Page 16 of Falling for the Forward

“I don’t mind doing it. I’ll make sure she has fun.”

He nods. “I know you would. Honestly, Suki...” He still can’t meet my eyes. “You’re the best thing that has happened for the girls since Rachel died.” He clears his throat again and I realize he’s trying to keep himself from crying. “I appreciate everything you do for them and I know I should be telling you that. I want to do whatever I can to have a special day with Olivia.”

That’s...not the callous response I was expecting. “I think that’s a great idea.”

He nods and meets my gaze. I notice the dark circles beneath his eyes for the first time and can’t help feeling sympathy for him. He looks like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders.

“Is there...anything else I can help with?” I ask.

He scoffs, a corner of his lips lifting in a smile. “You want to marry me?”

I tilt my head, confused. “Sorry, what?”

He sighs heavily and walks over to the fridge to get some water. Then he comes over to me, speaking in a low tone meant only for the two of us.

“The girls’ dad hasn’t seen them since Hallie was a baby. He’s a complete deadbeat. Never helped Rachel with anything after he left. My attorney told me I should adopt the girls to protect against him coming after them in the future, and he’s fighting it. He says he wants full custody--in Alaska, with him and his girlfriend.”

My jaw drops. “Alaska? No. You can’t let this happen. The girls are already having a hard enough time.”

“I know. And I know I’m not...nurturing or whatever, but the girls will always be my priority. I don’t date and I don’t plan to as long as I’m raising them. I’ll do anything to keep them safe and happy.”

I’m so floored by the bombshell he just dropped that I don’t even react to his assessment of himself asnot nurturing or whatever. “Why does their father have this sudden interest? Where has he been all these years?”

Carter’s gaze darkens. “Money. He wants my sister’s life insurance money.”

“I’m not a violent person, but I’m feeling very violent at this moment.”

“Yeah, I felt the same way when I heard. My attorney told me I need to have my aunt come for a weekend visit as soon as possible to beef up my case that I have family around, and that if I have a girlfriend I’ve considered marrying, now is the time.”

“What? No! Carter, you can’t marry some random woman the girls don’t even know. That’s--”

I gesture wildly, unable to think of a strong enough word.

“I know,” he interjects. “That’s why I thought of you.”

I just gape at him. “You were serious? I thought that was a stressed-out quip.”

“I don’t know what else to do. Nancy--she’s the weekend nanny--she...well, I don’t know how to be tactful about it. She has a big hairy mole on her cheek and she’s pushing sixty years old. No one would buy me marrying her.”

I laugh. “You could tell them she’s the only one who will put up with your personality.”

He frowns. “I guess the gloves are staying off, then. Great.”

I shrug. “The gloves can go back on when you get your shit together.”

“Do I seem like I have any hope of that?”

“I mean...not at all.”

He sighs softly. “Just give it some thought. I thought about it the whole way home, and it could work. It would just be a marriage on paper to us, but we would have to sell it to everyone else. We could definitely handle that. And the girls love you.”

“Right, but it’smarriage. That’s real.”

“I’ll pay you. A lot. And we can quietly divorce in a year or two--after the adoption is finalized.”

I can’t help it--the mention of money makes my ears perk up. I’m more than a hundred and eighty thousand dollars in debt, thanks to Tyler and his adult toy disaster.

But the girls. I have to think of the girls. “Don’t you think it would be hard for the girls to lose their stepmom when we divorced?”

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