Page 88 of Nanny for the Bikers

She takes a step forward, her hands raised in a placating gesture. “I didn’t mean to cause any trouble, Kip. I just-”

“You left her on our doorstep, Sydney,” I interrupt, my tone hardening like steel. The words taste bitter in my mouth, but I force them out anyway. She needs to hear this. “You didn’t even say anything to us. You’re a coward. You don’t get to show up out of the blue and act like you’re just concerned about her well-being.”

I can feel my control slipping, anger churning in my gut like a volatile storm. It takes every ounce of restraint not to let it consume me entirely.

“Kip, please,” Sydney pleads, her voice trembling slightly. “If you’d just let me explain-”

“Explain what?” I scoff, shaking my head in disbelief. “How could you just walk away from your own child? I never knew a person could be so evil.”

Sydney flinches as if I’ve struck her, tears welling up and threatening to spill over. Part of me wants to feel guilty for causing her distress, but the larger part - the fiercely protective part - refuses to back down.

“You don’t know how much I care about her, okay, I…”

I take a step closer, holding Sydney’s gaze with an unwavering stare. I need her to understand the gravity of what she’s done, the scars she’s left on Piper’s tender heart.

“If you truly cared about her, you would have never left in the first place.”

Sydney’s shoulders sag, as if the weight of my words is physically bearing down on her. Good. She takes a shaky breath, her eyes searching mine imploringly.

“I did it for her.”

Her voice cracks on the last word, raw emotion seeping through. For a fleeting moment, I feel a twinge of empathy.

“Yeah, leaving that baby on our doorstep is the best thing that you could’ve done for her.”

Sydney nods, seeming to deflate before my eyes. Her gaze drops to the ground, and I can see the defeat etched into her features.

“If we could just talk…”

“I have nothing to say to you.” I snap before sighing, running a hand through my hair in frustration. “But luckily enough for you, my brothers may feel differently. Give me your number, andI’ll call you when we’re not in the middle of something. But right now, you need to go. We have a lot going on, and I can’t deal with this on top of everything else.”

Sydney nods, a glimmer of hope sparking in her eyes as she quickly rattles off her phone number. I type it into my phone, each digit feeling like a leaden weight.

“Thank you, Kip,” she says softly, offering a tentative smile. “I promise, I’m not here to cause trouble.”

I don’t return her smile, my expression remaining stoic and guarded. “We’ll see,” is all I say.

The moment Sydney disappears from view, I swing the door open wider, ushering Ayla inside with a sense of urgency. “We need to hurry,” I say, my voice strained. “Everyone’s waiting for us at the hospital.”

Ayla nods, her green eyes filled with understanding as she quickly steps into the house. “I’ll grab some clothes for everyone,” she says, already moving towards the bedrooms with a determined stride.

I lean against the wall, running a hand through my hair as I try to gather my thoughts. The emotional turmoil of Sydney’s unexpected appearance still lingers, a bitter taste in my mouth. How dare she show up now, after all this time? After abandoning her own child? After not trying to get in contact with us for months?

I hate her.

The sound of Ayla rummaging through drawers and closets fills the air, a welcome distraction from the chaos in my mind. I focuson the task at hand, pushing aside the anger and frustration threatening to consume me.

“Kip?” Ayla’s voice pulls me from my thoughts, and I look up to see her standing in the hallway, a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. “I think I’ve got everything we need.”

I nod, pushing myself off the wall. “Great, let’s go.” My voice sounds distant, even to my own ears, as if I’m speaking from underwater.

As we make our way out to the truck, Ayla places a gentle hand on my arm. “Hey,” she says softly, her eyes searching mine. “Are you okay? I know that must have been a lot to take in.”

I let out a humorless laugh, shaking my head. “That’s an understatement.” I climb into the driver’s seat, gripping the steering wheel tightly. “I just can’t believe she had the nerve to show up like that, you know?”

Ayla settles into the passenger seat while I get in the driver’s side, fastening my seatbelt and igniting the engine before getting onto the road.

I try to keep my eyes on the road, but the anger bubbling inside me is impossible to ignore. “I can’t believe that woman,” I burst out, my fingers tightening around the steering wheel until my knuckles turn white. “She just shows up like nothing happened! I mean, how could she just leave her child like that?”

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