Damon (Starkis Family #2)

by Cheryl Douglas

He shrugged. “I don’t know how I feel yet.”

  “Fair enough.” I slipped my sunglasses up on my head so he could see my eyes. It was important for me to make a connection with him, to let him see how sincere I was about the offer I was about to make. “My lawyer and I have crunched some numbers and figured out how much I would have been paying in child support had I known about Dalia from the day she was born.”

  “And…?”

  “More than enough to buy that house Dalia loves and some seed money for you to start your own business.” I knew I had his attention. “You’re a mechanic, right? You can’t get anyone to hire you, but that doesn’t mean there’s no market for what you do. We both know there is.”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know anything about running a business.”

  I could help him figure things out, but forging an amicable relationship with him would be hard enough without including a business partnership. “So hire a business consultant or buy a franchise. They’ll walk you through everything. The point is if you want to create a new life for yourself and your family, you’ll find a way.” Before he could argue, I said, “This isn’t a loan, and it isn’t charity. This is money you should have had all these years. I want you to take it now. Please.”

  “I don’t know what to say,” he said, shoving his hands into the pockets of his worn, greasy jeans.

  “Just say yes. I want us to get along, to co-parent Dalia and give her the kind of life she deserves. You’re a big part of that.”

  “And what role do you see yourself playing?” he asked, pulling his baseball cap lower to shield his eyes from the glaring sun.

  “Obviously I want to spend time with her, to get to know her better. I was hoping she could spend time with me during school vacations, and maybe I could fly in for the weekend once or twice a month to spend the day with her. Would you be okay with that?”

  “Of course.” He shook his head slowly. “She’s your daughter. I can’t prevent you from spending time with her if you want to.”

  The last thing I wanted was for Andra or Nic to feel as though I was strong-arming them or using my money to gain the upper hand. “Obviously we’d all have to sit down and figure out an arrangement we can live with, assuming you want to reunite with your family?”

  “Of course I want that,” he said, rubbing his eyes. “Being apart from them is killing me. I love them.”

  “Good.” I extended my hand, which he took without hesitation. “Why don’t you go see Andra and Dalia? They’re staying at The Boxer, room 203. Maybe tonight we can all have dinner together? I was hoping we could tell Dalia that…”

  “You’re her father?”

  I nodded. It must have still been hard for him to share the child he’d raised. “I’ve been dying to tell her, but I realized you need to be a part of that conversation too. She needs to know that just because I’m in her life now, that doesn’t have to change her relationship with you. You’re still going to be the man of the house, the disciplinarian who guides her decisions and helps teach her right from wrong.”

  I wanted to believe I’d play a pivotal role in Dalia’s life moving forward, but I wasn’t naïve enough to believe that role would rival Nic’s, who would be with her every day, sharing moments I would never be a part of. Thinking about all the things I would miss out on saddened me, but it was comforting to know I’d get to see her grow up and find her way in the world.

  “I appreciate that,” he said, his voice gruff. “That you’re not challenging my place in Dalia’s life.”

  “More than anything, I want us all to work together, for Dalia’s sake.”

  “I think we can do that.”

  “The house I made an offer on is vacant. You guys should all go see it together.” I smiled. “But I have to warn you Dalia will probably tear through it like a tornado. She’s really excited.”

  Nic smiled. “Dal only has two speeds: zero and a hundred.”

  “Yeah, I kind of figured that out.” Before I let him go be with his family, I needed to settle one more issue. “My family doesn’t know about Dalia yet. I was waiting for us to sort things out before I told them.”

  “But you’re obviously going to tell them now?”

  “Yeah.” My cell phone rang, and I pocketed it when I saw my brother’s number. We had a lot to talk about, but that would have to wait. “In fact, I’d like to take Dalia back to New York City with me for a few days to spend some time with her grandparents and aunt and uncle. Would you be okay with that?”

  He frowned before rubbing his forehead. “Uh, I don’t know if she’d be comfortable going with you, you know, alone. She’s just getting to know you.”

