I also completely forgot that Susan had to get a new job because I made a big deal about seeing a naked statue of her in Adrian’s gallery.

“Please bear in mind this all happened before I knew who you were,” Tristan says. “And that Sydney is just trying to do what she thinks is best for her child.”

Is he comparing my mom’s actions to those of Sydney? No, that would mean he disapproves of his own daughter. Unless?—

“This is all too much,” I say, mostly to myself.

“Here.” Tristan hands me his business card, and it takes me what feels like ten minutes to decide if I should stick it in one of my pockets or in my purse—that’s how overwhelmed I am at this point.

“Can we talk?” Mom says.

I shake my head. “I need to be alone.” And not just because of the man standing next to us. The one back in the courtroom is a far bigger culprit.

Mom grimaces. “I understand. I’m here if you need me.”

I swallow, my eyes burning, and run for the nearest yellow cab.

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