Page 141 of Stolen Kiss

We hung up after that. Nadir wasn’t the kind to linger, and she usually tried to distance herself from anything emotional.

Despite any faults she might have, I had admired her, and I had wanted to be like her. That included not wanting children.

And hell, I still didn’t think there was anything wrong with not having kids. If I didn’t have Elodie, if I hadn’t fallen in love with her so easily, I would have been perfectly content to be the fun aunt to my niece and nephew.

But I did have Elodie, and I loved her, and I wanted a lifetime with her and her father.

I suppose this was why Jensen didn’t tell me right away.

It didn’t justify him keeping it from me, but it made it easier for me to accept after I had fallen in love with her.

* * *

I arrivedat Elodie’s daycare at three o’clock on the dot.

After my talk with Nadir, I had the sudden urge to see my daughter.

So I asked Jensen to let me pick her up and spend some time with her before I had to bring her home. I also got to Elodie’s daycare a little earlier than usual, because Ensley also went to the same daycare, and my sister usually went to pick her up after she picked Elliot up from school, which was at three.

I should already be leaving with Elodie by the time Evelyn even made her way to the daycare.

I wasn’t ready to tell my family about any of this.

At least, not yet.

I didn’t want to keep my daughter a secret from anyone, but I also didn’t want anyone to intrude on this time with her.

And I didn’t know how my dad would react once he realized I had donated eggs a few years back. My dad wasn’t the kind of man to try to control every aspect of his children’s lives, but I wondered if he would be disappointed in me if he knew, and I hated even the thought of it.

I also needed the time to work out my anger toward Jensen.

I wanted to forgive him.

I wanted to be with him.

I wanted to love him.

So for now, I was keeping this one little secret to myself.

I walked through the front doors of the daycare, a little surprised that a place this fancy could actually be a daycare.

There were no kid’s paintings hanging about in the hallway, no bright-colored artwork, not even children laughing or crying that you usually hear at a daycare.

This looked like a fancy business building.

I knew the kids were in a room somewhere.

And I had to give them my ID before I entered. I also caught sight of a few men walking around who looked like bodyguards. Obviously, they took the safety and security of the children around here seriously.

It eased something in me to know Elodie was safe when she wasn’t around either me or Jensen, but I wondered if she was happy here.

Jensen said this was one of the best daycares in the entire state of New York. They usually only accepted kids who had parents in a certain tax bracket.

It wasn’t something I could afford for Elodie from the profit I was projected to make from my studio, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about all these luxuries. Jensen would always be able to provide more for Elodie than I could.

I shook my head.

I shouldn’t get so caught up on the money side of things.

---