Page 83 of Secret Triplets for Christmas

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Oliver

Ilearned at a young age, right after that ice water incident at eight years old, how to dull my emotions. By then, I had learned that good feelings were fleeting and the bad ones could only get you in trouble if you expressed them. Only Liam's death had pierced the wall I’d put around my emotions.

Walking away from Lindsay five years ago had been a close second.

But right here, right now, standing in the living room, having discovered she'd kept my children from me, there was no dulling the pain and anger swirling inside me. I tried to listen to what she said, but I only found her excuses to be selfish. She said I had abandoned her. She insisted that she loved me. But I understood now that they were just words to try and make what she did not sound so bad. Hell, she tried to make it my fault. Clearly, I didn't know who Lindsay was. Had she always been like this and I hadn't seen it?

I heard commotion at the door, little voices chatting away, and the pressure in my heart built as I realized I was about to meet my children. Jesus fuck. I was a father. I sucked in a breath.

"Are you ready for this?"

I looked up from where I'd been sitting on the couch trying to gather my thoughts. Brett McKinnon entered the room. I stood, more out of automatic good manners than respect.

"Because if you can't keep it together, we’re going to have to do this another time. I understand that you are pissed off at Lindsay, and I'll be honest, I don't blame you, but these little girls are innocent."

I gave him a curt nod to let him know that I understood. "I'm fine."

He studied me for a moment. "What Lindsay did was wrong, but why ever she made this decision, you can bet she thought it was best for everyone around."

I rolled my shoulders to keep the angry tension away. "The reasons she gave me don't justify my missing five years."

Brett gave a short nod. "I imagine from where you're standing, it doesn't. But let me ask you this. Clearly, you slept with my daughter, and surely, you're smart enough to know that whenever you fuck a woman, there’s a possibility of a pregnancy. Now, if I remember correctly, you left town. Did you ever call her? Did you reach out to make sure she was okay?”

My gut tightened, and I hated that while I still felt Lindsay was wrong, there was some truth to his statement. I figured she’d be okay because she had her father and Mira. She didn't need me.

Just then, a little blonde girl came bursting into the room. My breath stalled in my lungs. My knees felt weak, so I sank down on the couch again.

A moment later, Lindsay appeared with two more girls. They were all blonde and blue-eyed, but not identical.

The first girl skidded to a halt, wrapping her arms around Brett's legs and peering out from behind him. The other two girls lagged behind Lindsay, looking at me with uncertainty. Had she told them who I was? Did they not want to meet their father?

Brett extricated himself from the girl. "Go stand with your mom. I'm going to let you all have some time."

He strode out of the room, and the little girl who had been wrapped around him hurried over to Lindsay. Lindsay stopped about three feet away from me and then dropped down to her knees, gathering the three little girls close. I had this quick flash in my brain that this was my family… or could have been my family.

The little girl who had been holding on to Brett put her hand to Lindsay's ear and leaned in to whisper.

"I'm going to introduce you now." Lindsay looked up at me, and her girls stood next to her, waiting expectantly. Lindsay was quiet, and I wondered if she was having a hard time figuring out how to explain the situation.

"I guess the best way to do this is just to get it out," she said with a nervous smile. "Girls, this is Oliver. He's your daddy."

The little girl who'd been holding onto Brett looked at me, then at Lindsay, with wide, round eyes and mouth. The second little girl’s brows furrowed in confusion. The third child was difficult to read, mostly because she was hiding behind Lindsay.

"Oliver. This is Georgie, Cassie, and this one…" She reached behind her to pull the third little girl out. “This is Olivia."

For a moment, I could only stare at them. They were like little angels. A miracle. How was it possible that I could have helped make three precious little beings?

I cleared my throat. "Hello."

"Do you mean that you got married and he’s our daddy?" the one she called Georgie asked.

"No. I mean that he's your real daddy."

Georgie looked up at me, her brows pulled together. She put one hand on her hip as she stared at me. "Where have you been?"

Her quip might've been funny if it wasn't so damn tragic.

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