Page 37 of Falling for You
“I don’t know but I bet I could get Clark on board with keeping it a secret. I go there all the time to work on the books. I’ll make up something about having a question on a kitchen order if he catches us.” I shrug. These two are so logical, they are not meant to plan a fun surprise.
“Okay, plan your surprise Ems. But how do we know what he needs?”
I look at Mom. “I think we have someone who can help.”
She smirks at me and the boys. “I know a thing or two.”
“Fuck yeah!” We hear from upstairs. And I rush off to yell at those two because if they wake Olivia up, a crib is the least of their worries.
Before I can get there, my phone buzzes in my hand.
Roman:I’m Olivia’s dad. Officially.
I stare at my phone. The test results are glowing on my screen. I am ninety nine point nine percent Olivia’s father.
I knew it was true, but to have the official confirmation is surreal. The first person I reach out to is Emma.
Me:I’m Olivia’s dad. Officially.
I stare at the three dots popping on the screen, then off, then on again.
Emma:Are you okay?
Am I okay? That I’m suddenly a single dad to a baby I had no idea existed. I’m angry with Blair. And then angry with myself for being angry with her. She’s gone. How can I blame her for what she did? I’m sad for Olivia, who now has no mother. I’mstressed out trying to figure out how to juggle this all. And I have Emma living in my house wreaking havoc on my nervous system.
I guess the short answer is no. I’m not okay.
My phone vibrates in my hand and Emma’s beautiful face fills the screen.
“Hello,” I answer.
“I didn’t even see that you were typing. Are you okay? Do you need Hunter?” She is concerned for me.
“No.”I need you.“I’ll be okay. How are things going over there today for the first day?”
“Good. I have a surprise for you when you come home.” I can see her smiling in my mind.
“A surprise for me?”
“Well. Kind of for you. But mostly for Olivia. And she’s followed the schedule from Diane today for naps. It was rough, but we’ve stuck to it.” I shut my bedroom door behind me.
“Yeah? That’s great. What are you guys doing now?” I fall into my chair, the exhaustion taking over my body. There was a time not too long ago that these phone calls were morewhat are you wearing right nowinstead ofwhat are you doing with my baby right now.
“Mom is cooking dinner. The boys are here fawning all over Olivia and putting together a crib for her.” She chuckles at something. “Liam was bested by the store bought crib. I thought he was going to toss it and go to the barn to start from scratch. Then Wyatt waltzes in and takes over, it only took him thirty minutes.”
“I wish I could have been there for that. Sounds like an interesting time. But why did you buy a crib?”
Better yet, why didn’t I?
“She needs a crib, Rome. She can’t sleep in that pack and play for the rest of her baby life.” I close my eyes and let out a breath.
“You’re right.”
“Why don’t you come home early tonight? I think Clark can handle running things now that the dinner rush is almost over.”
I fucking wish. I can’t keep leaving my staff. I need to figure this out.
“Yeah, I’ll talk to him. We’ll see.”
