Page 14 of Modern Romance Collection December 2024 Books 1-4

‘I had no choice.’

Her mouth tightened. ‘Parents have a choice, no matter what the circumstances. You could have easily outsourced his care, but clearly you haven’t. And Madalena seems to be almost like a grandmother to him.’

Quin made a snorting noise. ‘There’s no harm in that. He’s never met his real grandmother.’ He looked at Sadie. ‘Either of them.’

She went pale. ‘You know that I had no idea if I had any family or not...’

Quin arched a brow.‘Had?’

He could see Sadie go even paler, visibly swallowing. ‘Actually...that’s what I need to talk to you about...to explain why—’

‘Papa! The game isn’t working! Can you make it work?’

Unnoticed, Sol had reappeared by the dining table and was holding up a console.

Quin cursed silently and stood up. He wasn’t sure he’d ever be ready to hear why Sadie had left so precipitously, but he knew he had to. Maybe not right now, though.

He said to Sol, ‘Go back upstairs. I’ll come up in a minute.’

When Sol had left, he looked at Sadie. ‘We can’t talk about this now. I’ll be busy getting Sol to bed in a bit, so help yourself to anything else you’d like from the kitchen. Lights will come on in the garden to guide you back to the guesthouse. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

Sadie stood up and picked up her plate and Quin’s, but he said, ‘Leave them. Roberto will clean up in the morning. Sara would normally be here, but she’s out of action.’

She put the plates back down. ‘Your housekeeper? Did something happen?’

‘She was involved in an accident today and she’ll be out of work for a week. It shouldn’t inconvenience you too much.’

Sadie looked genuinely concerned. ‘That’s awful...is she okay?’

Quin didn’t like this reminder of Sadie’s compassionate nature. Because it had obviously been false. No genuinely compassionate person could walk away from their baby. Or the man they’d professed to love.

He said, ‘Her car was totalled but she’s okay—just shaken. I gave her a week off to recover...’

Sadie gestured to the plates. ‘I’ll do this. I don’t mind—honestly. And I can do whatever else she was meant to be doing. It’ll give me a way to say thank you...for letting me be here.’

Quin felt a strong sense of rejection at the thought of Sadie doing his domestic chores—but then this wasn’t a regular situation. And there was also a little devil inside him that relished the thought of calling her bluff, to see if she really meant it. He had to admit, the notion of her doing menial work as some sort of recompense wasn’t altogether undesirable. The rage inside him that still burned bright for what she’d done demanded to be appeased.

But he said, ‘Are you sure? There’s no need. Between me, Roberto and Lena we can manage.’

Sadie shook her head. ‘I’m sure they’re busy enough. I insist—it’s the least I can do.’

Quin shrugged. ‘Suit yourself. Roberto will fill you in on Sara’s duties when he comes in tomorrow. Goodnight, Sadie.’

‘Are you sure this is okay?’

Lena was looking at Sadie with concern in her eyes. But Sadie couldn’t have been more sure that she wanted to keep herself busy. What else was she going to do in her lush isolation among the trees?

She nodded. ‘Honestly, it’s fine. I’d like to help out.’

Lena obviously wasn’t convinced. ‘But you’re—’

She stopped, clearly not wanting to state the obvious. Yet. The fact that Sadie was Sol’s mother, who had reappeared after four years of abandonment. That, as his mother, she shouldn’t be working like an employee.

Sadie forced a smile. ‘I’m happy to be here. And happy to be of use.’

Lena finally gave in and pushed a Tupperware box towards Sadie. ‘You can pack up Sol’s lunch, then, if that’s okay? And I’ll make sure he’s getting dressed.’ She rolled her eyes, ‘He’s probably playing one of his games...’

Sadie’s heart squeezed as the woman left the kitchen. That should beherjob—chasing Sol to get ready for school. But she didn’t have that privilege yet. Would she ever?

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