Page 80 of Bossy Trouble

I remember having mixed feelings about the shocking discovery. On the one hand, I’d been relieved. There was little need for the vasectomy anymore, and while I was still careful, it reduced the worry I had about having a child.

On the other hand…I felt an inexplicable hollowness inside.

I didn’t want children, that was for sure, but having that choice taken away from me felt…odd.

But now that I had a child, I didn’t know how I felt about that either.

“So the doctor was wrong,” I murmured to myself. Either that, or he’d lied so he wouldn’t have to do the vasectomy. I didn’t doubt that Garrett was telling me the truth, even though it shocked me to my bones. Garrett wasn’t the type to lie about things like that, and Georgia wouldn’t make up fatherhood myths either. While I did make that comment about being trapped, I never made it with her in mind. Other women were orbiting around me, one of whom had gone far enough to poke holes in my condom. That was who my comment was directed at. Never Georgia.

Besides, now that I thought about it, I started to see the resemblance I shared with Avery. She looked like a blend of Georgia and my mother. Was that why I liked her so much?

Damn. I had a daughter.

I let out a breath, and some of my anger was released with it. Gradually, exhilaration replaced it.

Now that I was thinking clearly, I suppose I understood why Georgia felt the need to do what she did. I was an asshole to her back then. Maybe more than an asshole. I blatantly flirted with other girls in front of her, and even though we weren’t official, it was a shitty thing to do. Most of the time, I didn’t even do it out of interest in any other woman. I did it to get a rise out of Georgia and to prove to myself I could suppress the feelings that I could sense were growing for her.

It was a completely childish way of coping, and damn…I was a dick. Still was in a lot of ways. How could I be mad at her for believing everything I showcased to her and for protecting herself and her daughter?

The truth is that I wasn’t mad per se.

I was overwhelmed with a lot of emotions, but anger wasn’t the prevalent one.

I was a little devastated that she hadn’t talked to me about what she was going through. That I’d missed things in my daughter’s life—her first words, the first time she walked. That my daughter didn’t know who her father was.

But none of that compared to the overwhelming feeling of shame that overpowered me.

It was no one’s fault but my own that I missed out on all those things.

I didn’t think I would get over that any time soon.

But now wasn’t the time to sit and mope about that. I needed to start making up for lost time immediately.

I got up, my heart racing in my chest. I needed to go to Georgia right now and let her know that I planned on being in my daughter’s life. From today henceforth, I wanted Avery to know that I was her father, and that was all there was to it. I was going to give that little girl the world.

And I was going to be the best damn husband Georgia could have ever wished for.

Yes, I’d fucked up. Yes, she probably deserved better. But that didn’t matter anymore. I was going to marry that girl and make her mine. And it didn’t matter how long I had to grovel for it.

When I got back to the office, Georgia was nowhere to be found.

Instead, Lupin’s constipated face stood in my lobby.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

I was happy to see that he still sported a shiner and a cut on his lip. He smiled at me too.

“Nice,” he gloated, pointing to the corner of my jaw.

“You should see yourself,” I said. “What do you want?”

“I found out the reason why you’re looking for investors,” he said.

I saw it coming, so I was no longer shocked. I cocked my eyebrow at him. “And?”

“You’re in a lot of trouble.”

“I know that,” I said. “What are you going to do with that information?”

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