Page 42 of Shot Through the Heart

“Where are we going?” she asks and before I can answer, Greyson speaks up.

“I was planning for the aquarium?”

“Wanna go see some fish and dolphins?” I aim the question at Harper, even though I already know the answer.

“I know what to wear!” Harper claps her hands and twirls to rush up the stairs.

I shake my head and glance over at Grey. “She has very strong outfit opinions. If I pick out the wrong clothes, it’s the end of the world, so it’s easier to let her choose.”

He grins, shoving his hands in his pockets while leaning against the counter.

“Sorry we’re running behind,” I offer and head to clean up our dishes from breakfast.

“It’s no big deal. I’m not in a rush. As long as I get to spend the day with you two, nothing else matters.”

And there goes my damn heart beating irregularly again.

I squash my own excitement and remind myself he’s here to get to know his daughter. We haven’t had a chance to talk about the two of us. However, we’ve both had our worlds flipped upside down. While it turns out he didn’t have anything to do with it, the trust we had in each other was shattered. I’ve spent the past five years believing he didn’t want me. Even if none of that’s true, the damage was done. We can’t just jump back into any sort of intimate or romantic relationship again. Especially since we have Harper to look out for.

All I’ve ever wanted for her is to be happy and surrounded by love. All my reservations and precautions with not telling Harper who Greyson is yet are simply to make sure she doesn’t get hurt. As long as he truly is here to be in her life, I refuse to do anything that would end in Greyson leaving us.

Besides, outside of the kiss at the gala, Greyson has given no signs that he even wants me back. For heaven’s sake, the poor guy’s just learned he’s a father. Our relationship is probably the last thing on his mind.

“I talked to my mom yesterday,” Greyson says, pulling me from my thoughts. I almost drop the mug in my hand as I whirl around to face him.

“What?” I clear my throat and get my thoughts together a bit more before adding, “What did she have to say?”

He ducks his head, gripping at the back of his neck.

“She claims she was just trying to protect me.” Even with his head down, I catch the roll of his eyes. He goes on, filling me in on her reasoning for causing me to leave. By the time he’s finished telling me everything, my heart is breaking a bit for him.

Wiping my hands off on the dish rag, I close the distance between us and reach out to place my hand on his that’s resting on the counter.

“I’m sorry she put you in this position,” I whisper.

He turns his hand, taking mine in his, and looks up at me.

“She did this to herself. It’s bad enough she separated us, but to keep Harper from me?” He shakes his head, glancing over his shoulder toward the stairs as if she’ll appear. “I don’t know how I’ll ever forgive her.”

I can’t help but laugh sadly. “I’m not exactly the best person to give parental advice considering I went no contact with mine five years ago.”

His eyes snap back to me, a triad of emotions swirling in the deep depths. “Completely cut off?” he asks, without judgment.

“They never came to check on me after the accident.” Needing the distraction, I pull my hand from his and move to wipe down the counter as I continue. “I woke up in the hospital and one of the nurses told me they got in touch with my dad. He told them to have me call when I was awake. Once they found out my injuries were all superficial, he said ‘that’s good, we really didn’t want to miss the dinner.’ My mom transferred some money into my account to replace my broken phone and pay the hospital bills but…”

I keep moving as I talk, bending down to pick up some stray clothes that Harper managed to leave strewn across the living room floor.

“When I found out I was pregnant and after everything with your mom, I knew I needed to leave. So I called Nana. She didn’t even know I was hurt.” I flash him a smile for the first time. “It was fun watching her go off on them. Not that it changed their choices. They didn’t care that I was pregnant or even that I was moving. They were relieved they could sell the house and have one less thing weighing them down. So I cut them off. My mom tried showing up for the baby shower, but I told her if she didn’t plan to be around in my daughter’s life, to just leave and never talk to me again. I haven’t heard from them since.”

I don’t even notice that Greyson has left the kitchen until I stand with my arm full of blankets and clothes and collide with his chest. He pulls me in for a hug, ignoring the small mound of dirty laundry between us as he cradles my head with one hand and wraps the other around my waist.

“We have shitty parents,” he grumbles into the top of my head, and I sink into his embrace. “Does this fear of being a shitty parent because of how we were raised ever lessen?”

“Nope.” I pull back enough to tilt my head back and look up at him. “But spite is a great motivator. If I’m doing my best, I know I’m doing better than they did.”

Greyson laughs, but before he can say anything else, the sound of Harper marching down the stairs pulls us apart.

She hops off the bottom step and does a twirl, making the skirt of her shiny blue dress flare out. “Ready!”

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