  “I know.” It hurt to admit my own daughter might be afraid to spend time alone with me, but I had to acknowledge that he was right. “I thought maybe Andra could come back with us, if you’re okay with that. If they accept the offer on the house, which I trust they will, you could have the keys by this time tomorrow. All of your stuff is in storage nearby, and I’m sure it would be a nice surprise for Andra and Dalia to come home to all of their things.”

  “That fast?” He looked stunned.

  “Yeah, like I said, the house is empty. The family moved to another state after a job transfer, and they’re looking to unload the house as quickly as possible. So if you’re okay with Andra and Dalia coming home with me for a few days, maybe you could get settled into the new house so it’ll be all ready for them when they come home. It’s all furnished. The previous owners didn’t want to pay the moving fees to take everything with them so…”

  “A fully furnished house, mortgage free?” He shook his head. “Man, I don’t believe this.”

  I knew Nic was a proud man, and I didn’t want this to feel like a handout. “I believe in paying my debts. That’s all this is. So what do you think? Do we have a deal?”

  “Yeah.” The smile spread across his face slowly, almost hesitantly, as though he was testing it. “I’d say we have a deal. And, Damon, thanks.”

  “I’m the one who should be thanking you,” I said, shaking his hand again. “For everything you’ve done for my daughter.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Damon

  I could tell Dalia was nervous about meeting my family, and I didn’t blame her. They were intimidating to say the least, but I knew they would adore her, just as I did. She’d already been through so much in the last few days, and I wanted this to be as easy on her as possible. That was why I’d asked my family to gather at my parents’ house so I could share the news with them just before I introduced them to the newest member of our family.

  As our limo pulled into the drive, Dalia looked at the house, her jaw dropping as her eyes widened. “Is this a castle?”

  I chuckled. “No, this is the house where I grew up.”

  “You grew up here?” she asked, staring at me. “Does that mean I’m a princess now?”

  I pinched my lips together to keep from laughing. “No, honey, we’re not royalty, just regular people.” Of course, I knew there was nothing regular about my family. Even a child could see that.

  “But you must be gazillionaires!”

  “Dalia,” Andra admonished, touching our daughter’s arm, “that’s not polite. We don’t talk about how much money someone has.”

  “It’s okay,” I said, smiling at Andra. I wanted Dalia to feel she could say anything to me, ask me anything, without fear of a scolding. The day would come when I would have to be the bad guy and discipline her, but for now, I wanted to focus on getting her to love me. “Um, I’m going to go in and have a quick chat with them first. Will you guys be okay out here for a few minutes?”

  “As long as we have this.” Andra smiled as she raised the iPad stocked with Dalia’s favorite games.

  “Can I have a snack?” Dalia asked, pointing at the fully stocked mini-bar.

  I’d told my parents I was bringing guests to meet them, so I knew my mother probably had a full buffet waiting for us. “I’m pretty s
ure you’ll want to save room for my mother’s spread,” I said, hooking a thumb toward the house as the driver opened the door for me. “She’s always got good grub. But if you’re really hungry, I think there’re some apples in there. Help yourself.”

  “Thanks,” she said, peering into the compartment.

  I couldn’t deny the tension I felt as I walked up the steps. I’d made this trek before, rehearsing in my mind how I would tell my father I’d smashed up my new car or failed a test I hadn’t bothered to take, but I’d never imagined I would be telling him he had a grandchild he knew nothing about. I knew they would love Dalia, but the news wouldn’t come without recrimination. How could I have been so stupid, so careless? Was there a chance I had other illegitimate children I knew nothing about?

  “There he is.” I heard my father’s booming voice as soon as I opened the door. “He was the one who called this family meeting. You would think he would at least have the good sense to show up on time.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said, rounding the corner into the formal living room. I would have preferred a less formal room, so as not to intimidate Dalia and Andra, but my mother had always insisted on entertaining guests in the most impressive room in the house. “I know I kept you all waiting.” I smiled at my brother and his new bride. “You both look wonderful. How was the honeymoon?”

