Page 34 of Silver Fox's Secret Baby

I closed my eyes as reality set in. I threaded my fingers through my hair. "Samantha, I'm sorry, I—"

"Don't say anything, Henry. Let's just pretend that never happened."

Internally, there was so much I wanted to say. I wanted to pull her back into my arms and make promises I knew I couldn't keep. But more importantly, I needed to respect her and her wishes. I gave a nod to let her know that I would abide by her wishes.

She turned and rushed to exit my office. “Oh... Tori.”

I froze. Samantha stepped back, allowing Victoria to enter my office. Holy shit. If Samantha hadn’t pulled away, Victoria would have walked in on me fucking her friend.

“Hey, are you okay?” Victoria asked Samantha.

“Yeah... just busy... tired. How are you? That baby will be here any day, it seems.” Samantha was good. Real good. There was no way Victoria had an inkling of what had happened moments ago.

Victoria rubbed her belly. “I hope so.” She looked over at me. “Hey, Dad.”

“I wasn’t expecting you.” I winced as that was a terrible greeting.

She laughed. “Well hello to you, too. Alex had a call with the California office, so he’s not getting home until a little later, so I thought I’d stop by and say hello.”

“I need to go up and check on Pax.” Samantha attempted to exit my office again.

“Can I come and say hello to him too?” Victoria asked.

“Yes, of course.”

“I’ll be down in a minute, Dad.”

I nodded. “I’ll be here.”

When they both left my office, I picked up my drink, finishing the contents. I’d hoped it would calm my nerves, but the frustration gnawed at me. I threw the glass against the wall in frustration. Why was I so weak when it came to Samantha?

13

Samantha

As I approached the elevator with Victoria, my fingers trembled as I pressed the button for the third floor. Victoria had very nearly caught me kissing her father! Victoria chattered on beside me, oblivious to the storm raging in my mind. Flashes of Henry's kiss replayed in my head. The warmth of his lips, the strength in his embrace... it had felt like a dream. A dream I'd once longed for but now knew was foolish. How stupid of me to get caught up in him again.

"Seriously, Sam, I can't get enough milkshakes and corn chips. It's so bizarre!" A soft laugh escaped her lips.

I forced a smile. “For me it was root beer and barbecue chips.” I worked to focus on the moment, but thoughts spun images of Henry and his kiss, and now, Victoria stood mere feet away, oblivious that I'd just been in a lip-lock with her father. She would have been shocked had she discovered us. I also felt sad because I needed to talk to someone about this crazy situation, but I had no one. My mother was gone. I couldn’t confide in Marie. Victoria would be the obvious choice, but as Henry’s daughter, I couldn’t. I thought back to several months ago when she confided in me about Alex. She hadn’t named him or told me he was Henry’s friend, but she’d indicated she was pregnant and planning to keep the child a secret. My advice had been based on my own experience with Henry without revealing the truth of it. I was lying to her as well. Inwardly, I berated myself. How did I end up in this mess?

"Samantha?" Victoria's voice pulled me back to the present, her eyes full of concern. "You seem a little distracted. Is everything okay?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine," I lied, rubbing my temples to chase away the memories.

The elevator reached the third floor, and we exited, heading to Pax’s room. I spotted him sitting amid a sea of toys, playing without a care in the world. The sight of him brought a smile to my lips. He was why I was making the choices I was making. Right or wrong, my decisions were all about protecting him.

"Hey, Pax!" Victoria called out as she approached Pax. "I've missed you!"

Pax held up a toy truck. “I’m playing cars.”

“I can see that. It looks like fun.”

“You can play with me. Mommy too.”

Victoria laughed. “I’d love to, but if I managed to get myself down on the floor, I don’t think I’d be able to get up again.”

We watched Pax return to his playing, and Victoria chatted about her pregnancy and how she'd soon be a mom herself.

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