  Deacon’s eyes narrowed as he gave me a quick onceover. “Fine. But what’s this all about? Your message said it was important.”

  “It is.” I smiled at my sister, who looked as confused as everyone else. She would be stunned when she met Dalia, who was a mirror image of Tiana at that age. I knew she would be saddened she’d missed out on so much time with her only niece, a little girl who not only looked like her but shared her passion for dance. “Thank you for coming.”

  “Of course.” Tiana reached for my hands. “Are you okay?”

  Tiana and I had always been close. When the familial pressures became too much for her, I was the one she called. We would meet for a drink, and I’d let her vent about our domineering father and remind her that I would support her if she chose to cut him out of her life and forge her own path.

  “Yeah.” I leaned in to kiss her forehead as I squeezed her hands. Turning to my mother, I reached for her hand and kissed it. “Thanks for arranging this, Mom.”

  “You did not give me much choice,” she said, stealing a quick glance at her husband. “Please, Damon, tell us what is going on.”

  With a heavy sigh, I looked around the room. My eyes finally landed on my father, who was standing against the limestone fireplace with one hand in his pocket. His casual stance didn’t fool me. I knew he was wound tighter than I was.

  “I have some news.” I’d already decided I would cut right to the chase. “I found out last year, when I was in Greece, that I have a daughter.”

  There was a collective gasp before everyone fired questions at me in unison.

  I held up my hands, knowing that would do little to stop the barrage. “Her name is Dalia. You remember Andra Papadopoulos?”

  “That girl from our village?” my father asked, frowning. “Her mother owned that little dress shop.” He snapped his fingers, obviously trying to remember the name.

  “That’s her.”

  The Papadopoulos family knew of my famous father—everyone in the village did—but I hadn’t expected him to remember them. He rarely wasted time with people who didn’t share his social standing. I only hoped when the time came, he would treat Andra’s beloved Baba with the respect she deserved.

  “We had a brief relationship almost eight years ago,” I explained. “We were both visiting the village that summer. Andra returned to Boston for her final year of college in the fall, and I didn’t see or hear from her again... until last summer.”

  “I do not understand,” my mother said, gripping the arm of the cream silk sofa. “She did not tell you she was pregnant?”

  “No.” I knew they would have questions, but I wanted to honor Andra’s right to privacy as much as possible. “She assumed I wasn’t ready to be a father, and she didn’t want to burden me with a child she thought I wouldn’t want.”

  “She has no right to decide that,” my father said, slicing his hand through the air. “You may be a lot of things, but I could not have raised a man who would abandon his own flesh and blood.”

  Typical. With Demi, it always came back to him. “Andra was trying to do what she thought was best for Dalia. Long story short, she returned to Boston, married her high school sweetheart, and the two of them have been raising Dalia ever since.”

  “How dare she!” Demi bellowed. “That girl is a Starkis!”

  “Her husband has been a good father to Dalia,” I explained. “Dalia loves him very much.”

  “God,” Tiana said, shaking her head, “I can’t believe this. How did you find out?”

  “I saw them in a café in Saronida.”

  “You mean it was a coincidence, running into them?” Tiana asked.

  “Call it a coincidence or fate,” I said, shrugging. “All I know is that it was the best thing that could have happened to me. Learning I was a father changed me.”

  “That’s why you…” Deacon said, and I knew he was thinking about my therapy.

  “That’s why I made some serious changes in my life,” I confirmed. “Andra wasn’t sure I was fit to be a parent. Obviously she’d been following my life in the tabloids and was concerned about the kind of influence I would be on our daughter.”

  My father looked disgusted. “Foolish girl. Does she not know you cannot believe what you read in those rags?”

  “We all know I haven’t been a saint,” I said, needing to defend the mother of my child. “Andra was right to be concerned.”

  “But she had no right to keep your child from you,” Demi said. “That is unforgiveable.”

  “But I have forgiven her,” I said, looking my father in the eye. “And I’m asking you to do the same. She’s a part of our family now, your granddaughter’s mother, and I’m asking you to treat her with respect.”

  Demi took a deep breath. “As you wish, son.”

  I was surprised he was willing to relent so easily. Maybe he was mellowing in his old age, as I’d suggested to Eleni.

  “Dalia is here.” I smiled at the excited gasps from my family. “She’s waiting in the car with Andra. I want you all to meet her, but please remember she’s just a little girl. She’s scared and uncertain about all the changes that have taken place in her life lately. She just found out I’m her dad, and now she’s meeting all of you.”

  “It’s a lot for a little girl to take in,” Mia said. “We’ll remember that.”

  I looked at my sister-in-law, my smile slipping when I read the question in her eyes. She wanted to know if her best friend knew that I was a daddy.

  ***

  I watched with pride as my family welcomed Dalia. She was demonstrating her dance moves with Tiana in the huge living room while my mother looked on, her eyes shining with pride.

  “She is a beautiful girl,” Demi said, slapping my back.

  “Yes, she is.” I watched Dalia. I would never tire of seeing her face light up the way it did when she giggled.

  “You should be very proud of her.”

  “I have no right to be proud of her.” I slipped my hand into my pocket as I leaned against a plaster pillar that extended to the thirty-foot ceiling. “I had no part in her life until very recently.”

  “I hope you intend to do right by her now that you do know,” my father said, watching me carefully.

  “You can count on that.”

  Demi nodded, his satisfaction obvious. “I am glad to hear that. I am so happy to have my first grandchild. It is about time.”

  I smirked. “Even though it’s a girl?”

  “I have nothing against girls,” he said, looking affronted. “Your sister is the light of my life.”

  That much was true. Tiana was daddy’s little princess, a title
she now believed was more of a curse than a blessing. “But granddaughters won’t carry on the family name. Isn’t that what you’re most concerned about, your legacy?” It was time to talk to my father about my plans for the future. I’d spoken to Blake a few times, and we now had a clear sense of how our partnership would work.

  “My legacy.” He sighed. “I hate to think of myself as a mere mortal, but I suppose it is true I must go sometime.”

  I chuckled. “You’ll never be forgotten, Dad. No matter what, no one will forget what you contributed to this world, especially your family.”

  He blinked repeatedly, as though he was trying to get his emotions in check. “I appreciate that. I know I was a hard-ass at times—”

  I choked on a mouthful of scotch. The sound of an obscenity coming from my refined father was so unexpected. Holding my hand over my mouth, I cleared my throat until I could speak. “You were tough, but I understand why. That’s the way you were raised. It’s the only way you knew.”

  “I hope you and your brother and sister have learned a better way. I don’t want your children to fear you the way mine feared me.”

  We had all feared my father’s take on corporal punishment growing up. I put my arm around his shoulders. “I’ve learned a lot from you over the years, what to do and what not to do.”

  “I guess I’ll take that.” His lips curled into a reluctant smile. “You could have said worse.”

  “But the best lesson of all you taught me was how to be my own man.”

  “I’m glad.”

  “You may not be when you hear what I have planned.” I wasn’t sure if this was the right time or place, in the midst of a family celebration, but I couldn’t carry this weight around any longer.

  Demi turned to face me. “What do you mean? What do you have planned?”

  “I’m going into business with Blake.”

  His eyes hardened, the muscle in his jaw jumping. “Blake? You can’t be serious. You know how I feel about him.”

  “I know you hate him,” I said, thinking that was an understatement. “But you can’t deny he’s a brilliant businessman.” Before my father could argue, I continued. “He’s been an angel investor for a few years, and he’s made a lot of money. His strategy has been to invest in medium-sized companies that need an influx of cash to take them to the next level. But our strategy will be different. We’ll invest in start-ups and guide them through the growth and development stage, taking a percentage of the equity in exchange for our expertise and money.”